Production Information: Bevan, T., Fellner, E. & Webster, P. Working Title films (Producers). Wright, J. (Director). (2005). Pride & Prejudice. DVD. USA: Universal Studios.
Plot Summary: In the latest film adaptation of Jane Austen's beloved novel, Pride & Prejudice, an all-star cast including Keira Knightley, Matthew MacFadyen, Donald Sutherland and Judi Dench bring life to this wonderful novel. The story is set at the turn of the 18th century in rural England. The Bennet family, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and their five daughters, live on a working farm called Longbourn. Longbourn is to be inherited by Mr. Collins who is Mr. Bennet's cousin. Mrs. Bennet is very anxious to marry off her daughters before Mr. Bennet dies and the farm goes to Mr. Collins. Mr. Bingley falls for the Bennet's eldest daughter, Jane, who is beautiful. Mr. Bingley is wealthy and has a friend named Mr. Darcy who is also wealthy. Mr. Darcy owns half of Derbyshire. Jane becomes ill on a trip to Netherfield and Mr. Bingley takes good care of her. Lizzy, played by Knightley, is the second oldest sibling. She is feisty, but some feel she is the least likely to attract a suitor because she is so outspoken. There is a very strong attraction between Lizzy and Mr. Darcy, although Lizzy says she "loathes" Mr. Darcy.
Mr. Collins visits the Bennets and ends up proposing to Lizzy. Lizzy refuses his proposal which causes Mrs. Bennet to become hysterical. When Lizzy pays a visit to the Collins at Rosings she comes head to head with Lady Catherine, played by Judi Dench, who is very overbearing. Mr. Darcy falls in love with Lizzy and proposes marriage to her. Lizzy refuses saying that Mr. Darcy purposefully separated Mr. Bingley and Jane, who Colonel Fizwilliam had told Lizzy. It turns out that Mr. Bingley never did such a thing.
Critical Evaluation: Kiera Knightley as Lizzy Bennet and Judi Dench as Lady Lady Catherine de Bourgh make this film version of Pride and Prejudice superb. Pride and Prejudice was nominated for four academy awards in 2005: Keria Knightley for Best Actress, Achievement in Art Direction, Jacqueline Durran for Costume Design and Dario Marianelli for Original Score. All of the afore mentioned nominations were well deserved. Keira Knightley played Lizzy to perfection: beautiful yet simple and feisty yet not obnoxious. The scenery, costumes and music were also wonderful.
With any film adaptation of a novel, it is nearly impossible to include everything in the novel on film. This version of Pride and Prejudice was compressed into a little over 2 hours. A few of the changes from the novel were: Time compression of several major parts of the story such as Lizzy's visit to Pemberley, elimination of supporting characters and the compression of long sections of the novel such as an entire chapter of Elizabeth reading Darcy's letter. The filmmakers made the best of the necessity of compressing the novel into an acceptable length for a major motion picture.
Annotation: The 2005 film version of Jane Austen's beloved Pride and Prejudice is an absolute joy. Keira Knightly as Elizabeth Bennet is fabulous, a must see performance.
About the Director: Joe Wright was born in London in 1972. His parents founded the Little Angel Theatre, which was a puppet theater. As a child Joe was bright and enterprising, but he was a poor student because he was dyslexic. Based on his homemade films and drawings, which showed much talent and promise, he was admitted to a private art school. Later he studied Fine Art and Cinema at the Camberwell College of Arts. Joe began his career by working in his parents' theater.
In 2005 Wright's first major motion picture, Pride and Prejudice, received four Academy Award nominations. Joe won the BAFTA for most promising newcomer the same year. Wright directed Atonement (2007) which also starred Keira Knightly. Atonement was nominated for seven Golden Globe Awards and six Academy Awards. Wright was the youngest director ever to have a film (Atonement) open the Venice Film Festival.
Genre: Romance Film, Drama, Relationships, England
Curriculum Ties: Literature and Social Studies
Talking Points: What does Lizzy do when her feelings for Mr. Darcy become romantic? When Mr. Darcy claims he loves Lizzy despite her "lower rank" how does Lizzy respond?
Rating and Interest Age: PG, Interest age 12 and older
Challenge Issues: none
Reason for Inclusion: The 2005 film version of Pride and Prejudice is excellent and is based on a classic beloved novel. This film is well suited for high school literature classes within an acceptable time limit.
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