AIBU - Pride & Prejudice.

[2020iscancelled]

A much beloved book
A fantastic BBC adaptation mini series

Then the horror of THAT awful, awful Keira Knightly film.

I knew it was bad but I rewatched it recently and it is just terrible.

I will concede the film itself is fine, the locations beautiful and no issues with the acting per se. But it is so far away from the real P&P it’s actually criminal.

So AIBU?

YABU - it’s wonderful and sums up the story to perfection.

YANBU - it’s an abomination

Lost in Austen is great too. I recommend it.

@Ashard20

If it doesn't have "that" moment when Colin Firth is sitting on the sofa, watching Elizabeth turning pages for Georgiana, then there is no point in even contemplating a different version... (sighs dreamily)

Yes. All of this. And when he's walking through the gallery with his dogs and he looks all tormented thinking of her.

I liked the over the top BBC Mrs Bennett but I can see why others didn't. The only people I didn't think were cast well were Charlotte and Jane. Though the acting was good their appearances were wrong. Jane wasn't pretty at all and Charlotte was far from plain. Mr Collins was great.

@Swingometer

Why would you rewatch it??

I wouldn't say its an abomination but it is massively inferior to the Colin Firth & Jennifer Ehle version

It was an odd choice considering how well loved the BBC version was. It was never going to live up to expectations

And to me the Firth and Ehle version is inferior to the 1980 version (I am old....)

I liked Rosmaund Pike. She's just lovely.

As I'm sure someone said, the snogging is in the US version only.

Once thing I really liked about it was how natural they would be, hanging out, gossiping, reading magazines, slouching, and how all the demure drawing room embroidery stuff is just a pose when visitors come.

Otherwise do not like much and wouldn't bother to rewatch. Better than the Emma that came out in 2019 though. Give me Jonny Lee Miller, Jeremy Northam, or even that too old bald Mr Knightley any day over 2019 Emma.

@OhCaptain
Much fanning now going on!

I really liked it, thought it represented the spirit of the book excellently and drew the main characters faithfully. KN a great choice. Jane A would have loved her lightness and irreverence.

Further Austen outrage: changing in the KK film what Wickham did with Georgiana. He just seemed to flirt then break her heart...so the whole "had Darcy only spoken out" made no sense. Oh, and Lizzie telling her father of Darcy paying Wickham to marry Lydia! Fuck sake! Way to destroy the depth.

Even more pointless rage: Emma Thompson in S&S when she was twice Eleanor's age and her mum about thirty years too old too. She did not get away with it.

The Kate Beckinsale version of Lady Susan is hilarious though!

At the end, Lizzy tells her aunt that she first thought of Mr D as a mate when she viewed the grounds of Pemberley. Very shallow.

She says it to Jane. And Jane knows that she's joking; she's already asked her once to be serious.

It would be completely against Elizabeth's principles as established throughout the book for her to marry for mercenary reasons.

I felt really offended by their version of the Gardiners.

And why were they all sharing beds, they weren’t actually poor just not as well off as others.

Didn’t they get rid of the Hurts too? They were a great example of what a “good” (awful) marriage was in their circle.

I haven’t actually read the thread just wrote this rant. I hate that film. I’ll return after I’m over my rant 😂

Ooh so many differing opinions. It’s so interesting, isn't it?!

For my money, the BBC version is superior as it has more time to unfold. I don’t get the hate for KK that is popular on MN - I think she is beautiful, and, in the right role is fabulous (see Atonement). I think that my perfect Mr D would be somewhere in between CF and MMcF. CF was too stiff and MMcF was too soppy.

The film version of Charlotte Lucas was much better - you could feel the desperation and panic in that speech when Lizzie was on the swing. “I’m already a burden to my parents.....and I’m frightened...so don’t you dare judge me...”

Alison Steadman was an absolute horror - it wasn’t fucking panto in Southend!! Brenda Blethyn was far, far superior. I liked Rosamund Pike in the film - the actress in the BBC version had a somewhat bovine quality.

Adore Judy Dench. She is a goddess who could read the telephone directory and make it sound enthralling although the BBC one was vv good.

Both Mr Collins were excellent- difficult to decide there.

Therefore, I don’t think that you can say X was brilliant and Y was crap - they both have things to recommend them.

I’ve always thought Lizzie’s ‘beautiful grounds at Pemberley’ comment was tongue in cheek.

If Lizzy was mercenary she could have married Collins and had Longbourn. I’m really unsure why this film aggravates me this much.

The film version is Jane Austen filmed as Charlotte Bronte.

And Matthew MacF spends the whole film looking as if his stomach hurts. But then he does that in just about anything he is in.

I love Lost in Austen!

Caroline’s face when she’s being all smug and putting her down for being poor and Amanda tells her she lives on £27,000 a year 😆 That’s around £2,000,000 in 2020 money!

And yes yes to Laurence Olivier. Appalling film. Hot as fuck Darcy.

@florascotia2

Yes - David Rintoul was excellent as Darcy. Eleanor Bron was also very good as Lady C.

Older series tended to be longer and thus had more opportunity to pay attention to the nuance of the text - including the unspoken as you rightly say.

Yes, Charlotte Lucas' speech in KK is one of its redeeming features. You really feel her dilemma, and how Lizzie, with her beauty, cannot (yet, at least) really understand her friend's true position.

@Beamur

I'm in the middle. I don't think it's the best ever adaptation, but actually quite liked KK and rather fancy Matthew McFadyen..

This is baffling to me. Matthew McFadyn is the least attractive man-in-romantic-hero-role I can think of.

@Bitcherama I saw that lady Susan for the first time over Xmas. It's great.

I loved the line 'you're husband is too old to be worked on and too young to die' or something like that.

@starfishmummy

And to me the Firth and Ehle version is inferior to the 1980 version (I am old....)

You may be old but not alone...

I really liked the way Brenda B played Mrs B, but it's just not true to the book. BB was too intelligent and Mrs B is supposed to be a caricature and a total embarrassment.

Although Alison S was too much, it was too much caricature.

I thought the Bingley sisters in the BBC adaptation were really brilliant, I can't remember them in the film.

Jennifer E and Colin F are my definitive Lizzie and Darcy.

My daughter was named Elizabeth after Elizabeth Bennet but the version in my head is always Jennifer, never Keira!

Also Amanda Root was superlative as Anne Elliot.

She really captured the quiet despair.

@littlepeas

I love it too. Visually really beautiful and cast the right age (everyone way too old in BBC version). BUT Colin Firth looks like my dad, so it’s always a bit disconcerting to see him in a role where he’s supposed to be a heartthrob!

YANBU op

Your lucky mum..