Spoiler warning! This review will contain spoilers of both the book and the many adaptations, including this newest adaptation. 

When I first heard that they were going to make a brand new adaptation of Persuasion, I'll admit, I was excited. Persuasion is one of my favourite novels by Jane Austen. Previous adaptations all had their dedications to the plot and the depths of feeling present throughout the novel. Anne is the only one of Austen's leading female protagonists that was constant in her feelings; in love with a man of little prospect, who had no money and was looked down on by her own family and who Anne was persuaded to give up by Lady Russel. Despite all this, and throughout the novel, she loved him. She is one of the most melancholic characters Austen had written, followed closely, perhaps, by Fanny in Mansfield Park. Her low spirits and seemingly hopeless situation were made up for with her keen intellect and sensible judgements, outstanding patience and kindness, which often presented themselves at key points in the novel. 

Persuasion, in brief, is the story of Anne Elliot, the middle child of three sisters to a wealthy-spend-a lot and in-debt Baronet, who was persuaded by her deceased mother's friend, Lady Russel, to give up her engagement to the fortuneless naval officer Fredrick Wentworth when she was a young woman. All her life she was put down, ridiculed, blind-sided and not always treated with kindness, becoming a wall-flower in a family that is majorly self-centred and hyper-focused on social standing. Short of a decade after ending the engagement, their paths are to cross again when her father had no choice but to lease his Kellynch estate, and the tenant chosen happens to be Fredrick's brother-in-law, Admiral Croft. Neither would speak about their past and as the novel suggests - "Now they were as strangers; worse than strangers, for they could never become acquainted"  Captain Wentworth is now rich following good fortune in the Napoleonic Wars and is quite the catch. Anne must then watch as Fredrick courts Louisa Musgrove under her nose, unaware he is doing it to try and get over her. At points, he is just as dismissive of Anne as her own family had been, making Anne convinced he is still angry at her and no longer cares for her. Following Louisa's accident at Lyme, they do not see one another till he comes to Bath, where Anne's father is living in style. Anne later learns Louisa is engaged to Captain Benwick and not Captain Wentworth, much to her surprise. At that time, she is receiving blatant attention from Mr Elliot, the heir to her family's fortune and estates. Things come to a head when Captain Wentworth writes Anne a passionate and emploring letter, expressing his feelings about her and their situation, bringing the forlorn pair together again.

It's a beautiful story, despite its sad tones and makes you feel so much for Anne and what she has to endure both internally and at the hand of her own family's behaviour, plus having to endure in silence as the man you loved, and still loved, courted another woman in your very presence. She has to put up with three ridiculous relatives, all vain and self-important; what is known as the "Elliot Pride", being the only one with any sense, likeability and compassion. So when I learnt the Netflix adaptation was going to be "witty'' and "humorous", I couldn't believe it. Was it a mistake? Was the article wrong? And then the trailer was released and I had so many doubts as to whether I'd like it. I said I would give it a chance, however, as despite it being high-spirited, it was still an Austen adaptation and I wanted to give it a fair chance, hoping it would stay true to the story of Persuasion and not change too much. 

I watched the movie last night and once it was over I started to write my thoughts down. 

So what was my first impression? I quite liked the opening scene of Anne and Fredrick, with Anne herself narrating the past. It was something not in any past adaptations where you see snippets of the past, so that was something I liked. That was, of course, till it showed Anne drinking her sorrows away. This was the first ''um..?'' moment, with many more to come. The addressing of the audience and Anne's point of view narration put me much in mind of 2007's adaptation, which also had Anne tell her side of the story in journal form, with long sad looks into the camera, so you could see her unhappiness. Whilst the Netflix adaptation had moments like this, it also had moments of ridiculousness put on for the audience as Anne talks to them, such as spilling what I assume was gravy on her head. It was clear right from the start that they were angling towards a more modern and younger audience who prefer those 90's rom-coms, with many references and words used which, in the 1700-1800s, wouldn't have been used. I, of course, refer to everyone's despised word from the trailer "ex's". 

Some of the characters were true to their personalities, such as Sir Walter, Mary, Elizabeth, and Captain Benwick, but also there were characters completely missing. What happened to Mrs Smith? Colonel Wallace? I don't recall seeing Mister Musgrove. I'm unsure why they missed Mrs Smith out, considering she was a critical role in Anne discovering Mr Elliot was a schemer and fortune-seeker. The way she found out, by Mrs Clay and Mr Elliot snogging in the street, against a beam, was so bizarre to me. In fact, they didn't even seem to go with the plot he was going to marry Anne for bad reasons, and they all attended the wedding of Mrs Clay and Mr Elliot all happy and sweet, whereas in the book they escape to London in disgrace at being discovered to being a pair of scoundrels and liars. Captain Wentworth has lost a huge part of his charm in this adaptation, he seems so flat and dull. Whereas other adaptations and the book he's outgoing, lively and enjoys gentlemanly sports like shooting. 

Many of the novel's key points were skipped too, again Mrs Smith was not the main reason for Anne learning the truth about Mr Elliot, his past and his motives. Anne did not learn about the engagement of Louisa and Captain Benwick until the end as the movie would suggest, instead she found out from the letter Admiral Croft and his wife received from Captain Wentworth himself. They did not show how Mrs Clay and Mr Elliot's true intentions were discovered and how they had to run away in disgrace, with Mrs Clay being now under Mr Elliot's protection, aka being his lover presumably. 

Putting aside all the questionable costumes and the modern-day impositions, the visuals were wonderful the scenery, the atmosphere, and the filming locations, all of it was stunning. They really made sure the details, visually, were spot on. I can't help but feel that if they did this movie true to the plot, without character narration, using their expressions and gestures, they potentially could have had a great adaptation, maybe even on a level with Pride and Prejudice (2005). Whilst I can understand the need to draw in a younger audience, they could have done that without forcing modern-day touches into it. 

Sadly, I don't think I'd be watching this again. I was willing to give it a chance but they ruined it for me. If they had kept to the original story, it would have been different, but they changed it too much and put it too many modern anachronisms and dialogue that it made it almost cringy.

So, was I persuaded? Sadly not.