It may not be recognizable as Austen's work, but it's a good enough movie

Rating: 8/10 (25 December 2005)

Competently crafted period movie by British first time feature film director, Joe Wright. Jane Austen's novel was adapted for this production by Deborah Moggach, with additional uncredited rewriting by Emma Thompson. Overall, the acting and the photography are good, and the movement of the story proceeds briskly enough that the 2 hour-plus running time does not feel tediously long.
I am not well versed on Jane Austen, so I leave the question of fidelity to the text to the more knowing hand of critics like Jonathan Rosenbaum (writing for The Chicago Reader), who finds that this adaptation has "hopelessly mangled" Miss Austen's work. Be that as it may, the movie holds together reasonably well. The costumes and production design are good. The scenes at the ball are especially well done, with good camera movement and a stimulating mix of details and broader shots.
Donald Sutherland is highly pleasing to watch as the patient, wise English country squire, Mr. Bennet, who, though he aspires to marry off all of his five daughters in order to ease the burdens of his old age, wants them nevertheless to be well and happily matched, not just gotten rid of to the first bidder, as his well meaning but overly anxious wife (Brenda Blethyn) tends to want to do. Matthew MacFadyen is frightfully dour as Elizabeth Bennet's love interest, Mr. Darcy. But then his longstanding betrothal to the mentally disturbed daughter of Lady Catherine de Bourg (Dame Judi Dench) is reason enough to make a grown man down in the mouth.
Keira Knightley is a pleasant surprise here as Elizabeth. I hadn't expected her to carry much weight in a serious role. But, apart from one bad habit, she does a reasonable job throughout, holding her own opposite the grave Mr. MacFadyen. The habit is a wretched, squirrelly little grin: it's more of a grimace, really, all closed teeth framed by thin, squared off lips, a grin like a car's grille, an unbecoming facial gesture that I hope some drama coach eventually will convince her to drop. Simply openinging her teeth would do wonders. My rating: 7.5/10 (low B+). (Seen on 12/19/05). If you'd like to read more of my reviews, send me a message for directions to my websites.