When we were first told that our project was going to be centered around the theme of 'Gothic Horror', I immediately began to think of various images and films to do with Gothic subcultures and fashions of today. However, when I found out that we had to read 'Great Expectations' I became more intrigued, as I started to think more along the lines of Victorian Gothic, Gothic architecture, and the general mood of Gothic Fiction. I began thinking of the darkness associated with that period. Real events of the time, such as the murders of Jack the Ripper, sprang to mind as well as fictional novels like Frankenstein, Dracula and of course, Great Expectations.
I had never read Great Expectations before, and I must admit, I did struggle quite a bit to get into the book. After reading some Spark notes however, I began to understand the themes and major chacters a lot better, which definitey made it easier to understand! I decided to try and watch the films as well to get an idea of other peoples perceptions of the characters and themes. I started with the 2012 adaptation of the film, with Jeremy Irvine as Pip, and Helena Bonham-Carter as Miss Havisham. I really enjoyed this film, and I thought it was really well done. I thought the underlying Gothic element was really apparent throughout the film and there was a constant feeling of darkness, even when it was meant to be happy. I was, however, a little disappointed with Helena Bonham-Carters portrayal of Miss Havisham.
![]()
I thought that her character was just a little too over the top. I had imagined Miss Havisham to be a lot softer, broken and a little creepy. I thought Helena Bonham Carter's Miss Havisham was a little too theatrical. To me, Miss Havisham was a woman who was ashamed of what had happened to her, she was bitter and fragile-mentally and physically. She would be someone who is quiet and lives in her head a lot, not loud and theatrical and attention seeking, like the film version. From a hair and makeup perspective however, I thought that the hair, makeup and styling in the film was just incredible. The hairstyles- espcecially those of Estella and Miss Havisham was so intricate and spoke volumes about the characters. The makeup- especially Estella's, was not quite historically accurate, as I believe she was a little moe madeup than she would have been at the time, but I thought it worked really well. Estella's dresses in the film I thought were beautifully designed and really fitted with the picture I had of Estella in my mind. They dictated the perfect image of the wealth she had, along with the element of darkness associated with her character. The could have put her in white, floaty dresses but this would have changed her character completely. All of her outfits are quite restricted and dark, just like her.
After watching the film, I then decided to watch the BBC adaptation of the book. I loved this version of the story, and I thought it was much more historically accurate than the film. Gillian Anderson's portrayal of Miss Havisham was much more believable and much closer to the idea I had in my head than Helena Bonham Carter's version. She seemed to be fragile (mentally and physically), broken and quitely manipulative, just as I'd imagined her to be. From a makeup perspective, her makeup seemed a lot more "believable", and less theatrical. The nervous tick that she had with constantly twisting the skin on er hand until it was raw, made me feel physically ncomfortable whilst watching it, which I think is brilliant, because I think that had she been a real person, she would have been quite uncomfortable to be around.
The hair, makeup and styling in the BBC adaptation was very different to the film. I thought it was much more historically accurate, and it was much more 'period'.
