PBS has slowly been airing the new series of Jane Austen movies. (They have made other movies in the past. Make sure you don’t get the old Mansfield Park, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, or very old Pride and Prejudice).
The new movies of the “Jane Austen Season” are:
Persuasion (labeled 2007 or 2008 – since BBC England released some of these earlier than USA, starring Sally Hawkins; see my review) buy individually at PBS Shop Persuasion $20 (as of now it is backordered 2-4 weeks) or Amazon.com $17
Northanger Abbey (2007 or 2008; written by Andrew Davies, starring Felicity Jones; I liked it with one exception – see my review) buy at PBS Shop Northanger Abbey $25 (as of now it is backordered 2-4 weeks) or Amazon.com $17
Mansfield Park (2007 or 2008, starring Billie Piper; not extremely faithful to the book or the period, but not a bad movie – my biggest complaint is that they seemed to make Fanny give in on her morals, which the literary Fanny Price would never do) buy at PBS Shop Mansfield Park $25 or Amazon.com $20
Pride and Prejudice (Andrew Davies’ classic, the best, 1995 Colin Firth & Jennifer Ehle) buy at ebay, your local bookstore, (you might try Target, Walmart, Costco, Sam’s, etc.) or Amazon.com $20 or the Collector’s Set for $33 or PBS Shop Pride and Prejudice $40
and still to come is:
Emma on March 23 (1997, Kate Beckinsale; I watched this movie once a long time ago, and since it was not the movie for which I was looking – the bright, witty Gwyneth Paltrow version – I hated it. But I’m ready to repent a little.) buy at Amazon.com $13 or PBS Shop Emma $20
NEW!! Masterpiece Emma (2009/2010) starring Romula Garai; I LOVE this movie – see my review. $35 on the PBS Shop on February 9, 2009. Or on Amazon for about $25.
The 2008 Sense and Sensibility also done by Andrew Davies starting March 30. Starring Hattie Morahan and Charity Wakefield, for about $35 you can buy the movie with Miss Austen Regrets at PBS Shop Sense and Sensibility or spend $25 at Amazon.com
The Sense and Sensibility Collector’s Set is $50 on the PBS shop, and includes the new Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, and what I understand was a remarkably entertaining dramatized bio, Miss Austen Regrets.
The Sense and Sensibility DVD’s are not available until April 8, 2008.
All prices are estimates, not including shipping or tax.
I prefer the Ciaran Hinds and Amanda Root Persuasion, even though I don’t really like it.
(NEW December 2009: I discovered I like the old version of Persuasion, from the 70’s!) Emma Thompson’s Sense and Sensibility (also starring Kate Winslet and Hugh Grant) is excellent, and I don’t expect it to be supplanted even by Andrew Davies. None of the Mansfield Park adaptations are worth seeing. Gwyneth Paltrow’s Emma is the best; even guys like this Jane Austen movie! See Amazon.com’s list to purchase these DVD’s.
To God be all glory,
Lisa of Longbourn
Lisa of Longbourn 
When you say “Make sure you don’t get the… very old Pride and Prejudice.”, I have to presume you mean the one with Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul. I’ll have to disagree with you there. It was quite well done (for 1979), and long enough to allow much more dialog than the recent movie with K. Knightley (which while good was hardly Jane Austen’ Pride and Prejudice). Of course, if you want a movie that preserves the spirit of Jane Austen’s work then you should get Bride and Prejudice (the Bollywood musical). And Beckinsale’s Emma was way more true to the novel than Paltrow’s (though perhaps less entertaining in other ways); it’s really a matter of do you like “Hollywood” Emma or “typically British” Emma. I tend to buy ALL Jane Austen dramatizations, never expecting any of them to be very true to the original (and, sadly, I usually get what I expect, though Davies is most excellent with his adaptations). Read the books, watch the videos, and enjoy each for what it is. 😀
When I say “make sure you don’t get,” I am protecting my readers from making a mistake and getting what they don’t want. The title of the post is Buying the Jane Austen Season, which includes the 95 Pride and Prejudice and NOT the 79 version.
I watched the old version, which was washed out, faint-sounded, without glorious acting or characters. I was very bored.
I misspoke: The Kate Beckinsale Emma is something on which I still cannot comment, since I still haven’t watched it. When I rented it a long time ago, I turned it off as soon as I saw a brown-haired Emma. Gwyneth Paltrow’s will probably remain my favorite, if only because it had such an impact on me in high school.
Bride and Prejudice is something I watch when I’m in the mood, but I don’t own it. I am fascinated by how faithfully the story is told in an entirely different culture. Another good one for a bright laugh is what I call Pink Pride and Prejudice, theatrically released with the subtitle: A Latter Day Comedy. Fortunately for me it has very little to do with the Mormon faith, so I greatly enjoy it.
If you want the Jane Austen Season DVD’s, however, don’t buy Pink Pride and Prejudice, Gwyneth Paltrow’s Emma, Emma Thompson’s Sense and Sensibility, or the very old PBS versions.
Glenn, Thank you for your reviews. I’m sure they’ll be helpful, since even the most close-minded Jane Austen fans (like me) can’t help watching an adaptation at least once.
To God be all glory,
Lisa of Longbourn
PBS also has the complete set as a bundle for (currently) $175. (I already have most of them, so another bundle is not of much interest to me.) I might suggest that one stay away from the wide-screen release of the Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle version of Pride and Prejudice; the transfer was horribly washed out (extremely “bright”, especially on the first disc), but they may have corrected that problem since it was first released several years ago. (I’m not really sure which version PBS has.) If you’re in the UK, you can get the ITV release of Mansfield Park / Northanger Abbey / Emma as a set for a pretty good price (amazon.co.uk). The BBC releases of Sense & Sensibility / Persuasion (along with Miss Austen Regrets) are also at Costco for about $32 as a set. Costco also has the A&E Literary Classics: Romance Collection, which includes the Pride and Prejudice / Emma broadcast by PBS as part of the Complete Jane Austen (and a bunch of other made-for-TV dramatizations, though not of Jane Austen works) for $60 ($40 off list). Good prices all.