Jane Eyre

You would not be wrong to wonder if it’s even possible to get fired up for a new movie version of Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 novel, which has been adapted into some form of motion picture at least once every decade since 1914. But this one, intelligently scripted by Moira Buffini (Tamara Drewe) and directed by Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre) has its own fire to spare. You know the drill: A headstrong teenaged governess (Mia Wasikowska), having overcome a really rotten childhood, falls for a brooding lord (Michael Fassbender) with his own dark past. Aside from atmosphere, here in long supply thanks to cinematographer Adriano Goldman’s attentiveness to natural light, what matters most is the Jane-Rochester rapport, and in this case, it’s electric. Plus, the supporting cast includes strategic applications of Judi Dench, Jamie Bell, Sally Hawkins and Simon McBurney.