Love & Friendship

[military drum beat]

Man, narrating:
Langford.

Langford.

If only if it hadn't been for Langford.

How happy we might have been.

Manwaring!

Manwaring, don't turn

your back to me, please!

I can't bear it!

Frederica!

Wait! I beg you!

Catherine, a letter.

Seems Lady Susan will finally visit.

In fact, she is already on her way.

- What?

- Lady Susan Vernon?

Congratulations on

being about to receive

the most accomplished

flirt in all England.

- You misjudge her, Reginald.

- How so?

Well, like many women

of beauty and distinction,

our sister-in-law has been a victim of

the spirit of jealousy and all that.

- It's jealousy?

- Yes.

Well, like anyone,

Susan might be capable

of an action or a remark

which is open to misconstruction,

but I can't help

but admire the fortitude

with which she has

supported grave misfortune.

Excuse me.

I spoke out of turn.

Why would Lady Susan,

who was so well settled at Langford

- suddenly want to visit us?

- What reason does she give?

Her "anxiety to meet me

and to know the children"

has never concerned her before.

Your Ladyship.

Susan. Come, hurry.

My dear, such haste.

How curious you are.

Mr. Johnson's carriage is about

to come into the street.

Surely that must happen often.

- You didn't receive my letter.

- Letter?

Mr. Johnson forbids

my seeing you.

Why, that's preposterous.

By what means "forbids?"

He threatens the severest

punishment imaginable:

sending me back to Connecticut.

Oh, to be tarred and feathered.

He claims to have important

business at Hartford.

He threatens to settle there if our

connection isn't entirely severed.

And for what possible

reason or pretext?

His former ward Lucy

Manwaring wrote to him.

Did she?

- Horrid woman.

- I know.

Deranged.

If she were going to be jealous,

she should not have married

such a charming man.

I recall thinking

as I approached Langford,

I like this man.

Pray heaven no harm come of it.

I was determined to be discrete,

and I have been,

admitting no one's attentions

but Manwaring's,

avoiding general flirtation entirely...

except for a little notice

bestowed on Sir James Martin,

but if the world knew my motive there,

it would honor me.

- Martin?

- Sir James Martin,

of Martindale.

- Vastly rich, rather simple.

- Ideal.

Miss Maria Manwaring

has set her cap for him,

considering such an income too large

not to be shared,

but with a little notice, I detached him

and soon had him in love with Frederica.

If my daughter were not the

greatest simpleton on earth,

- she'd be engaged to him now.

- What?

She refused him...

a baronet with 10,000 a year.

- It's all so provoking.

- But where will you live?

If there were another place open to me,

I would crawl there on my knees.

The worst spot this side of the ocean.

A country village.

Churchill, my brother-in-law's seat.

Mrs. Cross, a gentlewoman

in strait and circumstances,

will come with me as my companion,

to pack and unpack, you know,

that sort of thing.

And, as there's an element

of friendship involved,

I'm sure the paying of wages

would be offensive to us both.

My brother-in-law

Charles Vernon is very rich.

Once a man gets his name on a

banking house, he rolls in money.

So it's not very rational for his lady

to begrudge the sums he's advanced me.

Decidedly irrational.

Not rational at all.

I have no money and no husband.

Well, in one's plight, they say,

is one's opportunity.

Not that I would ever want to think

in opportunistic terms.

Oh, certainly not. Never.

Churchill coming

into view, Your Ladyship.

Heavens, what a bore.

Yes. Decidedly boring.

Charles.

- Susan, welcome.

- Thank you.

- This is Mrs. Cross.

- Mrs. Cross.

You're quite welcome to Churchill.

This is Frederick and Ellen.

Good afternoon, Frederick.

Very pleased to meet you.

Mrs. Cross is a friend

of Lady Susan

and should be in the adjoining room.

No reason to complain

of Mr. Vernon's reception.

Not entirely satisfied with his lady's.

- No?

- Mm-mm.

She's perfectly well bred...

surprisingly so.

But her manner doesn't persuade me

she was disposed in my favor.

As you might have noticed,

I sought to be as amiable as possible.

Exceptionally amiable.

In fact, entirely charming.

- Excuse me for saying so.

- Oh, not at all. It's true.

I wanted her to be delighted with me,

but I didn't succeed.

I can't understand it.

It's true I've always detested her

and that, before her marriage,

I went to great lengths to prevent it.

Yet it shows an illiberal spirit to resent

for long a plan which didn't succeed.

Decidedly illiberal.

Not liberal at all.

My opposing her marriage

and then later preventing her and

Charles from buying Vernon Castle

might have given her

an unfavorable impression of me,

but I've noticed that where

there's a disposition to dislike,

a pretext will soon be found.

- You mustn't reproach yourself.

- I shan't. The past is done.

My project will be the children.

I know a couple of their names already,

and I've decided to attach myself

to young Frederick in particular...

taking him on my lap and sighing

over him for his dear aunt's sake.

[knock on door]

Come in.

Mrs. Vernon's compliments,

Your Ladyship.

She asks if you and Mrs. Cross

would join her for tea.

With pleasure.

Mrs. Cross would prefer her repose,

but thank Mrs. Vernon.

I'll join her directly.

[woman speaking French]

Susan:
Yes, Frederick, I see

you have quite an appetite.

You will grow tall and

handsome like your uncle.

- [Frederick giggles]

- Ellen:
Fred, dear, be good.

[speaking French]

Ellen:

Don't touch that.

[crash]

Frederick, be careful.

Oh, I'm so sorry.

- No, not at all.

- Les enfants...

Such a family resemblance.

Rather moves me.

You'll want to change.

No, no. Let's have our tea

while it's still warm.

Mrs. Cross is a genius

with fabrics.

- You sure?

- Oh, yes.

How much Frederick reminds

me of his dear uncle.

Do you think there's a resemblance?

Oh, remarkable.

The eyes.

Weren't Frederick Vernon's eyes brown?

I refer more to the shape

and slope of the brow.

Oh.

I must thank you for this visit.

I'm afraid the short notice

must have come as a surprise.

Only because I understood you

to be so happily settled at Langford.

Well, it's true Lady Manwaring and

her husband made me feel very welcome,

but their outgoing dispositions

led them so often into society.

I might have tolerated

such a life at one time,

but the loss of a husband such as

Mr. Vernon cannot be borne easily.

To stay with you here at your...

charming environment

became my fondest wish.

I was happy to have the chance to meet.

Might I confide something?

Langford was not ideal for my daughter.

Her education has been neglected,

for which I fault myself.

Mr. Vernon's illness prevented

me from giving her the attention

that both duty and affection required.

I therefore placed her at this

excellent school: Miss Somers-Keeve's.

I trust Frederica will visit soon.

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