I have mentioned my slight obsession with Pride and Prejudice before, I like period romance in general it seems. The TV series was so good that I was afraid the movie, especially due to it being a Hollywood production, would destroy or otherwise maim the original text in order to make it more palatable to a wider audience. It would seem that my fears were in vain.
I finally got around to watching it on DVD last weekend and, as with any novel adaptation, it’s not perfect, but it’s pretty good. For anyone ignorant of the story, it revolves around the Bennet family, a fairly well heeled lot, with one problem: Mr Bennet has no son to inherit, so his five daughters will be out on their ear as soon as he dies (as their cousin, Mr Collins, will get the house and land) unless they can be married off to some wealthy bachelors. The arrival of some rich and, hence, very elligible men at a nearby manor raises some excitement then. Over the course of several balls it appears that one of them, the bumbling Mr Bingley, is smitten with the oldest Bennet daughter, Jane, but his friend, the serious and brooding Mr Darcy, manages to warn him off. Most of the story is told through the eyes of Jane’s younger, opinionated sister, Elizabeth, who, it turns out, Darcy is in love with, though he is fighting his emotions as he believes her to be too far below his station. Through several misunderstandings and episodes, Elizabeth and Darcy come into further contact until Elizabeth finds herself in love with Darcy. Bingley proposes to Jane and it all ends happily ever after.
The problem is getting all of the story and sub-plots into a movie a little over two hours long. Many things have to go completely and much is shot through so quickly it barely leaves an impression, not least of these is Mr Wickham, an officer Elizabeth likes, but who tells her Darcy has wronged him, incorrectly as it turns out. His total screen time, in two scenes, runs to about five minutes even though he has such an impact on the plot (and is, incidentally, played/cast completely incorrectly). Many of the other narratives make it in, but only as passing references, covered by a paragraph or two of dialogue. There wasn’t really any other way to do it though, and the main thrust of the story makes it through intact, so it’s job well done. I have to complement a few other aspects, many of which are overlooked by most moviegoers, the set design and decoration (and location choices), along with the costumes, were superb, much richer and more luxuriously engrossing than the TV series. The cinematography (I have mentioned the film-makers use of CGI to improve on it previously) is exquisite, showing off the English countryside to its fullest in almost every season and it’s all accompanied by a great score (so good in fact, I decided to buy a copy).
I should also mention the acting, especially as Keira Knightley has been nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of Elizabeth Bennet (I found myself comparing many of the actors to their equivalents in the TV version). Well, she is good, that’s for sure, turning from hard and angry to soft and delicate almost for fun and delivering the lines with gusto, her non-verbal communication is good too, though it might be turned down a notch and still be as effective. I’d have to go with the TV version’s Colin Firth over Tom Macfadyen, not that the latter is bad, he just doesn’t quite convey the rage and frustration as well as the former. Brenda Blethyn turns in a good part as Mrs Bennet, annoying but not to the point of being scratchy, as with the TV version. Donald Sutherland, again, good, but I preferred the portrayal in the TV version. Rosamund Pike plays the role down as Jane, almost too far, even if she is supposed to be over ‘modest.’ Jena Malone is suitably impish as Lydia, and her American accent is well hidden, but loses out to Julia Sawalha. I didn’t find Tom Hollander as repugnant as the TV version of Mr Collins, which is actually a bad thing, and, as I mentioned, Mr Wickham (played by Rupert Friend) wasn’t right at all.
All in all an excellent film, and a great adaptation, but if you like what you saw I recommend you check out the TV series (and, if you’re really committed, the novel) to get the full story.
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