December 14, 1995
Web posted at: 8:40 p.m. EST
From Entertainment Correspondent Sherry Dean
HOLLYWOOD, California (CNN) -- British actress Emma Thompson has demonstrated her range with acclaimed performances in films such as "Howard's End," "The Remains of the Day" and "In the Name of the Father."
But Thompson is now doing what few actresses have done. Not only is she starring in the new film "Sense and Sensibility," but she wrote the screenplay for the film as well.
Thompson had written some comedy sketches for television but had no screenwriting experience when she was asked to adapt the 200-year-old Jane Austen novel for the movies.
"I was in Los Angeles making 'Dead Again' and the producer, Lindsay Doran, asked me if I'd be interested in adapting this book," Thompson said. "Austen is my favorite author and I thought, 'Well, of course, I'd be very interested, but I don't know how. I don't know where to start, A, writing a screenplay and B, sort of adapting it from a great novel."
Thompson spent some four years working on drafts of the often humorous but poignant story of two sisters who reach turning points in their romantic lives after their father's death leaves them virtually penniless. (700K QuickTime movie)
Actress Kate Winslet, who plays Thompson's younger sister, said it was interesting to watch Thompson, the screenwriter, at work.
Asked whether Thompson said during the filming she could rewrite or try a line differently, Winslet said, "Oh, often she did. She would say, 'Oh, God, that was a crap line. Why did I write that? I want to change that a bit.'"
Another interesting choice for "Sense and Sensibility" was its director, Ang Lee. The Taiwanese-born director had twice been nominated for Oscars for best foreign-language film for his movies "The Wedding Banquet" and "Eat Drink Man Woman." When producers ask him to direct "Sense and Sensibility," Lee said, he thought, "They're crazy. What do I know about 19th century England?"
But Lee said that once he read the script he realized that his previous films, which were about familial relationships and romance, had a lot in common with "Sense and Sensibility."
For those who might shy away from seeing a movie based on a classic work of literature, actor Hugh Grant observed, "It is just damn funny and sort of charming."
Thompson said the situations in "Sense and Sensibility" are timeless. "Women still fall in love with the wrong guy," she said. "They still get jilted. They're still looking for people to marry. They're still worried about how they are going to survive financially. There are still mothers who want to get their daughters married."
All of which intrigued Thompson, who said she enjoyed doing "Sense and Sensibility" more than any other project she's done.
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