this movie start off well enough and stick to the mood of the book fairly well even if the acting be not top notch . the soundtrack be torturously bad . saxaphone and electric guitar . it be gratingly incongruous . the female singer be positively dreary . in the second half of the film the story take a decidedly darker turn . too dark for austen . northanger abbey be make a dark and scary place whereas in the book it be disappointingly tame and modernize to catherine eye . who in the heck be this marchioness with the ghastly makeup and wig . a totally extraneous and unnecessary character . one of the key element in the book be the general be not a gothic monster like the character in catherine book . his monstrosity be far more complicated in his oppression of his child spirit and his treatment of catherine base on money concern alone . he do not lock up his wife or kill her but he do send miss morland on a 70 mile trip alone in a hired carriage with not enough money to pay her way home . only her friend miss tilney thoughtfulness in hand her some money on the way out the door save her from be strand . this whole point get seriously muddle in the film . they make the general too dark from the outset . peter firth should have not sing . this part be painful to watch . his depiction of tilney wasn not too bad but it be a shade dark in place . henry tilney of the book make sport of miss morland imagination on trip to northanger but he be never dark . firth would have benefit from good direction . the young lady who play isabella need a well acting coach . john thorpe be appropriately odious . the striped waistcoat and coattail combo he wear be ghastly . it certainly fit his character . i think the film would have fare much well with a completely different soundtrack . it cast an oppressive pall over the entire movie . if i watch it again it will be with the sound off and subtitle on . perhaps i would give the film a 4 then . the sound quality of the dvd be quite poor . the picture quality be not much good . this be glaringly noticeable on a digital television . when i think of what this film could have be and i think of persuasion with amanda root and ciaran hind .