| PRIDE & PREJUDICE |
 2005 - UKDirector: Joe Wright
- Reviewed by Vickie
But I went and was supremely delighted with what I saw. First-time feature director Joe Wright has created a lively, spirited and gorgeously shot new version of a story that’s been told multiple times already. He manages to make the proceedings fresh and fun, and the film’s seemingly hefty 135-minute running time flies past much quicker than you’d think. Knightley stars as Elizabeth Bennett, the feisty heroine of Austen’s book, who’d rather be fiercely independent than settle for marriage to just anybody. Her romantic foil is the stuffy, emotionally introverted Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), whose social awkwardness is rivaled only by his persistent foot-in-mouth disease. Their opposites-attract love-hate story is the heart and soul of P&P, but just as much attention is given to Lizzie’s quartet of sisters: stunning older sister Jane (current British “It Girl” Rosamund Pike), who’s smitten with the flame-haired Mr. Bingley (the adorable Simon Woods); irritating, over-the-top younger sister Lydia (played, appropriately enough, by the irritating and over-the-top Jena Malone); and comparative youngsters Mary and Kitty… who actually get precious little screen time now that I think about it. The girls’ parents are played to perfection by Brenda Blethyn and Donald Sutherland (who’s never seemed more cuddly), and Judi Dench blows everyone else off the screen with her larger-than-life portrayal of the steely and perpetually unamused Lady Catherine. Story-wise, there isn’t really anything new—which makes sense given that Wright would have been met with a hurricane of protest had he tinkered with a time-honored tale. But the performances elevate the material to a thoroughly enjoyable level and infuse the characters with a breath of fresh air. Knightley (despite the eyebrows) is excellent, and MacFadyen’s blue-eyed Mr. Darcy may very well have some audience members saying, “Sorry, Colin who?” The only casting misstep is Malone, who behaves as if she’s in a Broadway play with her exaggerated gestures and faux British accent. Her Lydia is like Lydia hepped up on caffeine or speed. She stands out, and not in a good way. Some people may feel the urge to steer clear of P&P, lest it sully their treasured memories of the past or not live up to their expectations of greatness. But, as someone who dreaded seeing it as much as anybody possibly could, I say it’s definitely worthy. |
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Well, knock me over with a feather. No one could have been more
surprised than me that I really, really liked this latest adaptation of
Jane Austen’s classic novel. Not because I’m one of those fanatics who
have deified the 1995 BBC miniseries, because I wasn’t all that taken
with that version, to be honest. Not because I’m an Austen purist
looking to find fault with any adaptation of her writings, because
that’s not my thing, either. I just had zero—absolutely zero—interest in seeing this incarnation of P&P. None at all. It
looked long and dull and tedious from its trailers, and I was
profoundly distracted by Keira Knightley’s prominent eyebrows. If I
could have, I would have literally dug my heels into the carpet outside
of the theater and thrown a small tantrum to avoid going in.
