Cover of "Pride & Prejudice"

Cover of Pride & Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice has been filmed again, this time by Joe Wright and with an ampersand in the title.  Now it’s Pride & Prejudice (2005) and it stars Keira Knightley (of course) as Elizabeth Bennet and Matthew MacFadyen as Darcy.  I learn from critic David Edelstein that “Wright has said in interviews that he approached the novel as a piece of gritty English social realism” (Slate.com), which is fine as long as Jane Austen’s themes do not get lost in the process.  They don’t.  Scriptwriter Deborah Moggach is steadfast in her focus on the pride and prejudice of the two chief characters, and decisively does the film reveal the slow empowerment of the middle class in late 18th-century England.  For once I agree with Edelstein:  the movie is very good.  That social realism is reflected in the fine costumes and the even finer production design.  Dario Marianelli’s music is gorgeous, and the directing more imaginative than arty.

Some praiseworthy scenes: