Pride and Prejudice [Special Edition] [2 Discs] [Blu-ray]

Director: Simon Langton Simon Langton

Overview

Jane Austen's classic novel is brought to the screen once again in this intelligent and witty romantic drama. Elizabeth Bennett (Jennifer Ehle) is one of five sisters living on a British country estate in the 1800s. At a time and place in which matrimony is considered a woman's logical goal in life, Elizabeth displays a cautious reluctance toward marriage -- so when a wealthy young man, Fitzwilliam Darcy (Colin Firth) expresses an interest in courting her, she isn't so sure she cares for him. Elizabeth and Darcy discover that they have a great deal to learn about each other -- and no small amount to overcome in their minds -- if they are to find happiness together. Pride and Prejudice was produced as a five hour mini-series by the BBC and was first shown in the U.S. on the A&E cable network.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/27/2008
UPC:	5051561000195
Original Release:	1995
Source:	Imports
Region Code:	2
Language:	English
Sales rank:	18,050

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jennifer Ehle	Elizabeth Bennet
Colin Firth	Fitzwilliam Darcy
Crispin Bonham-Carter	Mr. Bingley
Alison Steadman	Mrs. Bennet
Benjamin Whitrow	Mr. Bennet
Adrian Lukis	George Wickham
Julia Sawalha	Lydia Bennet
David Bamber	Mr. Collins
Anna Chancellor	Caroline Bingley
Barbara Leigh-Hunt	Lady Catherine de Bourgh
Susannah Harker	Jane Bennet
Polly Maberly	Kitty Bennet
Lucy Briers	Mary Bennet
Carl Davis	Composer

Technical Credits

Andrew Davies

Simon Langton	Director
Andrew Davies	Screenwriter
Sue Birtwistle	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Thanks to this made-for-TV film and three other film adaptations of Jane Austen's novels -- Persuasion, Sense and Sensibility, and Clueless (based on Emma) -- the work of Jane Austen enjoyed a renaissance in bookstores and college classrooms in 1995. Pride and Prejudice has several things going for it. First, the actors perform brilliantly, bringing Georgian England to life with their class-conscious behavior and attitudes and their drawing-room repartee. Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth are particularly good as the central characters, Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. Second, writer Andrew Davies' script wisely includes verbatim dialogue from the Austen novel that is rich in wit, irony, and humor. Third, producer Sue Birtwistle pays close attention to period costumes, customs, and surroundings. Even the dances mimic authentic gambols and frolics popular in Austen's times. Fourth, the length of the film enables director Simon Langton to present a complete -- or nearly complete -- exposition of the plot. Consequently, viewers are treated to many entertaining scenes, involving minor as well as major characters, that probably would have been omitted in a shorter film version of the novel. Although the highly praised 1940 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, starring Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson, had much to commend it, its length forced it to truncate the plot and present an abridged ghost of the real story. Fans of Olivier and Garson may balk at assertions that Langton's 1995 adaptation has become the definitive film version of the novel, but the popularity of the Langton version and the reviews of many critics suggest that it has.