Rent the 1995 mini series

Rating: Null/10 (21 November 2005)

By now, I'd be surprised if anyone did not know the general plot outlines of Pride and Prejudice, so I won't try to summarize the story. This will be quick and to the point. On the plus side, this movie has some stunning cinematography, wonderful music and the incomparable Brenda Blethyn as Mrs. Bennet. For the rest, it felt like a Cliff Notes version of the story, too much attempted in too short a time. On top of that, it seemed as though the director actually never read the book. The director and screenwriter have somehow missed that the title of the book is Pride and Prejudice, not Elizabeth and Darcy. Every character has been homogenized for mass consumption in the service of the central love story. Judy Dench does the most she can with a character whose stinger has been plucked, Tom Hollander actually makes Mr. Collins a sympathetic character and even Tallulah Riley (as pedantic sister Mary) has a screen moment where the audience feels sympathy for her. In short, they have stripped the story of all its bite, wit and context, leaving poor Keira Knightly and Matthew McFadyen nothing to do but look beautiful. (which they both manage very well, indeed) Beyond that are the glaring attempts to update the movie, adding to or changing scenes from the book.
If you want a pretty movie with a neat happy ending, this is it. If, on the other hand, you want a rich cinematic experience of a literary classic, skip this and rent the 1995 mini series.