The 1995 BBC adaptation of Persuasion never really had its time in the sun. Overshadowed by another Jane Austen production that debuted the same year (and with no wet shirts), the adaptation won a few awards before fading into obscurity.

I might have missed it entirely were it not for the Jane Austen fandom. More enthusiastic than Star Wars and Marvel fans combined, their reaction to the casting of Dakota Johnson in the upcoming Netflix adaptation, set to air in 2022, put the 1995 film on my radar, and I set about tracking it down. I’m very glad I did.

Persuasion was Austen’s last finished novel, written when the society she so eloquently satirised was beginning to significantly change. The film opens with a navy admiral returning triumphant from the war; his arrival is juxtaposed against an angry mob gathering around the estate of a pompous, spendthrift baronet. It’s clear which group is on the up, and the baronet is forced to rent his property to the admiral to pay his debts.

Of course, this brings complications of the heart for Anne Elliot (Amanda Root), the baronet’s daughter. Not only is she about to lose her home, the new tenants are related to the man whose proposal she was persuaded to reject at age 19. Now 27 and considered a bit of an old maid, Anne isn’t relocating to fashionable Bath with the relatives. Instead, she’s left to do the end-of-lease clean on the family estate, before being packed off in a pig cart to manage her hypochondriac sister. Regrets? Anne has a few.

Unlike Elizabeth Bennet, arguably the public’s favourite Austen heroine, Anne is not playful or witty. Instead, she’s quiet, sensible, full of remorse at not having the courage of her convictions years ago, and surrounded by a bunch of oxygen thieves. Some characters are oblivious to how they treat her, others more sinister in their attentions (including her father’s heir).

The arrival of the cheerful Admiral Croft and his wife compounds Anne’s grief. Their happy relationship is a mirror to the life and family Anne could have had if she’d married the now successful and rich Captain Wentworth (a young Ciarán Hinds, who could have given Colin Firth a run for his money if the props department had handed him a bucket of water instead of an umbrella).

Persuasion is a little different from other Austen adaptations: there’s no snappy pacing, upbeat score or choreographed balls. Instead, the film was shot on location and in chronological order, using mostly natural light. When Anne is reunited with Captain Wentworth, for example, a dolly zoom is used to show her emotionally reeling. It’s an odd choice for a period drama, but it works.

Of course, there’s the usual romantic drama. Anne is forced to watch as Wentworth courts a younger, sillier girl, there’s a near-tragic accident, and a bit of jealousy from Wentworth when another man shows interest in Anne.

However, as much as Persuasion is a story about second chances, it’s also about a woman learning to be true to herself. When the action shifts to Bath, Anne finally finds her backbone; first, refusing to suck up to a rich upper-class cousin, and again, when she flatly rejects her bossy neighbour’s instructions to court her father’s heir.

There’s no question parts of the film are dry and require patience, especially if you’re a fan of the shinier 1995 production of Pride and Prejudice. Yet Persuasion feels far more relatable in the modern day. There’s the ache of lost opportunity, uncertainty about the future, and the curse of being surrounded by people forced upon you by circumstance, not choice.

Overall, it’s the sincerity of the film that wins the audience over. Persuasion is the perfect balm for anyone feeling a little downtrodden. It reminds us no matter what missteps we make, there might be hope of a happy ending after all.