Judi Dench saves the day

Rating: 10/10 (20 October 2005)

I love Jane Austen's novel - in fact, it's my favourite book of all time - and I also love the mini-series. But I was a bit weary, along with many fans I bet, upon hearing that a new adaptation of the novel was being made, considering already that the mini-series is probably the best mini-series EVER MADE! Who could ever forget Colin Firth's Darcy, or THAT wet shirt! Or the great costumes and settings and the fabulous acting! I was expecting that this film adaptation would NOT try to mimic the mini-series in 2 hours. And quite frankly, it did not.
If the mini-series were never made--God bless me!--I mean, if I had never watched the mini-series, then I would say that this film is a great adaptation of the novel. Fitting this timeless story in 2 hours is hard work so it's understandable that certain concepts, scenes, and characters had to be modified and trimmed - and so they were. NO SPOILERS HERE! But I will spoil, though I don't think it would be a surprise, that Keira Knightley did a really good job with Lizzy Bennett's character and I liked it a lot. And when trying to assess Matt MacFayden's Darcy it's hard not to compare it to Colin Firth's Darcy, so for this sake, I won't. Pretending Firth's Darcy had never existed, MacFayden is a delightful and handsome Darcy, very quiet and soft-spoken, which is a very attractive feature in any man.
The film is suited for a modern audience and it did a good job on that. It reminded me of the 1999 adaptation of Mansfield Park starring Frances O'Connor - although no explicit scenes and concepts in this one.
10/10 because I'm a fan of Jane Austen.