Lady Susan is one of Jane Austen’s unpublished early works, written with tongue firmly in cheek. Frankly, it’s silly, and the characters are fairly one-dimensional, as one might expect from a teenager writing sheerly for the fun of it. Rather than following a disadvantaged young woman’s quest to marry for love, Lady Susan shows the wake of chaos left by a scheming young widow who takes advantage of a grudging couple’s hesitation to throw her out on the street, while she is seeing a married man and simultaneously plotting her next conquest. Those around her, including her own daughter, are treated as collateral damage. So, it’s hardly a sweet romance, but some have considered it a good foundation for a comedy.
Though there have been stage and radio adaptations, there is only one notable visual adaptation, as only one team has apparently been brave enough to put “real money” into it.
And, ironically, the name of the adaptation isn’t “Lady Susan” at all. Instead the producers chose the name of another early Austen work that is even stranger: Love and Friendship. The movie was released in 2016.
To add to the fun, Lady Susan is played by none other than Kate Beckinsale, who made a delightful Emma back in the 1996 ITV (British) made-for-television movie. Perhaps playing a vampire in the Underworld franchise prepared her for this part.
As of March, 2022, Love and Friendship is also streaming on Amazon Prime. If it’s not streaming there by the time you see this page, check the other services.
The movie is snarky and silly and obviously just played for fun. But, to be honest, unless you need repeat viewings for a doctoral dissertation or some such, you might want to stream it once before deciding whether you need to add it to your collection permanently.