Series / Jane Eyre (1983)

A television serial adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's classic novel Jane Eyre, produced by the BBC in 1983. The BBC had previously adapted the novel in 1973 and would do so again in 2006. Directed by Julian Amyes, it contains eleven episodes starring Zelah Clarke as Jane and Timothy Dalton as Mr. Rochester. It is considered as the most faithful of the numerous adaptations of the novel by many critics and fans.

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"Reader, I used these tropes":

• Adaptational Early Appearance: After the fire incident in Mr. Rochester's bedroom, Jane doesn't see Mr. Rochester until the house party starts. In this version, Jane encounters Mr. Rochester in the nick of time asking why he couldn't dismiss Grace Poole.
• Adaptational Location Change: It happens at least twice.
  • In Episode 5, Jane and Mr. Rochester talk in the library after they saved Mr. Mason. In the novel, it happened outside Thornfield Hall.
  • Episode 11 shows a scene where Jane talks to the ostler about Mr. Rochester's whereabouts in the ruins of Thornfield Hall. In the novel, Jane returns to the inn after visiting Thornfield Hall.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Miss Temple has reddish brown hair in this version.
• Adaptation Name Change: In the novel, one the female servants in Thornfield Hall is named Mary but in this version it was changed to Maria to avoid One-Steve Limit.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Unlike in the novel, this version implies that Adele is Mr. Rochester's daughter and he doesn't do much bad towards her.
• Adaptational Timespan Change:
  • In the novel, Jane discovered the inheritance and her new cousins before Christmas. In this version, it happened on the night of Christmas.
  • St. John told Jane and his sisters that Rosamund Oliver is about to be married shortly after Christmas. In this version, it happened around summer.
• Adapted Out: Louisa Eshton and Mary Ingram, few of the guests in Mr. Rochester's party aren't included in this version.
• Adrenaline Time: This happens when Jane leaves Mr. Rochester's room after interrogating Grace Poole.
• Ascended Extra: Bessie and Mr. Briggs stick around the story much longer.
• Biting the Handkerchief: Mr. Mason does this when he sees his sister Bertha being tied by Mr. Rochester to stop her from attacking anyone.
• Behind the Black: While Mr. Rochester opens a hidden door behind the curtains on the third floor, Jane doesn't notice anything strange in the area she's standing. It's only after the camera pans slighty to the right where they discover Mr. Mason wounded on the chair.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Jane is almost always kind and polite, but she does have her own limits. She gave a nasty glare to Mr. Rochester after the latter admitted he dislike his ward Adele for reminding of her mother in Episode 4, and in Episode 10, she raised her voice after St. John told her that Mr. Rochester is a terrible person.
• Brick Joke: In Episode 3, John complains why he has to carry Jane's luggage to her room. In the last episode, after Jane arrives in Ferndean, he does the same thing but he becomes happy.
• Bridal Carry: Mr. Rochester carries Jane this way across the drawing room after the latter fainted from stress in their failed wedding.
• Call-Forward: In Episode 4, Leah mentions to Jane about Blanche Ingram after the latter comments that Mr. Rochester is busy dealing with the neighbor gentries. Said Blanche would later show up in the next episode.
• Canon Foreigner: This adaptation introduces few new characters that are not in the novel, like Rogers the equestrian in Thornfield Hall.
• Catchphrase: Mr. Rochester has "Damnation!" as his catchphrase.
• Change the Uncomfortable Subject: When Bessie talks too much about the current situation of the Reeds, Jane decides to change the subject by talking about themselves, until Bessie mentioned Jane's uncle.
• Character in the Logo: The opening features a drawing of the titular character beside the title.
• Comfort Food: Unlike in the novel and in some adaptations where Mr. Rochester gave Jane a flower after saving Mr. Mason, in this version Mr. Rochester offers brandy and some biscuits to Jane.
• Composite Character: Mr. Bates takes the place of his nurse to tell Jane about Helen's condition. In the novel, his name was only mentioned by his nurse.
• Compressed Adaptation: This version skips the part where young Jane sleeps with Helen on the night before the latter died.
• Dog Food Diet: In Episode 9, Jane being in near starvation after being away from Thornfield Hall for few days is forced to eat a leftover porridge that is meant to be fed for pigs.
• Don't You Dare Pity Me!: Like the 1943 version, Mr. Rochester has this reaction after Jane reunites with him, thinking she wanted to take care of him out of pity. He later changed his mind.
• Dropped a Bridge on Him: Unlike in the novel and other adaptations, this version just shows a scene where Mr. Bates told Jane that Helen is dying from consumption, then it cuts to Helen's tombstone.
• Dutch Angle: Mr. Brocklehurst was introduced this way when he visits Gateshead Hall.
• Face on the Cover: The DVD cover of US version released in 2005 was heavily criticized for having a big close-up face of Timothy Dalton while Zelah Clarke looked small and behind the background, to the point some have joked that Dalton should have played as a titular character instead. Averted in European versions where both of them are given equal focus on the covers or Jane herself is mainly featured.
• Feet-First Introduction: Bertha is introduced this way when she enters Jane's bedroom at night.
• First Day of School Episode: Episode Two begins with Jane attending at Lowood School.
• Flashback: As the innkeeper tells Jane, there are two flashbacks seen where Mr. Rochester saves the residents of Thornfield Hall including Bertha.
• Flyaway Shot: The last scene in the final episode ends with a camera pulling away from Jane and Mr. Rochester to see a panorama shot of the forest.
• The Glomp: Jane leaps into Mr. Rochester's arms on the day after their proposal.
• Gossipy Hens: The two servants in Lowood school both gossip rumors about Jane waiting to receive a letter in the post office often and joked that her face looked like she marched outside from the funeral when she received none.
• Height Insult: It doesn't matter for Jane if she's plain or unattractive, but calling her "little" or making fun of her short stature irks her. At one point, Mr. Rochester called Jane a "little niggard" but he quickly changed his mind when he realized that it could lead Jane to leave him permanently. Thankfully, Jane forgives him and let it slide.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Jane and Mr. Rochester borderline in this version. Jane seems to have an average height, but she looks petite compare to Mr. Rochester who is very tall.
• Hypocrite: Downplayed. Upon first meeting with Adele, Jane told her that in England little girls should follow what they are told, even though she raised her voice against Mrs. Reed when she was a child before.
• "I Can't Look!" Gesture: Georgiana does this and forced herself to leave the room after she saw her mother died from stroke.
• Impairment Shot: When young Jane collapses inside the red room from terror, the scene becomes blurry for a while.
• Ironic Echo Cut: The morning after the fire was taken out in Mr. Rochester's bedroom, Jane meets Mrs Fairfax in the corridors who is busy doing chores after Mr. Rochester went to a house party.
  Mrs. Fairfax: Jane, keep an eye on Leah and John. You know how they love to waste time gossiping.
  [Cut to John and Leah, who have been gossiping in Mr. Rochester's bedroom]
• Jump Scare: Episode 8 has this, where Bertha is seen fully and suddenly attacks Mr. Rochester in the attic.
• Late for School: The third episode opens with Jane being late working in school, although it wasn't because of waking late. She was often waiting at the post office to receive letters in accepting her as a governess.
• Local Hangout: Jane sometimes take a shelter at a large tree surrounded with circular bench outside Thornfield Hall to read or draw. It's also the same place where she received marriage proposal from Mr. Rochester.
• Messy Hair: Mr. Rochester messes up Jane's hair while they kiss on the night before they marry. It also happens again between them during their parting scene.
• Meanwhile Scene: In episode 9, while Jane stays in the Moor House, the last scene then cuts to the Thornfield Hall where Mr. Rochester asks Mr. Briggs to search for Jane.
• Named by the Adaptation:
  • One of the superintendents in Lowood whom Jane talked after the latter received a letter from Mrs. Fairfax is named Miss Watts in this version.
  • The names of the female bread seller and one of her customers in Morton are never mentioned in the novel. In this version, they are named as Mrs. Drake and Miss Welling.
• Narrator: Jane narrates important past events or pieces of information during the transition of the next scene.
• Not So Above It All: Jane is often seen shy and serious but there are some moments where she showed her playful nature, like when she became excited to see Pilot in Mrs. Fairfax's room and managed to pet him.
• Object-Tracking Shot: The camera pans around a set of Jane's contemporary things, including a sketch of herself and Mr. Rochester in the opening sequence.
• One Head Taller: Mr. Rochester in this version is full head taller than Jane. So much that in some scenes Jane has to stand few steps in the stairs to talk face-to-face with him.
• Perma-Stubble: Mr. Rochester gains one of these in the last episode.
• P.O.V. Cam: The first episode has this twice through Jane's eyes. The first is when Jane views the surroundings inside the red room before she heard a lightning and the other is the view of leaving Bessie and Gateshead Hall behind.
• Prayer Pose: Near the end of Episode 10, Jane does this in her bedroom after she heard Mr. Rochester's voice.
• Previously on…: Episode 8 starts with a recap from the last scene in previous episode.
• Quizzical Tilt: Jane does this when Mr. Rochester asked her some questions after they put Mr. Mason out to safety.
• Running Away to Cry: Jane goes off to the gardens in tears when she thinks she couldn't bear leaving Mr. Rochester and Thornfield Hall after she fell in love with him.
• Second Episode Introduction: Mr. Rochester isn't introduced until the third episode in this adaptation. It's also notable in introducing some semi-major characters like Mrs. Fairfax and Adele since that it's when Jane arrives in Thornfield Hall.
• Sitting on the Roof: In the third episode, Jane stands on the roof in Thornfield Hall to enjoy the view twice but she stopped doing that due to strange noises coming from the third floor.
• Sting: This version has a dissonant violin sting riff that plays before the end of episode.
• Suddenly Shouting:
  • Mr. Rochester does this after Jane refused to stay with him and then turn back from their failed wedding:
    Mr. Rochester: "You will give me your love! You will, YOU WIIIIIILLLLL!!!"
  • Jane begs St. John not to disturb her after she hears Mr. Rochester's voice faraway:
    Jane: "Leave me alone! LEAVE ME!"
• Tear Up the Contract: In Episode 7, Jane begs Mr. Rochester not to send his letter to the bank manager for a request to withdraw some jewelries for her. Mr. Rochester has a change of heart and then tears up his letter in front of her, much to the amusement of both of them.
• Truer to the Text: Like the 1973 adaptation, this also has one of the most faithful adaptations of the novel. It included some characters and scenes that are not present in other versions.
• Walk and Talk: Jane and Mrs. Dent are seen walking down the stairs in Thornfield Hall. They have a brief conversation about Adele until John the servant calls Jane.
• Window Watcher: In Episode 7, Mrs. Fairfax is seen watching Jane and Mr. Rochester returning to Thornfield Hall through the window in the middle of the night.