Movie Review of Pride and Prejudice

I recently saw the new movie version of Pride and Prejudice (starring Keira Knightley and Matthew McFadyen) with Peiqiu and Yuaning. (Don't worry, I will warn you when the spoilers start and end. ) When I first heard that there was going to be yet another Pride and Prejudice movie, I thought, "Not again! There is no way it will be as good as the BBC version and no one can compete with Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy." While the latter remains true (Colin Firth is still my all-time favorite Mr. Darcy), this new adaptation of Jane Austen's most famous novel was quite good. After viewing this film, I left the theater without a care in the world and a big goofy smile on my face (though perhaps that is due to Jane Austen's remarkable story rather than the power of this movie).

The best part of the movie I believe was the casting. Before seeing this movie, I thought of Keira Knightley as a mediocre actress, but she made a great Elizabeth Bennett. The angelic-looking Rosamund Pike was exactly as Jane Austen had meant Jane Bennett to be and Jena Malone made for a very believable Lydia. Judi Dench was excellent as the severe and opinionated Lady Catherine de Bourg. The movie mostly stayed true to the novel, although there were a few deviations which I will mention later. I think that the movie did feel rushed (much like the ridiculous Bride and Prejudice) since the movie incorporated every major plot point of the novel Pride and Prejudice. Perhaps I am biased though, I have read the book Pride and Prejudice more times than I can count and watched the BBC adaptation more than I have watched any other DVD, so any adaptation of Pride and Prejudice turns into a checklist of events that the movie must hit. I was afraid also after watching the trailer that the movie would not stay true to Jane Austen's dialogue in the novel, however I was wrong. Some of my favorite parts of the novel were used verbatim in the movie, which is of course good, because Jane Austen had a real gift for words.

Now for the spoilers...

I was really happy that Elizabeth's comment on the efficacy of poetry of driving away love was included in this movie, after being omitted from the BBC version -- it is one of my favorite lines from the book. Something very strange: When Charlotte Lucas tells Elizabeth Bennett that she is marrying Mr. Collins she adds, "... and I'm pregnant." Say what? Who knocked up Charlotte Lucas!?! Seems a bit too farfetched and replaces the real reason why she married Mr. Collins (i.e. makes her need to marry immediate and therefore somewhat more acceptable that she married Mr. Collins). I did not like that at all. Also, why was Mrs. Hurst omitted from this story. The point of her and her husband in the book was to show that people who marry for money and class often make foolish decisions. Lydia was also not supposed to know that Mr. Darcy paid for her marriage -- she was ignorant to the whole situation. If she knew that Mr. Darcy was the reason that she was not facing a life of shame, she wouldn't be able to speak about the whole situation so casually. I noticed that a lot of lines were rotated between characters (not a huge deal to the average person but if you've read the book as many times as I have it makes you wince). For example, the exchange, "Wickham's a fool if he takes her for a farthing less than 10 thousand pounds" and "Heaven forbid! How is half a sum to be repaid!" was between Elizabeth and Jane, rather than Mr. Bennett and Elizabeth. (Mr. Bennett would be much more likely to know that than Elizabeth). Okay, I guess I'm nit-picking.

End of the spoilers...

Overall, Pride and Prejudice was very enjoyable -- I highly recommend it to others. It brings out the romantic in everyone (even those of us who pride ourselves on not being romantics).