She was the best friend to Anne's beloved but deceased mother. A woman of birth and independent means, Lady Russell dispenses advise to the Elliots, most especially Anne. In the instance of Captain Wentworth, she advised Anne not to marry the penniless captain. Seven years after turning him down, Anne has come to regret her decision to follow Lady Russell's counsel, for the Captain has made his way in the world and become rich. Most importantly, she has never ceased to love him. She has come to understand that Lady Russell, while well-meaning, gave her bad advice.
Which actress do you like best in the role of Lady Russell? Alice Krige in the 2007 adaptation of Persuasion? (Top photo)
Or Susan Fleetwood in 1995's Persuasion?
It's a tough call, but I think you will have an opinion.
3 comments:
An interesting question, but it comes down to how each adaptation viewed Lady Russell. One portrays her as a woman with an agenda, an agenda doesn't preclude Anne's happiness so much as devalue it. The other Lady Russell is a woman whose agenda does include what she believed to be a path to Anne's happiness. She simply happens to be mistaken. So between the two I would say Alice Krige came closer to the character in the novel.
The 1995 version is my favorite, lurve it!
Susan Fleetwood...I like the adaption she is in better. I had a hard time seeing Alice K. as Lady Russell because I couldn't shake the memory her portrayal of the "Borg Queen" in a past Star Trek movie !
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