Pride and Prejudice (2005 movie)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 05:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterUm. I liked this. A lot. Despite being completely against the movie after having seen the previews, despite having an irrational dislike for Keira Knightley, despite absolutely adoring the BBC miniseries with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth, despite it taking liberties with the book.
I think part of it is because this is the fourth take on P&P that I've seen (the others being the BBC miniseries, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Bride and Prejudice). Maybe I wouldn't count BJD as an adaptation, except... it's sort of in the spirit of the thing. Also, with so many adaptations that I can watch, and with a really good adaptation already available (BBC!), I feel like I can be much more generous to other adaptations and concentrate more on how they're changing the story and playing with the text.
It's rather like fairy tale retellings!
Obviously, since it's a movie and not a six episode miniseries, a lot of the content gets cut. The main focus remains on Darcy and Elizabeth, along with a large side serving of Jane and Bingley. Wickham actually doesn't have as much screen time as he could have.
I felt like the focus of the movie was shifted toward the romances and toward class issues (interestingly enough). Romance-wise, Mr. Darcy comes off as less of a jerk in the beginning, and Lizzie feels much younger and more impulsive. While Jennifer Ehle's Elizabeth had a polite face and witty remarks, Keira Knightley's Elizabeth's cutting comments feel more like they are spur of the moment. They also cut most of the Wickham romance with Elizabeth, probably to focus more on Darcy and Elizabeth. Also, Bingley is very cute and awkward in this version.
There are also some additional scenes between Darcy and Elizabeth, one of which felt very fan-written! Not in a bad way! But definitely in a post-ep filling-in-the-blanks fic way!
I also liked how the director decided to portray the Bennets as country-folk; it makes Mrs. Bennet's desire to marry off her daughters more understandable. The Bennets have pigs running through their house and laundry in the courtyard. When compared to the Bingley's stately rooms with Neo-Classical decorations, it's quite clear why Miss Bingley and Darcy would object to the Bennets' social status.
The movie also makes the characters more sympathetic. Lady Catherine de Bourgh remains the villain of the piece (so much as there is a villain), but Mr. Collins and Mrs. Bennet each get their little awwww moments. There's just one small moment in which Mr. Collins gives Lizzie a flower, and she won't take and he has to awkwardly place it on the table in front of her, as though he meant to do that the entire time, that I liked. Also, there's another scene in which Lizzie is angry at Mrs. Bennet (I think it's right after news of Lydia's marriage) and snaps at her for only focusing on marriage. Brenda Blethyn does a lovely job of adding depth in her reply, "If you had five daughters, you would worry about marrying them all off too!" (paraphrased), and the audience can sympathize with her because we've seen how the Bennets live and worry about the estate going to Mr. Collins and the like.
Mr. Bennet also comes off much more favorably, as does his marriage with Mrs. Bennet. There is less sarcasm and wit in this adaptation; the focus has been taken away from the manners so that it's not a comedy of manners, but more a romance wherein the manners act as obstructions, if that makes any sense.
This isn't to say that they took out all the snark. The script actually leaves in most of my favorite bits (Mr. Collins on complimenting people, Miss Bingley's insipid commentary on Darcy's letter writing, Mr. Bennet's wonderful reply to whether Lizzie had to marry Mr. Collins or not). There's more of a gentleness to it. Lizzie teases Mr. Collins at the table, and she feels and sounds so young and giddy and full of fun that I couldn't help but laugh, and Mr. Bennet's reply ("From this day forward, you must be estranged from one parent," paraphrased) is not just snarky because Donald Sutherland also makes it clear that he goes against Mrs. Bennet because of how he loves Lizzie and wants her to be happy.
I am somewhat sad though -- I couldn't tell if one of my absolutely favorite lines is in the movie ("You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you") was cut or not!
And now, I shall stop comparing the movie to its predecessors and speak of it on its own terms.
I went in completely expecting to vent about it, and by the time the first ball came around, I was charmed and won over. I must also recant my dislike of Keira Knightley (it's totally irrational -- it's just because I felt bad that the girl who played Jess in Bend It Like Beckham doesn't have this sort of press and she was good too). Her Elizabeth is young and impulsive and full of life; she speaks perhaps a little too quickly and a little too sharply, but she loves very deeply and is fiercely loyal. She feels so young! And, yes, I was completely won over.
It was really hard not to be won over by the movie as a whole! I have no idea who wrote the script or directed the movie, but it feels like it was made with such love that it's difficult to nitpick. The acting is very good, and while Keira Knightley really stood out for me, I also loved Donald Sutherland and Brenda Blethyn as Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Miss Bingley was wonderfully snooty, and Jane was lovely and nice. I dislike Lydia, as always, but she was done well, and Jena Malone was wonderful in the scene when Lydia comes back to flaunt her marriage. And I liked the enthusiastic but not too socially adept Mr. Bingley very much!
And Matthew MacFadyen is very, very cute, and I have now moved Spooks to the top of my Netflix queue. His Darcy is a bit shy and tongue-tied; he's awkward and consistently says the wrong thing.
Actually, this is very much a movie of saying the wrong thing or speaking too quickly out of emotion, with the exception of Jane.
Anyhow, highly recommended, though this is very much an adaptation, so I totally get why some people might have problems with it.
ETA: Oh, and I forgot! I would love this movie just for its "wet shirt" moment! Well, it's not actually a wet shirt, but it's Matthew MacFadyen strolling in slo-mo through the moors (or fields, but moors sounds better), with an open shirt and his coat flapping in the fog. Yeah. It was so Wuthering Heights. I loved it ^_^.
I think part of it is because this is the fourth take on P&P that I've seen (the others being the BBC miniseries, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Bride and Prejudice). Maybe I wouldn't count BJD as an adaptation, except... it's sort of in the spirit of the thing. Also, with so many adaptations that I can watch, and with a really good adaptation already available (BBC!), I feel like I can be much more generous to other adaptations and concentrate more on how they're changing the story and playing with the text.
It's rather like fairy tale retellings!
Obviously, since it's a movie and not a six episode miniseries, a lot of the content gets cut. The main focus remains on Darcy and Elizabeth, along with a large side serving of Jane and Bingley. Wickham actually doesn't have as much screen time as he could have.
I felt like the focus of the movie was shifted toward the romances and toward class issues (interestingly enough). Romance-wise, Mr. Darcy comes off as less of a jerk in the beginning, and Lizzie feels much younger and more impulsive. While Jennifer Ehle's Elizabeth had a polite face and witty remarks, Keira Knightley's Elizabeth's cutting comments feel more like they are spur of the moment. They also cut most of the Wickham romance with Elizabeth, probably to focus more on Darcy and Elizabeth. Also, Bingley is very cute and awkward in this version.
There are also some additional scenes between Darcy and Elizabeth, one of which felt very fan-written! Not in a bad way! But definitely in a post-ep filling-in-the-blanks fic way!
I also liked how the director decided to portray the Bennets as country-folk; it makes Mrs. Bennet's desire to marry off her daughters more understandable. The Bennets have pigs running through their house and laundry in the courtyard. When compared to the Bingley's stately rooms with Neo-Classical decorations, it's quite clear why Miss Bingley and Darcy would object to the Bennets' social status.
The movie also makes the characters more sympathetic. Lady Catherine de Bourgh remains the villain of the piece (so much as there is a villain), but Mr. Collins and Mrs. Bennet each get their little awwww moments. There's just one small moment in which Mr. Collins gives Lizzie a flower, and she won't take and he has to awkwardly place it on the table in front of her, as though he meant to do that the entire time, that I liked. Also, there's another scene in which Lizzie is angry at Mrs. Bennet (I think it's right after news of Lydia's marriage) and snaps at her for only focusing on marriage. Brenda Blethyn does a lovely job of adding depth in her reply, "If you had five daughters, you would worry about marrying them all off too!" (paraphrased), and the audience can sympathize with her because we've seen how the Bennets live and worry about the estate going to Mr. Collins and the like.
Mr. Bennet also comes off much more favorably, as does his marriage with Mrs. Bennet. There is less sarcasm and wit in this adaptation; the focus has been taken away from the manners so that it's not a comedy of manners, but more a romance wherein the manners act as obstructions, if that makes any sense.
This isn't to say that they took out all the snark. The script actually leaves in most of my favorite bits (Mr. Collins on complimenting people, Miss Bingley's insipid commentary on Darcy's letter writing, Mr. Bennet's wonderful reply to whether Lizzie had to marry Mr. Collins or not). There's more of a gentleness to it. Lizzie teases Mr. Collins at the table, and she feels and sounds so young and giddy and full of fun that I couldn't help but laugh, and Mr. Bennet's reply ("From this day forward, you must be estranged from one parent," paraphrased) is not just snarky because Donald Sutherland also makes it clear that he goes against Mrs. Bennet because of how he loves Lizzie and wants her to be happy.
I am somewhat sad though -- I couldn't tell if one of my absolutely favorite lines is in the movie ("You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you") was cut or not!
And now, I shall stop comparing the movie to its predecessors and speak of it on its own terms.
I went in completely expecting to vent about it, and by the time the first ball came around, I was charmed and won over. I must also recant my dislike of Keira Knightley (it's totally irrational -- it's just because I felt bad that the girl who played Jess in Bend It Like Beckham doesn't have this sort of press and she was good too). Her Elizabeth is young and impulsive and full of life; she speaks perhaps a little too quickly and a little too sharply, but she loves very deeply and is fiercely loyal. She feels so young! And, yes, I was completely won over.
It was really hard not to be won over by the movie as a whole! I have no idea who wrote the script or directed the movie, but it feels like it was made with such love that it's difficult to nitpick. The acting is very good, and while Keira Knightley really stood out for me, I also loved Donald Sutherland and Brenda Blethyn as Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Miss Bingley was wonderfully snooty, and Jane was lovely and nice. I dislike Lydia, as always, but she was done well, and Jena Malone was wonderful in the scene when Lydia comes back to flaunt her marriage. And I liked the enthusiastic but not too socially adept Mr. Bingley very much!
And Matthew MacFadyen is very, very cute, and I have now moved Spooks to the top of my Netflix queue. His Darcy is a bit shy and tongue-tied; he's awkward and consistently says the wrong thing.
Actually, this is very much a movie of saying the wrong thing or speaking too quickly out of emotion, with the exception of Jane.
Anyhow, highly recommended, though this is very much an adaptation, so I totally get why some people might have problems with it.
ETA: Oh, and I forgot! I would love this movie just for its "wet shirt" moment! Well, it's not actually a wet shirt, but it's Matthew MacFadyen strolling in slo-mo through the moors (or fields, but moors sounds better), with an open shirt and his coat flapping in the fog. Yeah. It was so Wuthering Heights. I loved it ^_^.
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(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 06:07 pm (UTC)Tom Quinn (MacFadyen's role on Spooks) is very much not Mr. Darcy. He angsts all over the place, and makes bad decisions, and basically is the Worst Spy Ever. But he's marvelous and you care about what happens to him a lot. Let me know when you hit the end of Series 2: I have 3 and 4 on my hard drive and can burn dvds.
(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:32 pm (UTC)I really need to watch Spooks. Even one of my coworkers adores it (she also likes Miyazaki and shoujo anime and Wallace and Gromit, yay) and went on for a few minutes about the glories of Tom Quinn ;).
(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 06:18 pm (UTC)The trailers did it no favors. There was the "trivial romantic comedy" trailer, which made it look like a waste of material (I mean, I like romantic comedies, but there's no reason to make P&P into a superficial one) and then there was the "oh noes their society will keep them apart!" trailer, which made it look hackneyed. If it hadn't been so universally well-received by the critics, I wouldn't even have considered going.
(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:33 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 06:42 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:33 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sun, Nov. 27th, 2005 05:41 am (UTC)Here (http://www.newyorker.com/critics/cinema/articles/051114crci_cinema).
(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 08:43 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 08:45 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:33 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 21st, 2005 08:56 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:34 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Tue, Nov. 22nd, 2005 12:29 pm (UTC)(Going away now.)
(no subject)
Tue, Nov. 22nd, 2005 01:21 pm (UTC)Btw, the defriending (I am assuming that's what you're referring to?) is mostly b/c I just can't keep up with LJ much longer, not because I personally dislike people's LJs or the people themselves or anything. There are actually a good deal of people on LJ that I like and would consider friends who I haven't friended and others who I don't know at all and have -- probably should have posted some sort of thing after one of the multiple flist hackings =(.
(no subject)
Wed, Nov. 23rd, 2005 10:09 am (UTC)(no subject)
Sat, Nov. 26th, 2005 11:27 pm (UTC)