What are critics saying about new Sense and Sensibility film adaptation?

One of Jane Austen's classic romance novels is getting the film adaptation treatment once more - but how will it fare?

Based on the 1811 novel of the same name by Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility follows two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, as "they tackle love, loss and financial uncertainty amid the societal expectations of 18th-century England," as per this latest film adaptation's synopsis.

The film is directed by Georgia Oakley and stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Esmé Creed-Miles, Caitríona Balfe, Frank Dillane, Herbert Nordrum, George MacKay, and Fiona Shaw.

Daisy Edgar-Jones stars as Elinor Dashwood and Esmé Creed-Miles as Marianne Dashwood in SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, a Focus Features release.Courtesy of Focus Features / © 2026 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

This is the latest film adaptation of the classic romance novel, previous adaptations, the most popular one being 1995 film directed by Ang Lee, and written by Emma Thompson, who also starred in the film with Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman. The film won an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards.

No doubt Austen fans will be keen to see if this latest adaptation lives up to the ones of the past.

What are critics saying?

Bodhi Rae Breathnach stars as Margaret Dashwood, Daisy Edgar-Jones as Elinor Dashwood and George MacKay as Edward Ferrars in SENSE and SENSIBILITY, a Focus Features release. © 2026 FOCUS FEATURES LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey said in her four-star review: "Oakley’s film is entirely powered by the breathy pauses, startled gazes, and aching fingers shared by Edgar-Jones and MacKay, who do beautiful work in teasing out such tensions without betraying the vital sense of comfort that Elinor and Edward find in each other."

She added, "Sense and Sensibility’s modern touches, though, remain unobtrusive by the grace of Diana Reid’s excellent script. Her largely faithful translation balances all of Oakley’s 'sensibility' with the sharp, witty 'sense' of Austen’s social caricatures."

"Overall, the movie always looks and sounds perfectly good, though some of the sensibility is lacking," The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw said in his three-star review.

The Telegraph's Robbie Collin gave the film five stars and noted, "Underpinning it all is the sisterly bond between Elinor and Marianne, expressed by Edgar-Jones and Creed-Miles on a level so intuitive and tender it seems almost subliminal."

"I can’t recall another adaptation, either for film or television, that made the story so overwhelmingly morose and its protagonists such a joyless pair," said The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney.

Variety's Beatrice Loayza commented, "These lovers’ quarrels unfold with a touching sincerity to Roger Goula’s wistful score, though Oakley’s more grounded drama also feels oddly safe."

When is the release date?

Daisy Edgar-Jones stars as Elinor Dashwood and George MacKay as Edward Ferrars in SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, a Focus Features releaseCourtesy of Focus Features / © 2026 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Sense and Sensibility is set to be released the UK on September 25 and on October 16 in the US.

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