"Missing" scene: a theory -- The Robert Newton Chatboard

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Subject: "Missing" scene: a theory

Author:
Susan
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Date Posted: 23:52:08 10/17/06 Tue
In reply to: Eva Dan� 's message, "Jamaica Inn, a comparison between the different versions" on 12:33:12 09/12/06 Tue

If the topic hasn't been beaten to death yet and you're still wondering ... I did some investigating and think I know why you don't see what happens between the rooftop and the cave ... Because their getting to a place like that on foot before dawn could hardly have happened! I listened more carefully to their hurried conversation on the rooftop and the missing scene-to-be is summarized by RN himself: Jem pulls her up onto the roof and says, "Come on." She asks "Where?" And he says, "Down by the harbo(u)r; I know a place. We'll be safe there for a while."

In real life the nearest semi-navigable harbor to Jamaica Inn is Boscastle on the north coast--12 miles as the chough flies (and just up the road from clifftop castle at Tintagel) ... a bit far for a walk, don't you think, and even farther if they took the roads. Also in the book, when Mary and the wreckers make the journey to the coast along the "Camelford Road" for what ends up to be the final wreck, it's described as a "nightmare journey of two hours or more" by speeding horse and wagon.

And the question still remains why that dagger's buried in the sand and where he got it from. If he already had it hidden on him somewhere, he was probably keeping it handy to protect her with. But that's unlikely considering how Harry had already taken his wallet and then how they were fighting over who gets his shoe buckles; wouldn't a bunch of cutthroats have taken all the weapons off of him before they worried about a pair of useless buckles? (Then again, they are rather *bumbling* cutthroats. "Duh, shiny!") Still, could she have really gone all that way with him not realizing he was wielding a dagger? I suppose she could have had second thoughts about him in the morning, but it still doesn't seem very believable to me--not the way it's played!

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[> [> Subject: Re: "Missing" scene: a theory

Author:
Sue G.
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Date Posted: 12:12:17 10/18/06 Wed

Ok, I'm going to beat this to death even more! In my opinion, I don't think that the proximity to the coast from Jamaica Inn was even a consideration in the movie. I believe that the idea of anyone having read the book was also not a consideration. The content of the story had to be crammed into however many minutes was originally allowed for the movie so they completely changed the plot to make the movie fit the allowable time. The book was too long to fit the complete (or nearly complete)story into 90 to 110 minutes and then, of course, it needed a little romance to keep the attention of the audience so the cave scene was created.
So, keeping in mind that Jamaica Inn is near the coast (in the movie), they came down from the roof and made a dash for this harbor that Jem knew about. He probably also knew that there was a boat just lying around near the water too...with a knife in it. Then they launched it in the water to row to the cave. I guess they were pretty exhausted because Jem had gone through a fight at the inn, been knocked over the head with a tankard (that would have killed most people..did you see what a 'big' swing Leslie Banks took with that thing? poor Bob would have had his head smashed all over the inn if that was for real!), been dangling from a rope, and then made a run for it (you said about 12 miles Susan...but we must remember that the inn was probably near the water in the movie)and rowed a boat to a cave in choppy waters, while dragging Mary with him! Whew! I'm tired just thinking about it! I wonder if they had time for some romance during that night? I guess not, because Mary was horrified when she 'realized' where she was and who she was with. And I guess Jem just put the knife in the sand near his hand just in case someone came along to get them. Mary looked as though he intended to use it on her!
Ok, that was just my theory!

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