At the airport, Jane teams up with the busty, raucous “Miss Elizabeth Charming” (Jennifer Coolidge), whose artless vulgarity perfectly counterpoints young Jane’s uptight elegance. When the duo reaches their destination, Jane is disappointed to find she’s unable to afford the “platinum” service and has to make do with the “copper” edition – just as Austen’s fiction dealt with wealth and society, so Austenland comes with social restrictions and a caste system. Despite her circumstances, Jane makes the most of her situation and soon finds herself torn between the attentions of an attractive farmhand (Bret Mackenzie) and a surly dandy (JJ Field). Hess’s film has fun with Austen’s formula, delivering a fantasy of love and romance in its own playful way.
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