March 15, 2006

A tale of two prejudices.

I watched the new Pride and Prejudice last night (I'm liking the NetFlix) and, overall, I don't think it was as good as the A&E miniseries, which is the best adaptation of Pride and Prejudice ever. EVER. If you don't agree, hit the road. I thought the movie did some really nice things, but being used to the slower pace of the miniseries, I was somewhat taken aback by how quickly everything happened in the movie. Of course, everything has to move more quickly because the movie is telling the same story in less time. I will say that I thought Matthew Macfadyen (Darcy) was brilliant in the scene when he and Elizabeth finally come together. I loved how he stumbled over his words and lost his breath. I literally swooned at that part. I didn't like how they seemed to dumb down the language a bit with the movie, explaining things a little more bluntly than was done in the miniseries. I felt it betrayed the true nature of Jane Austen's dialogue somewhat. And I really thought Jennifer Ehle did a better job of portraying Elizabeth than Keira Knightley. I thought Ehle was much more poised and graceful in her performance and there was a bothersome ragamuffin aspect to Knightley's portrayal that annoyed me. In all, I did enjoy the movie and would eagerly recommend it, but only after encouraging a person to watch the miniseries first.

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