Pride and Prejudice
discussion
Book first but after that which film was best?
message 201:
by
Julia
(new)
-
rated it 4 stars
Sep 23, 2012 05:27AM
Keira Knightley version! The actors were superb, the dialogues amusing, the sountrack breathtaking!
reply
|
flag
Andres wrote: "Just to let everyone here know, on September 29 (this coming Saturday) at 3:30 AM PST, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will be showing the 1940 version of 'Pride and Prejudice'. It's a uniquely fun tak..."Thank you for the heads up :)
Ok I see alot of the votes for the newer versions. My all time favorite (mind you I love Colin Firth) is the 1940 black and white with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier!
I like the Greer Garson, Laurence Olivier. Second, is the Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle version.
Pride and Prejudice is my favorite novel of all time. I have seen both the BBC and the Kiera Knightly version and I have to say...you can't beat BBC. I mean you can't Americanize P&P. The casting and script was perfect in the 1995 version. I found that they made Elizabeth look absolutely silly in the '05 version. Also they made Mr. Bingley seem like a stuttering idiot which bothered me so much. I just feel like you can't beat a movie that basically uses the book as the script. :)
Katherine wrote: "Pride and Prejudice is my favorite novel of all time. I have seen both the BBC and the Kiera Knightly version and I have to say...you can't beat BBC. I mean you can't Americanize P&P. The casting a..."I couldn't agree more! :)
I've seen quite a few of them. A few opinions:1940's Olivier/Garson - I tried. I really did. Olivier's constant laughter drew me out of Darcy, and the random additions were tough to handle. Carriage races to meet Bingly? Really?
1980s BBC - I fell asleep. The movie took a very charming and witty noel and turned it into the dull experience people mistakenly feel the novel is.
1995 A&E Ehle/Darcy - This is my favorite. I find Jennifer Ehle to be an amazing Lizzie Bennet, Colin Firth to be a phenomenal Mr. Darcy, and the supporting cast to be freaking awesome! Except possibly Jane... she's the only person of the cast I ever feel is wrong.
2005 Knightly/McFadyen - Beautifully filmed, but terrible attack on the book. If I pretend it's a movie that has similar qualities to one of my favorite stories, and if I push my dislike of Keira Knightly in period roles to the back of my brain, I enjoy it. However, the gorgeous camera work is the only thing that carries this film for me.
Bride and Prejudice - I find this to be hilarious every time I watch it. A Bollywood adaption, it's very fun, but be prepared for some changes that may seem sacreligious.
Pride & Prejudice: A latter Day Comedy - I really enjoyed this when I was in High School. Last time I watched it I was shocked by how awful it was. Fun for a laugh, but a terrible bastardization
Lost in Austen - Loved this when I first saw it. Second watching and I was scandalized by how much Amanda didn't fit in. It's her favorite book and she doesn't know how to act in the time period? Sorry, I'm just not buying it.
The Lizzie Bennet Diaries - Um... that scene at the end when Darcy finally kisses her... I could watch it over and over and over again. One of the best modern adaptions I've ever seen.
I have always loved the 1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. If you love Jane Austen then you can get lost in the story. The film was carefully made so that it portrayed life as it was back then, and the acting and the music is incredible. You can really tell that a lot of hard work was put in it. Colin Firth is excellent as he is proud and proper in the beginning but in the end he begins to loosen up a bit and SMILE. Jennifer Ehle is briliant as Lizzy because she always has a twinkle in her eye. I am glad that they made it into a series because that way there is enough time to show all the intricate parts in it.
Apart from Lizzy and Mr Darcy, I would have to say that Mr Collins is my favourite. Oooh, what a slimy pig! The mother is also terrible.
The 2005 one just doesn't cut it. The actors were far more wooden and their costumes looked raggedy. Hardly any attention was spent towards behaviour that was acceptable in that period, like wearing underwear. That gave no sense of the respect that Mr Darcy would have had for Lizzy and as for peeping Toms, there probably weren't many but the gentlemen and women wouldn't like to be seen by peasants, workers or any body that would happen to walk past.
The 2005 film is a good film but not a great movie of Pride and Prejudice. I hate to be critical but I am fussy with my Austen movies. They have to be classy. I never found the 1995 version slow, maybe because I loved the story so much and that I have read a stack of classics. The thing is that movies these days are so fast paced and we have lost a lot of our common courtesies.
I loved Bride and Prejudice, the Bollywood version!
It is surprising to me that people think that the BBC version is "too slow". Considering it followed the book so closely (and these things rarely do) I would think anyone who loves the book would love the BBC version. I adore it, because I absolutely love the book, and they kept the tone and "flavor" of it perfectly in the BBC version.
I like both versions. The BBC version is too long for a single sitting, with far too much dancing, but then it had to be longer because it was a serial. Colin Firth is the better Darcy I think, although of course the scene he is most famous for isn't in the book. Kiera Knightley annoys me; she's too smug, but the ending to her version, where Darcy declares his love for her, makes me cry every time. Collins is cringingly good in both.
1995! Although I love love love Rosamund Pike as Jane Bennet in 2005.
I watched the 2005 version for the first time last night and I have to say that I did not really like it much. I have been a fan of the book for a long time, and I love the BBC version with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle, but this one just fell very short for me. First, it was like watching a movie of the Cliff Notes. As a standard length movie, so much was left out and I just couldn't get a feel for the romance building between the characters. Second, I just couldn't stand Keira Knightly as Elizabeth. Her intelligence and wit seemed vapid and foolish, especially in scenes with much stronger actors, such as Judi Dench. I did enjoy Matthew McFayden as the movie went on, but again it was so rushed that I just didn't get a strong feel for the character as I would have liked. I did like this Jane better than the BBC version and wished we could have seen more of her. I also enjoyed this Mr. Collins. Judi Dench was brilliant of course, but so underutilized in such a short version. I wanted to like it, but I doubt I would ever watch it again. The parts I did like (the dancing for example) just can't compensate for the overall feel and disappointment. Part of what makes the story so compelling is the slow build of the relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy and their development as individuals, and that just felt rushed and lost here.
Had Keira not been such a popular actress at the time, I don't think she would have been cast as Lizzie. Even so, it doesn't fix the pacing issues with the story. Had this been my first exposure to the story, I doubt I would have ever picked up the book.
At least now I know what I was missing.
HRH wrote: "BBC forever! The Keira Knightly version was good... except for the Keira Knightly part. Keira is acceptable for a short version (and amazing scenery) but to understand the movie, you gotta watch 5 ..."Lol, I couldn't stand Keira Knightly as Elizabeth at all. There were other issues for me as well, but that was the most glaring.
I admit that I'm surprised this was even a serious question. The BBC (Firth/Ehle, there is at least one other BBC version) is the best TV/movie adaptation of a book. While I enjoyed the Knightly version, it simply left out too much. I can imagine the general public preferring the quicker pace of the Knightly version to the Firth/Ehle version but I'm really surprised that folks who've read Austen prefer it.
The 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice is my favorite. It's just magical.. the set, and the cast. I've heard the BBC version is great too, but the 2005 one is what I saw first and fell in love with. I love Kiera and Matthew as Elizabeth and Darcy!
Aerykah wrote: "Katherine wrote: "Pride and Prejudice is my favorite novel of all time. I have seen both the BBC and the Kiera Knightly version and I have to say...you can't beat BBC. I mean you can't Americanize ..."Didn't include Bride and Prejudice because it's based on P & P not P & P itself, but I challenge anyone to watch it and not smile. Super fun.
Absolutely loved the Lizzie Bennet diaries, but didn't include for the same reason.
Has to be The Jennifer Ehle/Colin Firth version thou technically its a series rather than a film! A close second Matthew McFadden
I have already voted that I prefer the BBC Ehle/Firth production but I just finished watching the web series "The Lizzie Bennet Diaries" and I feel they should be recognized as an honorable mention. What a great modern view of P & P and I love the bow-tied Darcy, Dr. Bing Lee, and the three Bennet sisters!
I've seen some of the Lizzie Bennet Diaries... They're pretty good, I think. Nowhere near as good as the real thing or the 1995 mini-series (which is the BEST!!), but definitely not painful to watch like the 2005 movie.
Best thing about the 2005 version for me was Kelly Reilly, who captured Caroline Bingley as I read her in the novel, beautiful yet devious. A shame she didn't get much screen time, and the writers weren't true to her lines in the novel.Donald Sutherland I admire, but as a wise cracking British man? Nah. Did he even attempt a British accent? Nah. He didn't capture that standoffish sarcasm of the real Mr Bennet. Benjamin Whitrow was perfect as Mr Bennet.
And like others pointed out, that Americanised feel is too alien for P&P. The perfect and polished look of the 2005 version was just off-putting for me. I like the old-school feel of the 1995 version.
BBC...hands down. Colin Firth will always be Mr. Darcy. It is long, but true to the story and the romance.
The BBC version beats them all. I watched the 2005 one first and liked it but not as much. The dresses, hairstyles and overall feel wasn't captivating. BBC made me love Mr. Darcy!
I didn't like the BBC version at all. I couldn't stand the actress playing Elizabeth. She was cold, completely lacking any facial expressions (except for that smirking half smile). I don't want to sound mean, but compared to Colin Firth acting talent her performance fell short of delivering.The 2005 version brought across a sense and feeling of beauty and happiness ever after. The setting and landscape are absolutely stunning and act to enhance the atmosphere of a great, but not sappy love story and commentary on society during the early part of the 1800's.
The best thing about the 2005 version to me was being introduced to Rosamund Pike. I loved her version of Jane.
It has to be the BBC version. Mr Darcy was much more handsome in this version. Jennifer Ehle also did a fantastic job as Elizabeth too. I never tire of this adaption.
BBC version and it's not because of my dislike of Keira Knightly and my love of Colin Firth. I saw the 2005 movie first and it was just okay, it felt rushed and that something was missing. Although I liked Donald Sutherland's betrayal of Mr. Bennet more than Ben Withrow's. The BBC mini-series was pretty great, of course being a mini-series it could include more, I felt it built up and showed the relationships between all the characters better, not just Lizzie and Darcy and Jane and Bingley's.
The 2005 movie had the only Mr. Collins I kinda liked (well, except the Lizzie Bennett Diaries).
Definitely the Jennifer Ehle/Colin Firth version - it is the standard by which all successive film versions are measured. Going to expose a few of my own prejudices here - Keira Knightly was WAY TOO EMACIATED to pull off a convincing Elizabeth Bennet, and Matthew MacFadyen was a little soft as Darcy. That scene near the end where Darcy and Elizabeth meet each other in the morning mist - the dude walks like a girl! The rest of the Bennets are a little less overstated in the 2005 film, and are therefore more comfortable to watch, but Alison Steadman gave such a masterful performance as Mrs. Bennet that watching her is a pure delight. I enjoyed the 2005 version, but it didn't hold a candle to the BBC production.
The one with Colin Firth was the best by far, as far as I am concerned! Slow is good when you're dealing with a story that good.
I enjoyed both immensely, but very much preferred the Colin Firth version. It's long and drawn out but that's what the book is too - it's long and drawn out and wonderful. There was much more emphasis given to characterization and the little quirks of the characters, be it in expressions or gestures. I think the Elizabeth in the film version was much feistier than the one in the Firth version (and enjoyably so), but the Firth Elizabeth definitely felt more believable to me in the context of the book and the era of the story. :)
Just check out The Lizzie Bennet Diaries in youtube, It's a modern adaptation of Pride and Prejudice in a webcamera style, It's the most interesting and awesome adaptation ever.You won't regret this.
The Colin Firth version. Definitely. The Keira Knightley ballroom scenes are exquisite, but I just can't accept Matthew Macfadyen as Darcy, he is much too mardy (even for Darcy).
Colin Firth, however, is exactly as I pictured when I first read it years ago.
Mo wrote: "The Colin Firth version. Definitely. The Keira Knightley ballroom scenes are exquisite, but I just can't accept Matthew Macfadyen as Darcy, he is much too mardy (even for Darcy).
Colin Firth, howe..."
I actually loved Macfadyen as Mr Darcy more than Colin Firth, maybe it's because I like Matthew Macfadyen a lot !
Gordana wrote: "Mo wrote: "The Colin Firth version. Definitely. The Keira Knightley ballroom scenes are exquisite, but I just can't accept Matthew Macfadyen as Darcy, he is much too mardy (even for Darcy).
Colin ..."
I deeply appreciate Colin Firth as Mr Darcy and he is amazing, however my favourite is always going to be Matthew Macfadyen, he mesmerises me every time I watch Pride and Prejudice(2005)
Jenn wrote: "I didn't like the BBC version at all. I couldn't stand the actress playing Elizabeth. She was cold, completely lacking any facial expressions (except for that smirking half smile). I don't want to ..."Amen
Definitely the BBC version, Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle are brilliant and it follows the book so closely. Kiera Knightly is wooden and seems to make no choices as an actress, I found her really annoying.
Jessie wrote: "The best thing about the 2005 version to me was being introduced to Rosamund Pike. I loved her version of Jane."That's true, she was absolutely perfect for the character of Jane. I also like her in the mini-series "Women in Love".
Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite romantic love story of all time. With the fact that many movies can't incorporate every detail from the book due to movie times, I still really enjoyed the 2005 version with Keira Knightly and Matthew MacFadyen. I loved the cinematographers detail and artistic ways of filming and editing this movie. In the scene where Mr. Darcy and Lizzie dance, I really enjoyed how the other dancers "disappeared". This technique created an intimate connection between the two characters as well as the audience. The humor, delicateness, and pure intelligence of movie makes me want to pop it into the dvd player, break out a carton of ice cream and go to town.
BBC Version is perfect. I watch it constantly in pieces. I actually watched it when it originally aired and I couldn't wait for the next episode to air. I am on my 3rd copy and I need a new one :)
The BBC '95 version is my favorite; Ehle,Firth,Bamber, Leigh-Hunt simply awesome. Ehle's work load over those 330 minutes mind boggling.
PandP 1995, or the non-Botox version, seems better in every way. The casting, the music, the historical correctness, the performances, all pushed the 2005 version back into 1980 territory.
Ravenal wrote: "PandP 1995, or the non-Botox version, seems better in every way. The casting, the music, the historical correctness, the performances, all pushed the 2005 version back into 1980 territory."*agrees* Ha ha ha, "the non-Botox version", ha ha ha
I absolutely love the 1995 BBC version! I love the way you get to know the characters through the detail put into the series. I found the 2005 version too short and I missed seeing Lizzie gradually fall in love with Mr Darcy as you do in the BBC version, I felt that they hated each other for only a second and then were suddenly in love with each other the next in the 2005 version. However, I do love the cinematography in the 2005 version, it's stunning. But I do have to say that the BBC version is my favourite, it's everything it should be :) And let's not forget the lake scene ;)
I loved the '95 BBC version. I feel that version is true to the book and even characters look as if they belong to that era.Colin Firth is the perfect Mr.Darcy. I could not think anything else for two days after finishing P&P.
I did saw Keira Knightley's P&P, but i did not find it tempting to see.
I'm definitely going to say the 1995 bbc version. It's the closest adaptation to the book and both Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle fit the mental image of the characters.
Chelsea wrote: "I absolutely love the 1995 BBC version! I love the way you get to know the characters through the detail put into the series. I found the 2005 version too short and I missed seeing Lizzie gradually..."I felt the 2005 version was very rushed, too, Chelsea.
Nothing can touch the 1995 the version. I read the book first and then seeing the BBC capture the essence of Jane Austen's book so perfectly...I like both Keira Knightly and Matthew MacFadyen as actors, but the movie was like some weird, alternate reality version for me.
It never felt like Jane Austen.
Also I thought Donald Sutherland was totally miscast as Mr Bennett.
The picture just didn´t capture the essence of the book and all of the nuances the characters have, due to time-crunch - having to fit it all in a 2 hour movie. Plus, Anne Hathaway´s wardrobe was not at all fitting with the station in life of Lizzie: although not rich, the Bennet´s were land owners and the father was a peer to the kingdom, so, i didn´t get why Jane only ever wore dresses that made her look like a kitchen-maid.The BBC series is hand´s down, no questions asked my all time fave, especcially the Netherfield Hall dance - i watch it time and time again: it never fails to cheer me up. all fo the cast is exactly what i envisioned for them to be, in reading the book - they seem age appropiate and time/era appropriate.
*Sigh* if only I could combine this actor and that actress, and this setting, and that music into one perfect adaptation! Alas, it is not so though. I love classic movies, but the overall Victorian Era feeling of the Olivier and Garson version just does not feel right to me. Also I do not like that they must skip so much of the essence of the book in order to fit the story into that short movie length.
My favorite all-time pick for Elizabeth would have to be Elizabeth Garvey from the 1980 miniseries. David Rintoul however is way too stiff. I love him in other things, but not necessarily in that P&P.
1995 has the BEST music!! Also some of the characters are top notch. I do not like Wickham in that one though - for him I would pick the Lost in Austen actor over all the others. (I know it is a farse movie, but I still loved it).
2005 had some fabulously emotional moments, and I think the hand flex is one of the most luxuriously delicious moments. And then it is ruined with all the other "pig in the parlour" moments, as I call them. I do like Jane in that one best though - she really adds a depth to Jane that none of the others come close to giving her.
So how is that for a mishmash of what I like?
all discussions on this book
|
post a new topic
