Jane Austen's Period Drama
Rating: 5/5
By: Nathaniel Simpson
Jane Austen's novels, and the films adapted off of them, are very popular in today's world. From Pride and Prejudice to Emma, these movies and books capture this beautiful time period pieces that explore love, class, family, and the society during this time. While these films do a great job of capturing the societal issues and problems that are occurring during this time, they feel like they are completely different from the world we live in today, even though they both intersect concerning different issues. For example, the menstrual cycle in women has always existed, and Steve Pinder and Julia Aks do an excellent job exploring the fact of what if our main character in a Jane Austen novel got her period during a pivotal point. Jane Austen's Period Drama is genuinely brilliant, blending together this beautiful time period with a hilarious story and meta comedy that works from beginning to end.
When Estrogenia (Aks) is about to be proposed to by Ta'imua's Mr. Dickley (believe me, every name here is perfectly tongue-in-cheek), he is alarmed by the blood coming from her nether regions that is present on her dress. Terrified she has been injured, he rushes her to her house and calls a doctor, while Estrogenia and her sisters Vagianna (Nicole Alyse Nelson) and Labinia (Samantha Smart) decide how to proceed, as it's not very "lady-like" to talk about such matters.
From beginning to end, this film is absolutely hilarious, crafting this relevant story around the time period and setting of the Jane Austen novels. Aks and Pinder do a fantastic job of writing and directing this short film, adding in numerous gags and jokes that work so well. Not only did I enjoy the various names that relate to the plot and themes of this story, but I also loved the numerous announcements of arrival after anyone enters into the scene or the meta jokes about periods and the menstrual cycle (especially when Estrogenia tells her sister she needs a rag, and her sister replies "On it!") There were moments that made me laugh pretty hard, and I think it is a brilliant story to tell in this sort of setting. It's incredibly unique and tons of fun, and also contains a great message.
The message of periods and how they should be normalized and not as taboo is great for this day and age. They are able to convey this perfectly through the conversation between Mr. Dickley and Estrogenia, as she is describing what it is like to go through a woman's period, to the dismay of the people eavesdropping outside the door. While he is alarmed and perhaps scared about what she is going through, it doesn't dissuade him to marry her, in fact, he wants to be there for her even more. It is a great lesson of being able to trust your partner and women should be allowed to discuss topics like this openly, while also adding in bits of male yearning that works incredibly well.
I also think the performances here are tons of fun. Aks, who not only wrote and directed this short but starred in it as well, is fantastic as our main lead, and her performance is complemented greatly by Ta'imua, Nelson, Smart, and Hugo Armstrong, who plays their father. They all have such great witty banter together that is so engaging and fun to watch, and they really elevate this screenplay with their amazing performances. This short film seemed like a lot of fun to shoot, and you can tell the actors had such a great time with it.
This is such a hilarious short film that demonstrates you can tell such a fun and engaging story in such a short amount of time. It's also a very unique and intriguing idea; I hadn't thought of women dealing with their menstrual cycles during a Jane Austen plot. Aks and Pinder are great filmmakers, and this is just a testament to how great they are and what they have to offer to the film industry.
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