Absolutely Perfect 2 Hour Adaptation!

Rating: 10/10 (26 January 2019)

While I will say first off, that no movie production ever made will ever equal a novel, especially one of this magnitude, this movie is very well done.
Jane Austen's tale of love and economics reaches us once more with the energy of a thorough novelty. "Pride and Prejudice" has been a favorite novel of mine since I first read it. Amazingly enough I've never been disappointed. The material seems to be full proof. Colin Firth's Darcy, in many ways, is the Darcy I've always imagined. Matthew MacFadyen was totally new to me but he managed to create that sense of longing that makes that final pay off so satisfying. Kiera Knightly is a ravishing revelation. I must confess, I didn't remotely imagine that she was capable of the powerful range she brilliantly shows here.
The photography, the art direction and the spectacular supporting cast, in particular Donald Sutherland and Brenda Blethyn, makes this new version of a perennial classic a memorable evening at the movies.
This Pride and Prejudice adaptation perfectly captured the wit, the intelligence, the passion and the romance of Jane Austen's classic. The 1995 mini is fabulous, and I have watched it many times, but I have always been frustrated that while it got so much of the dialogue and the detail right, it somehow fell flat on some of the more subtle dynamics of the novel.
But this movie adaption has captured what has before been missing! True, it took license regarding some of the verbiage and detail of the novel, but it ultimately completely captured the characters, their transformations, their strengths, their vulnerabilities and their passions. You simply cannot do a definitive work on Pride and Prejudice in two hours. And this film doesn't try. But what it does attempt to capture the story and characters, it does beautifully. It is well acted, well directed and connects as the book connected. While it has to rush and skimp on scenes and characters, it is the most authentic and true to the spirit of the novel version that I have ever seen. You simply do not want it to end...
All in all, i must give this movie 5 stars, 10 out of 10, 100 % brilliance. The story itself, the characters, the actors, everything that was in the movie 'bewitched me body and soul'. i have never been more moved by a movie, especially not one where i found it to be as hilarious as it was moving.