RETRO FILM REVIEW: "PRIDE AND PREJUDICE"

Hi Everyone,

I saw "Pride and Prejudice" on the first day of its wide release. It was the only romantic comedy I've enjoyed in the last six years or so.

The only other Jane Austen flick I've seen was "Sense and Sensibility"directed by Ang Lee, which is also a classic. I haven't seen the cheesy Bollywood version of "Pride" nor any of the BBC miniseries.

I hear tell some people were grumbling about why another Jane Austenfilm had to be made. IMHO, that's partly because film makers can tend to run out of ideas and partly because Jane Austen's stories have touched on a timeless theme in Western culture: Love.

For me, at least, this adaptation's worth it.

The film heralds the arrival of veteran TV director Joe Wright and actress Keira Knightley. She shows so much depth that those who've seen her in "Bend it Like Beckham" would hardly have believed shewore a soccer (no, football) jersey.

"Pride" is a manicured, sometimes dawdling romantic drama about five middle-class sisters attempting to marry well in Georgian England,rings true to its classical origin while making the material its own.It's an intricate tale of wordplay and love games.

In the opening sequence: Wright's camera takes us into the Bennet household, where an older married couple and their five daughters share an earthy estate with geese, chickens, pigs, swans, and one shaggy greyhound.

The mother (Brenda Blethyn) is in a constant state of worry andmotion; if her daughters don't start marrying soon, the family will be ruined. The father (Donald Sutherland) stays out of the way, hoping his daughters somehow overcome societal prejudice againsttheir gender and make something of their minds.

Headstrong Elizabeth (Knightley) has done just that. Smart, spirited, fiercely independent, Lizzie promises herself that she won't be one to settle.

After introducing the family, Joe Wright takes us into a ball where men and women meet up like today's American youth find companionship at a singles bar, resort, or (shudder) online.

When Elizabeth's older sister, Jane (Rosamund Pike, a good actress herself), meets the wealthy Mr. Bingley (Simon Woods) at a dance,their future as a couple seems preordained. But when Lizzie is introduced to the morose Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen, overlooked in the new James Bond hunt), an instant dislike is established.

Darcy: "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me."

Elizabeth: "I will loathe him for eternity."

Which means, of course, that they are meant for each other.

Reminded me unwantedly a bit of an English girl I met, who didn't fail to mention she came from a good family. I argued with her everytime I saw her, which is another story... Elizabeth's character is genuine and sweet and worth getting to know.

The pleasure of the movie comes from the push and pull, waiting for Darcy and Elizabeth to realize their destiny. And because they initially misread each other, and because of complications within their own families, this takes some time - basically, an entire movie. But these aren't run-of-the-mill, romantic-comedy obstacles tobe overcome. Darcy and Elizabeth must ultimately prove themselves tobe worthy of the other - no small challenge, since these are two ofthe most noble characters in the history of romantic literature.

Wright gets every bit of emotion out of the story, which his BBC work shows he has a long history of doing. What's surprising is hisfinesse with the camera. (To reiterate: It's his first movie.) At the dance, Elizabeth and Darcy twirl on the crowded dance floor,reluctantly admitting their mutual affection. They stare into eachother's eyes, and everyone in the background disappears - for just a few seconds, they are alone in the world and have taken us with them.

There's also a stunning sequence midway through the film that takesplace at a costume ball where, in a long, unbroken take, Wright's camera flits through a mansion, capturing character-revealing conversations and emotions high and low. Lesser filmmakers would spend 15 minutes trying, and failing, to accomplish what Wright doeshere in this glorious set piece.

Also, Wright knows when to pull back and let his actors do the heavylifting, using close-up shots later in the film when the emotions become particularly intense. It's here that Knightley fulfills her promise, letting us feel Elizabeth's conflicting emotions in waysthat are palpable and true. She also has a beautifully touching father-daughter scene late in the film with Sutherland that, in and of itself, won her an Oscar nomination and should've netted one for Sutherland, too.

As Wright ushers the leading couple from misunderstanding to connection, he does well by his supporting characters too. We see a preacher, the vertically-challenged Mr. Collins (Tom Hollander), propose to Lizzy as though he were tending to a real estate acquisition (something I've seen in more than one Englishman). We watch as Elizabeth, still prejudiced against the allegedly proud Darcy, turn down his passionate marriage proposal. The imperious,class-conscious Lady Catherine de Bourg (Judi Dench) is eager to have her homely daughter hitched to someone who is not of "inferior birth," like Elizabeth. The relationship between the sisters' mother and her dad makes you wonder how they ever got together, as mom becomes hysterical any time a possible mate for her daughters approaches the estate while their dad wants only for his favorite daughter, Elizabeth, to marry someone she loves. "If you do not marry Collins, your mother will never speak to you again," saysthe aging father, "If you do marry Collins, I will never speak to you again." One needs not wonder why Lizzy is her father's daughter. Macfadyen is admirably awkward as Mr. Darcy, a man of sterling character whose one great flaw is that he hides his feelings too well.

The performers act and react naturally, giggling or standing in stunned silence to emphasize the humor and vivacity of Austen's prose. They communicate entire pages of information with subtle gestures and glances. The characters dance with words, as well as in the ballroom.

As directed by Joe Wright and adapted by Deborah Moggach (whose script was polished by an uncredited Emma Thompson), "Pride & Prejudice" is a briskly entertaining and well-acted extension of JaneAusten's cinematic run.

I say this as someone who's always looking for a good story. I'm in no way a connoiseur of Jane Austen and chick flicks.