List Price: $19.98 Our Price: $16.37YOU SAVE $3.61!
Buy it
DVD Pride & Prejudice (Widescreen Edition)
Literary adaptations just don't get any better than director Joe Wright's 2005 version of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. The key word here is adaptation, because Wright and gifted screenwriter Deborah Moggach have taken liberties with Austen's classic novel that purists may find objectionable, but in this exquisite film their artistic decisions are entirely justified and exceptionally well executed. It's a more rural England that we see here, circa 1790 (as opposed to Austen's early 19th century), in which Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) is one of several sisters primed for marriage, with an anxious mother (Brenda Blethyn) only too desperate to see her daughters paired off with the finest, richest husbands available. Elizabeth is strong-willed and opinionated, but her head (not to mention her pride and prejudice) lead her heart astray when she meets the wealthy Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen), whose own sense of decency and discretion (not to mention his pride and prejudice) prevent him from expressing his mutual affection. They're clearly meant for each other, and as Knightley's performance lights up the screen (still young enough to be girlishly impertinent, yet wise beyond her 20 years), Austen's timeless romance yields yet another timeless adaptation, easily on par with the beloved BBC miniseries that has been embraced by millions since originally broadcast in 1995. Individual tastes will vary as to which version should be considered "definitive," but with a stellar supporting cast including Judi Dench and Donald Sutherland, this impeccable production achieves its own kind of perfection. --Jeff Shannon
Review(s): DVD Pride & Prejudice (Widescreen Edition)
Very Poor Adaptation
I think the only people who are going to like this version of Jane Austin's novel are those who are not familiar with the story or mores of this time period. The characterization of Elizaeth Bennett bouncing into the room and landing on the sofa with her feet tucked up on the sofa is totally out of character for that time period. The whole film looked more like colonial America than 18th century England. The character portrayals were more "American" as well. England was a more formal culture than America ever was. The family relations and behaviors of the Bennett sisters is more of what you would expect from this side of the ocean. And this is perhaps what was intended to make the story more 'accessible' to a younger audience that is used to love stories where the leading couple are in bed together before the end of the first act... but it's NOT Jane Austin.
Both Ang Lee with Sense and Sensibility and the BBC production of Pride and Predjuice were truer to the core of the story which is a satire of the manners and mores of the time Jane Austin lived in. They preserved what this film threw away. Pity that the critics and general audience don't even understand what they missed.
Don't buy it if you truly love Jane Austin.
PATHETIC
I can not comprehend thr reason for remaking this movie after the BBC has already produced the most beautiful version with the very best cast of British actors. The entire production is stunning from the actors, to the sets, to the costume.
In this new version, the entire cast was poor and the acting was equally as bad. I had a huge problem with the likes of Donald Sutherland as Mr. Bennett and Keira Knightly as Lizzie is a huge joke. Mr. Darcy isn't even handsome! The poor guy's been whipped with an ugly stick!
The portrayal of Jane Austin's novel in this film is a complete betrayal to her beautiful work. I happened upon the movie on HBO, otherwise I would NEVER have watched it.
Actors good, creators bad
First, I think the actors did a find job with their roles; my issue is with the directorial decisions that made no sense. I had no problem with how the Bennett family was portrayed, and I even liked the rougher more unwashed look of the dancers at the minor balls -- in a world where bathing was a luxury, I can imagine that flyaway hair would be more natural than perfectly coiffed locks.
The pacing was much too fast. I realize that it's a lot of story to fit into 2 hours, which is why it perhaps should not have been attempted. Today's life moves at breakneck speeds, but life in the nineteenth century would have been much slower, especially for families of their status.
I do not understand the re-characterization of Mr. Bennett at all. In the book he's a quietly powerful figure stuck in a loveless marriage. When he speaks to Elizabeth at the end, he mentions the unhappiness of marrying someone you cannot respect, a direct allusion to his own situation. This movie portrays him as hen-pecked and even shows tenderness to his wife -- completely out of character with the original where he barely tolerates her silliness. To bolster this illustration of Mr. Bennett, some of his best lines are given to other roles. For example, Elizabeth challenges Mr. Collins as to whether his effusions are thought out ahead of time or the result of the moment. Elizabeth would never be so impertinent to a guest at her father's table, especially one with the power to put them out of their house!
And lastly, Lady Catherine came calling in the middle of the night? I think not! There is nothing on earth that would have provoked a woman of such strict pride and ostentatious rectitude to arrive at the home of someone so far beneath her in the dark of night. It would be unheard of.
If you don't care about the original story or its integrity and/or just want to get through it, please feel free to watch this. But if you want to know the real story, please read the book or watch the BBC production with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.
Related DVD's Pride & Prejudice (Widescreen Edition)
The fourth entry in the Harry Potter saga could be retitled Fast Times at Hogwarts, where finding a date to the winter ball is nearly as terrifying as worrying about Lord Voldemort's return. Thus, the young wizards' entry into puberty (and discovery of the opposite sex) opens up a rich mining field to balance out the dark content in the fourth movie (and the stories are only going to get darker). Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral) handily takes the directing reins and eases his young cast through awkward growth spurts into true young actors. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe, more sure of himself) has his first girl crush on fellow student Cho Chang (Katie Leung), and has his first big fight with best bud Ron (Rupert Grint). Meanwhile, Ron's underlying romantic tension with... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Mike Newell DVD Release Date: Released the 07 March 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $30.98 Your Price: $23.99YOU SAVE $6.99!
Buy it
Jane Austen's classic novel of 1813, Pride and Prejudice, still wins the hearts of countless schoolgirls with its romantic story of Elizabeth Bennet and her Mr. Darcy. Now, the 1996 BBC miniseries is winning over adults, with its faithful adaptation, gorgeous scenery, and superb acting. The essence of the story is the antagonism between Mr. Darcy, a wealthy single man who believes Elizabeth to be beneath him, and Elizabeth, who upon being insulted at a dance by the aloof Darcy refuses to associate with him in any manner. Austen evokes incredible tension with the wit and flirtation of the two characters, and director Simon Langton (who also directed Upstairs Downstairs) successfully translates the repartee and conflict in this six-hour miniseries. Dialogue, for the most part,... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Simon Langton DVD Release Date: Released the 25 September 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $39.95 Your Price: $19.97YOU SAVE $19.98!
Buy it
The Constant Gardener is the kind of thriller that hasn't been seen since the 1970s: Smart, politically complex, cinematically adventurous, genuinely thrilling and even heartbreaking. Mild diplomat Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes, The English Patient, Schindler's List) has a loose cannon of a wife named Tessa (Rachel Weisz, The Shape of Things, The Mummy), who's digging into the dirty doings of a major pharmaceutical company in Kenya. Her brutal murder forces Justin to continue her investigation down some deadly avenues. This simple plot description doesn't capture the rich texture and slippery, sinuous movement of The Constant Gardener, superbly directed by Fernando Meirelles (Oscar-nominated for his first film, City of God). Shifting back... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Fernando Meirelles DVD Release Date: Released the 10 January 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.98 Your Price: $13.88YOU SAVE $6.1!
Buy it
A solid and entertaining biopic, Walk the Line works less as a movie than an actors' showcase for its stars. Joaquin Phoenix's total immersion into the skin of singer Johnny Cash is startling--watching it, you can't believe this is the same guy who whined about being "vexed" in Gladiator. As he evolves from a farm boy to gospel croonin' plunker to the Man in Black, Phoenix disappears into Cash's deep baritone, his way of slinging the guitar onto his back, and his hunched-up style of strumming. But it's more than just picking up mannerisms: Phoenix also sings as Johnny Cash, and it's quite impressive.
The story of how Johnny Cash became Johnny Cash traces from his childhood under a distant father (Robert Patrick) to his early attempts at a music career, during which he... More Info about this DVD Director(s): James Mangold DVD Release Date: Released the 28 February 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $29.99 Your Price: $16.49YOU SAVE $13.5!
Buy it
Without force-feeding its timely message, Good Night, and Good Luck illuminates history to enlighten our present, when the need for a free and independent press is more important than ever. In 90 breathtaking minutes of efficient and intricate storytelling, writer-director George Clooney and cowriter Grant Heslov pay honorable tribute to the journalistic integrity of legendary CBS newscaster Edward R. Murrow,
Director George Clooney
who confronted the virulent and overzealous anti-Communist witch-hunting of Wisconsin Sen. Joseph McCarthy in 1953-54, and emerged as a... More Info about this DVD DVD Release Date: Released the 14 March 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.98 Your Price: $13.49YOU SAVE $6.49!
Buy it
