Pride & Prejudice
Composite Score: 86.4
Starring: Keira Knightley, Matthew Macfadyen, Brenda Blethyn, Donald Sutherland, Talulah Riley, Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone, Carey Mulligan, Claudie Blakely, Simon Woods, Kelly Reilly, Rupert Friend, and Tom Hollander
Director: Joe Wright
Writer: Deborah Moggach
Genres: Drama, Romance, Period
MPAA Rating: PG for some mild thematic elements
Box Office: $121.62 million worldwide
My take on Watching This Film:
Pride & Prejudice is the film adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel of the same name from director Joe Wright and writer Deborah Moggach. The film stars Keira Knightley as the romance’s leading lady Elizabeth Bennet across from Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Darcy, joined by Brenda Blethyn and Donald Sutherland as Elizabeth’s parents, Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone, Carey Mulligan, and Talulah Riley as Elizabeth’s four sisters, and a host of other faces in the supporting cast. The film might be the closest thing we have to an epic romance that has nothing to do with war or knights or kings, exploring instead themes of wealth, romance, judgment, family, and patriarchy as its sweeping tale of love and interconnection unfolds. The film received Oscar nominations for Best Score, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction, and Best Actress (Knightley) and remains one of the most influential adaptations of Austen’s works to date.
Pride & Prejudice works at virtually every level and sits alongside Walk the Line as one of the biggest Best Picture snubs of the 2000s. The production design – sets, costumes, makeup, and visuals – are gorgeously executed and meticulously put together. Any frame from this film is instantly recognizable as being from this film, a testament to cinematographer Roman Osin’s brilliant camerawork that includes some fantastic one-shots, gorgeous landscapes, and, of course, the iconic hand flex. Dario Marianelli’s score is yet another piece of this film that remains immediately recognizable and forever iconic, lending weight and mood to every scene and sequence, perfectly every time. Joe Wright has put together this Victorian romantic epic that celebrates love, the interconnectedness of life, and the transcendence of the human experience over any class divides, as Austen generally intended with her original work.
The story is one that carries you along with it brilliantly, and the film version does a good job of capturing the wit, irony, and romance of the dialogue as it moves everything along. Certain scenes and lines remain unforgettable no matter how long it’s been since I’ve seen the film – Darcy’s poorly delivered declaration of love in the rain, Mr. Bennet’s revelation that he does not want Elizabeth to marry Mr. Collins, Elizabeth’s refusal to acquiesce to the wishes of Lady Catherine, and the ever-iconic “You have bewitched me, body and soul,” – they lend true weight to the film’s romance and give it that epic feeling that I referenced earlier. It is, though, the performances from Knightley and Macfadyen that make the film and its story as iconic as it is. Yes, the BBC version from 1995 does exist, but there’s a reason that we only ever hear arguments about Firth vs. Macfadyen and not Ehle vs. Knightley as well. Keira Knightley’s young and optimistic performance as Elizabeth cements the character as one of the most memorable romantic leading ladies of all time, playing her brilliantly headstrong and never in doubt of herself until she needs to be, cementing her performance and the character in the annals of history. I will also, though, defend Macfadyen’s Darcy as the superior version, as he plays the social ineptitude of the leading man with a believability and severity that I can never fully associate with Colin Firth. Macfadyen plays every interaction between himself and Elizabeth with a beautiful balance of self-deprecation and haughtiness that makes her disdain and love for him make all the sense in the world. You can’t help but recognize all the faults that she sees in him and also find it in yourself to root for her to love him because no other man will ever come close to deserving her.
I could talk in circles about the brilliance of Pride & Prejudice for days, but suffice it to say that it’s one of the most complete romance movies ever made, excelling in every aspect, fully deserving of a place among the Greatest Films of All Time. If you prefer the BBC version, I really don’t know what to tell you except that you probably also don’t really like movies as much as you like television and books, so of course you can’t see how great this film is. If you’d like to watch it, it’s currently available to rent on most streaming platforms for that next rainy day that comes your way.
