The reception of movie adaptations of Jane Austen’s iconic novels seem to range from wildly beloved, like Pride and Prejudice (2005), to universally disliked, like Netflix’s take on Persuasion (2022) which starred Dakota Johnson and scored a devastating 30% on Rotten Tomatoes. This is perhaps because Austen’s source material, while rich and worthwhile, is difficult to adapt for modern audiences. However, Sense and Sensibility (2026) was a pleasant surprise, albeit with more sensibility than sense.
The title of the book and movie is referring to the dynamic between the two sisters who are the main characters, with the word “sense” referring to Elinor, the eldest sister, and “sensibility” referring to Marianne, her younger sister. Sense in the title and novel is used similarly to our modern use, referring to Elinor’s rationality and having sense when it comes to things like marriage or money, a classic eldest daughter. The word sensibility however was used slightly differently in Austen’s time, and I’d argue that an understanding of its usage is essential to understanding the novel and the film. At the time Austen was writing, a novel of sensibility, often called a sentimental novel, was a novel that manipulated a reader’s capability of feeling strong emotions like compassion or sympathy, facilitating this emotional response by presenting particularly emotional scenes and characters. The 2026 film reproduced the typical novel of sensibility in its plot and characterization, but also used nature and the physical senses to invoke and represent emotion, presenting viewers with a new version of the novel of sensibility.
Marianne is the picture of sensibility, as the entire film and novel seems to emphasize her feelings. Throughout the film we see Marianne showing her emotions without restraint. She’s often pictured crying, wailing, or yelling in anger, with little thought to the perception of people around her, very counter to the social expectations of the time. This is somewhat true in the novel, but is much more exaggerated and scandalous in the movie, like in the scene where she yells at Willoughby passionately in front of an entire ball. And, during the numerous times she cries in the film, tears run down her face and into her mouth in an exaggerated fashion.
But it’s not just her emotions that are leveraged to invoke an emotional feeling, it’s her other senses and the feelings they create and represent for both the viewer and Marianne herself. Marianne is frequently shown in nature, and this natural imagery is the main way that the filmmakers played with physical sensation to show emotion, different from the traditional novel of sensibility. Interestingly, the outdoors seem to mirror her own emotions; when Marianne is sad it often rains, further emphasized by the way the rain pours down her face, as unrelenting as her tears. She’s constantly pictured feeling the earth around her, whether she’s running her hands through the tall grass or putting her feet in a rushing creek, she’s always feeling something, and, once again, that feeling and imagery mirrors her own interior emotions.
During the entire film viewers are bombarded with the excess of sensation Marianne is constantly confronted with, from the ball where she learns of Willoughby’s deceit and eats a pear, at first attempting to do so with a fork, and eventually just stubbornly biting into it, the juice running down her face as she savors the taste, or, when she falls and sprains her ankle by the ocean, with every icy touch of the waves invoking a feeling of danger in the viewers and her character.
The way the filmmakers behind Sense and Sensibility interpreted sensibility and feeling certainly creates stunning visuals. The film was vibrant and earthy, showing much more of the beauty of the countryside than other successful Austen adaptations like Pride and Prejudice 2005 did. The film felt rich and deep, the visuals themselves adding to the visual novel of sensibility beyond just the characters feelings or physical sensations.
This observation of the sensation itself as contributing to the novel, (or should I say film) of sensibility is only furthered by contrasting Elinor’s scenes and characterization to Marianne’s. Elinor was rarely pictured showing strong emotions, or shown feeling with her senses as much as Marianne. Furthermore, Elinor never walked through the woods with rain pouring down her face or ate a pear that was cartoonishly juicy in a perfect picture of a novel of sensibility like her sister did. To be fair, Elinor does have one moment of sensibility, occurring during the final love confession between her and Edward in the sprawling countryside. No such passion was shown in the book, so perhaps the movie’s final act was transforming Elinor into a figure of sensibility similar to her sister.
Despite the director’s creative deviation from the typical character/novel of sensibility, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. The immersive feeling and emotions that the natural visuals, sensations, and emotions of Marriane created perhaps positions me as an ideal sentimental reader of Austen’s time. Sense and Sensibility (2026) is a delightful and creative rendition of the classic novel, suitable for lovers of Bridgerton, and, of course, Pride and Prejudice (2005).