Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful movie!
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It truly is a great movie and I highly recommend it. I really loved Lizzie and Darcy's characters. And Colin Firth, who plays Darcy, is so hot!
Rating:
Summary: An indispensable piece of TV-history!
Review: This BBC/A&E series is right up there with Brideshead Revisited as the best work ever done for TV; and due to its tauter story line, its light-footed wit and its stylistic unity I am more and more convinced that P&P may just have the edge... Whereas Brideshead deals with drama that, despite its religious undertones, is basically modern, P&P is driven by lots of excitement over events that may seem rather futile from a 21st century perspective. However, the art of the makers of this series, and indeed of Jane Austen, is such, that the viewer is drawn into the frame of reference of middle and upper class people in the early 1800s from the very first scenes, and within 30 minutes you're hooked. I think I have watched this series ten or eleven times by now, and its delights are undiminished, as, surprisingly, is the suspense - will they get each other or not?
The series derives much of its strength directly from the strength of Austen's text: it closely adheres to both the words and the spirit of the book. This filmed version is worlds away from the absurd, stuffily Victorian 40s movie, with hoop-skirted ladies, an overdose of frills and heavily mutilated dialogue. Here, we get all the breezy freshness of the early years of the Romantic era, with its love of nature and naturalness, reflected both in frequent outdoor activities and Greek-style dress for the ladies, among other things. The series' makers have exploited this further in stressing the basic similarity of Elizabeth and Darcy as nature beings, both using physical activity as an antidote to emotional turmoil: she tramping through the countryside whenever she can; he, taking fencing lessons, and his by now famous dive into the Pemberley pond to overcome his feelings for the woman who refused him.
The balance between high comedy and emotional drama is expertly judged. Mr Collins and Mrs Bennet provide many occasions for laughter, without ever quite sinking into mere caricature, and the elegant cynicism adopted by Mr Bennet to deal with his less than happy choice of partner, is titillating (though in the end it becomes his undoing). At the same time, the story hinges on a few scenes of extreme dramatic power, each and every one representing (more than) Oscar-worthy feats of acting and writing. Darcy's first proposal, with Colin Firth pacing the Hunsford Parsonage parlour like some animal in distress, is played out as an unparalleled clash of two very powerful and independent characters, both acting on misguided preconceptions, and the viewer is made to feel the violent emotions of both most acutely. The meeting in the Pemberley grounds, much later, then offers the catharsis. This is the beginning of Darcy's transformation, something Austen leaves implicit in her text, a problem which has been resolved by the script writers of the series in a way that aspires to sheer genius. The proud aristocrat turns into a stammering, lovesick schoolboy and yet it is clear we are only seeing another side to the same man. And finally there is the fantastic scene of Lady Catherine's Great Intervention: a duel of words as sharp as any ever written, delivered with utmost conviction, and, astonishingly, representing a literal four-page long citation from the book: such is the power of Austen the dramatist! Of course all these main protagonists are perfectly cast, but the same seems to hold true even for the smallest supporting roles. Lady Anne de Bourgh doesn't speak a single word during her few appearances - and yet how we pity her when we briefly cut from the final wedding ceremony to the Rosings saloon, where she is locked up, newly deprived of her intended husband, with that Gorgon of a mother... It is one of the instances, by the way, where the script writers have made a character a little more sympathetic than Austen did, who stresses Anne's haughtiness; here, she is a frail, morose and pitiable creature. To some extent the same even goes for Darcy - in the book, at his second proposal, he somewhat self-righteously stresses that Lizzy's bad opinion of him the first time, was based on her being deceived by others; in the series, he appears more softened and contrite.
So this is perfection then? Unfortunately, no such thing exists... Even in a production so carefully managed as this one, on repeated viewing one notices the odd mistake: lush green foliage in front of Longbourn, two days before Christmas; distinctly 20th century stained glass behind the minister performing the Wickham wedding; Mr. Darcy, running up the stairs to his room at Rosings, and next seen looking out of its window - on the ground floor. But such little slips are massively compensated by everything that is spot on, from the food on the table to the lack of a pin under the cellist's instrument. And talking about cello's, Carl Davis's score is a masterpiece in itself, with some extremely memorable instances of musical characterization. His heavily ornamented baroque sounds constitute at least half of Lady Catherine's pompous, reactionary character.
To my regret I have to agree with other reviewers who complain about the colors on the DVD. Scenes do appear over-exposed, with too extreme dark-light contrasts, and midtones are faded. Some fiddling with your TV color settings helps a little, but will not restore the nuances of color that we know from the broadcasts to be there. DVD on the other hand does offer an enduring memento of what is definitely one of the greatest moments in TV-history!
Rating:
Summary: Best DVD ever
Review: Pride and Prejudice is a wonderful, enjoyable family film. Jane Austen writes so well, and the film captures her exquiset style, wit and creativity.
I recommend it to everyone. Great Job. Jane and Lizzy are so pretty.
Rating:
Summary: Pride and Predjudice is the best ever!
Review: I saw Pride and Predjudice on A&E and absolutely fell in love with it. I kept renting it, until I got it for Christmas. I love the story- I can watch it over and over again. On top of the great story, Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy is hot! :)If you want a good afternoon's/night's movie, pick Pride and Predjudice- you'll become hooked!
Rating:
Summary: Get the video set not the DVD
Review: The one major drawback that I have with the DVD version is that the spectacular cinematography from the VHS version is all washed out & ruined. I STRONGLY recommend VHS.
Rating:
Summary: Just so very good !
Review: This movie is one of the best ! If you like movies like Mansfield Park, Daniel Deronda, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, Wuthering Heights, Wives and Daughters and Emma this movie is for you. The actors are brilliant, especially Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. You will not be disappointed...
Rating:
Summary: Awesom performance!
Review: This movie is so beautiful! The costumes, the scenery, the language.... Jane Austen would be proud of this performance. The acting is impeccable--especially by Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. I urge you to buy this version if you want to see the book accurately come to life. You will not be sorry you did!
Rating:
Summary: absolutly superb!
Review: Pride and Prejudice was first introduced to me through my mum. After reading the book I was delighted to discover the DVD existed, which I knew I definitely had to watch. The DVD was absolutely amazing; it brought each character to life as the cast portray the characters magnificently! Jennifer Ehle's acting was outstanding as Elizabeth Bennet and I grew to love her to bits. Colin Firth was a brilliant Mr Darcy and he enabled me to understand the depth of Darcy's character. Alison Steadman played Mrs Bennet remarkably well. Mrs Bennet's character is at times trying, as she is so fickle, yet Alison Steadman brought life into the character and made me laugh many times. Over all I absolutely love the story. It seems to contain everything a good novel needs and I thank the people who brought this masterpiece to our screens.
I often think films based on books miss the true meanings found in the book, however; this DVD captures everything that makes Pride and Prejudice a fantastic read today. It's a DVD that must be watched if you're a Jane Austin fan.
Rating:
Summary: Love it
Review: This is my favorite movie. Read the book in high school and we watched a little snippet of it. I am elated there is a DVD edition. It's made a Colin Firth fan out of me :)
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: Highly recommended -- you will tell yourself that you are going to watch it like a miniseries, but you won't want to turn it off.
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