Interview: JJ Feild talks about 'Austenland' 

Interview: JJ Feild talks about 'Austenland' and why he loves the cinematic experience of seeing movies in the theater

I must admit, I really didn\'t have high hopes for a movie about a Jane Austen fantasy camp. I\'ve never read Pride and Prejudice or even seen the movie (shocking!), so I didn\'t even know what I was getting into when I went to see Austenland. Outside of the door to the theater was a cardboard cutout of Colin Firth as Mr Darcy with women taking their pictures next to it. As I sat waiting for the feature to begin, I thought, "wow, what am I getting myself into?" I had taken a chance because of the name,

, wrote Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre and Gentlemen Broncos. Their humor comes from a very real place, so I was very intrigued by her directing a feature on her own. I found out after that the movie is based on the book by Shannon Hale, and her and the director collaborated to adapt the screenplay.

In another unfortunate case of a trailer not doing it justice, Austenland is hilarious, ridiculous and at the same time, really sweet. Jane (Keri Russell) is a thirty-something obsessed with all things Jane Austen. She spends her life savings on a fantasy vacation celebrating the era of Jane Austen to finally get it out of her system. The story and performance is able to walk the fine line of showing Jane\'s nerdiness without making her pathetic whatsoever. She\'s just a hopeless romantic.

I had planned on speaking with JJ Feild in person for an interview, but alas, I was sick and had to speak with him over the phone. Laughing jovially and speaking in his charming and native English accent, Feild spoke with me about his current obsessions, the difference between movies and television and where he likes to sit in the theater. Enjoy!

JJ Feild as Mr. Henry Nobley - Photo by Giles Keyte, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

Playing many characters in the era of Jane Austen before, JJ Feild now plays a character in Austenland that\'s an actor, playing a character in this era. I told him that I found that to be quite amusing. He laughs, and then I asked him about what he thought of the script when he read it.

"Before I read the script, my agent had sent a covering letter, talking about the people that were behind it. And as soon as I saw Jerusha Hess, who obviously is part of Napoleon Dynamite, I jumped on it. And then seeing it was in that period, it was delicious, it was a no-brainer. When I met her, all she wanted to know was would I be able to make fun of myself. Now when you\'ve made a career with all these costume dramas, getting a chance to send it up royally, is a real treat." [laughs]

Did you take any notes from Colin Firth\'s performance from Pride and Prejudice?

"Yeah, no one\'s ever going to top that. [laughs] He\'s wonderful and he is the iconic Mr Darcy."

"There\'s a really fun scene when I\'ve been horrendously grumpy and cold, and then Keri Russell (Jane) gets caught in the rain. Then I\'m galloping in on a horse trying to rescue her but she doesn\'t particularly want to be rescued. [laughs] And as cold and wet as it was, it was great fun to do."

Left to right: JJ Feild as Mr. Henry Nobley, Bret McKenzie as Martin and Keri Russell as Jane Hayes - 

Photo by Giles Keyte, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

Jane has an obsession with all things Jane Austen, do you have any obsessions?

"I probably have an unfair obsession with any film that has a subtitle. It seems they are masterpieces if I read the dialogue. Korean cinema is extraordinary at the moment. Phenomenal Scandinavian cinema and most of European cinema is my obsession. I will go out of my way to try to find cinemas that are showing those films. And literature, I have a very unhealthy obsession James Lee Burke novels, or the Dave Robicheaux crime novels, in New Orleans. I went to a New Orleans jazz festival a few years ago and I loved everything about it. And ever since then, anything set in New Orleans, I have to assume is a masterpiece."

What are some of the differences living in America vs England?

"I live in L.A., so you can surf and ski in the same day. [laughs] It\'s just outdoor activities. England has the most beautiful summer of anywhere I\'ve been on earth, but it lasts three weeks. [laughs] So if you miss those three weeks, you\'re in trouble. But in L.A., you can just get outdoors and do things. Go and explore the state of California. I love Sequoia National Park, I love Ojai, anything outdoors. It\'s the whole outdoor lifestyle."

There\'s a scene in the movie where the the actors and guests perform a play outside. I asked him about the filming of that scene.

[Laughs] "It was all through the night for a couple of nights and some very revealing costumes. And a LOT of insects! Miraculously, I don\'t know where they came from, but in swarms, biting mosquitos! It was one of those things where finish and go, I hope that was funny because it was really tough to make."

Left to right: Keri Russell as Jane Hayes and JJ Feild as Mr. Henry Nobley

What are you thoughts on the ability to watch movies on phones and tablets versus in the theater?

"That\'s the way forward, that\'s what\'s going to happen. I can\'t deny it. I love the cinema experience. I would hands down rather go to the cinema. And I would only watch a film on an iPad if I would have to for work, as it\'s a waste of time, for me personally."

He then points out something completely amazing about movies that really hadn\'t occurred to me.

"I think television is fantastic in that medium. [smaller screens referred to above] I love downloading a box set and catching up on an iPad. But for me, the cinema is a theatrical experience. Cinema is very different from television. The way in which we shoot dialogue is different in cinema. I don\'t know if it\'s completely true, but it was once described to me that in the cinema, you can show a visual image, what we\'re thinking or what is happening in the plot, and in television, because someone might be having a TV dinner or coming in and out of the room, you\'ve got to say it. So you\'ve got to say \'I\'m now coming in the room to catch you doing this.\' And in cinema, you can have minutes of silence of showing the plot and character development. So for that, I want to be in a cinema."

He then further explains the differences in European theaters versus ones in America.

"But I also think that when you go to a cinema in France, for example, there\'s no light pollution. My head aches from all these bloody exit signs [in American theaters]! The steps are all light up and you can see everybody next to you. It\'s awful. I want to feel like I\'m not being watched by the rows around me. I want to have a real emotional experience and not self conscience."

I commented that there are many movies that only get a following on DVD or when they come out on video, so if you miss it, you don\'t get the chance to see it in a theater.

"Absolutely. You\'re right, it depends on what the film is. A comedy is gonna maybe translate better on an iPad than cinematic

"Oh, that\'s a good question. I\'m tall, so somewhere where I can stretch my legs. European cinemas are tiny, so I\'ve got to be on an aisle. Comfort, so I can enjoy the film, it always good. In America, you get like a, la-z-boy chair compared to Europe! [laughs] It\'s great! I\'m a kind of the middle of the middle. I like the feeling of slightly looking up as it makes me feel like I\'m at an old-fashioned silver screen. I don\'t like being right up at the front and I don\'t like being all the way in the back."

Melissa Hanson, Cinemit Content Editor, also known as Dial M For Melissa, has been a Cinemit member since 8/29/10

Left to right: Georgia King as Lady Amelia Heartwright, James Callis as Colonel Andrews, Jennifer Coolidge as Miss Elizabeth Charming, Bret McKenzie as Martin and Keri Russell as Jane Hayes

Upon Jane\'s arrival to Austenland, she is met with a variety of characters that are either fellow guests or actors playing a part to make her stay special. The cast works together so well and each have their own quirks that really make them instantly memorable. (I\'m already saving space on my shelf when it comes out on Bluray.)

 (best known for playing in Jon Jones\' adaptation of Jane Austen\'s Northanger Abbey and was in Captain America: The First Avenger as James Montgomery Falsworth)

 (best known for being one half of the duo, Flight of the Conchords)

 (best known for playing Stifler\'s mom in American Pie)

 (best known for TV\'s Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman)

 (best known for being one of Bridget\'s best friends in Bridget Jones\' Diary)

 (best known for playing Goldie on TV\'s The New Normal)

 (best known for playing in the series Pride & Prejudice)

Written by: Jerusha Hess (screenplay), Shannon Hale (screenplay, novel)

Plot: Obsessed with the BBC production of "Pride and Prejudice", a woman travels to a Jane Austen theme park in search for her perfect gentleman.

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