World Famous Comics: Pride and Prejudice - The Special Edition (A&E, 1996)
Pride and Prejudice - The Special Edition (A&E, 1996)
Starring: Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle, David Bamber, Crispin Bonham-Carter, Anna Chancellor Directed By: Simon Langton Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD Format: Anamorphic, Color, Special Edition, Closed-captioned Label: A&E Home Video Number of Items: 2 Region Code: 1 Release Date: September 25, 2001 Running Time: 300 minutes Theatrical Release Date: January 14, 1996
Product Description: The timeless themes of love and marriage in Jane Austen's superb romantic comedy Pride and Prejudice have captured readers for generations - the novel has sold more than 20 million copies and has never been out of print. Now A&E and the BBC have brought this beloved classic to life in a compelling production directed by Upstairs Downstairs' Simon Langton. This stunning production captures the celebrated beauty of the English countryside and its glorious stately manors. It features lavish costumes and an exquisite soundtrack from noted composer Carl Davis.Pride and Prejudice is the story of the lively and rebellious Elizabeth Bennet one of five unmarried daughters living in the countryside of 19th Century England. IN a world where obtaining an advantageous marriage is a woman's sole occupation Elizabeth's independent manner threatens her family's future. Will her romantic sparring with the mysterious and arrogant Darcy end in misfortune - or will love's true nature prevail?System Requirements:Starring: Jennifer Ehle Colin Firth David Bamber Crispin Bonham-Carter Anthony Calf Anna Chancellor Susannah Harker Julia Sawalha Alison Steadman Benjamin Whitrow. Directed By: Simon Langton. Running Time: 310 Minutes Color. This Film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2001 A&E Television Networks. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 733961702545 Manufacturer No: AAE-70254
Amazon.com essential video: 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, is painstakingly replicated, except when fleshing out and smoothing for modern sensibilities was necessary. Darcy, for instance, is drawn out, giving his personality significantly more depth. The acting sweeps you away to Regency England: Jennifer Ehle (of Wilde) is convincing as the obstinate Elizabeth, who, despite her mother's attempts to marry her off, spurs the attentions of Darcy. And Colin Firth (of The English Patient) will have women everywhere longing for a Mr. Darcy of their own.
For those who have been on an Austen binge--enjoying such excellent adaptations as Sense and Sensibility and Persuasion--this miniseries will round out the ultimate Austen video library. For those new to these romantic period pieces, this version of Pride and Prejudice will have you hooked and longing for more. One caveat, however: plan to watch it in an entire day, because very few have the self-control to not watch all six hours in a single sitting. --Jenny Brown
I Love This Movie! I have this 10th Anniversary Limited Collector's Edition and watch it at least once per month. This version of the story, the screen play, the dialogue, the costumes, and the actors are far superior to the American version which stars that stick figure actress Kira Knightley. Yuck.
An amazing adaption of a wonderful story.
Excellent! Job well done! This is my favorite movie version of Pride and Prejudice and the bes that I have seen. The actors are convincing and the story line includes enough of the original story that you understand what's going on even if you hadn't read the books. An excellent job was done when this was made!
Excellent - much better than the Keira Knightley movie If you want to watch Pride and Prejudice, then this is by far the best version. Jane Austen wrote a great novel, with fantastic prose and this production does it justice.
It was a BBC series, and because it ran for a full hour (no commercials on the BBC!) for six weeks, you'll need to put aside 6 hours or split it up to watch it, but is really worth your time. It is very close to the original book. Albeit Mr D'Arcy did not swim across the pond in the book, but after seeing Colin Firth come out of the water, you'll consider this a worthwhile deviation of the original....swoon!!
The acting is excellent, and everything about it from the costumes to the locations are fantastic. It is sumptuous. I'd agree that when compared side by side, the VHS version bathes it in a lovely glow as the color is much warmer.
I prefer Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle as D'Arcy and Lizzy; the chemistry is excellent and perfect for the Regency era. The looks they share across the piano are so charged. Keira Knightley was too modern in her portrayal and the way her mouth quirks all over the place during intense moments drives me crazy. I found the scene in the rain where D'Arcy proposes to Knightley with all the dark eye make-up totally ridiculous ad they tried to make it more modern which didn't work. The BBC version follows the book almost verbatim and it is so satisfying to watch all that passion lying just under the surface.
I'd absolutely recommend this version. If it is too expensive here, look on ebay, but personally I feel it is worth every penny.
Don't forget to re-read the book though.
1996 vs 2006 2006: Given the time constraints of a movie, this version does not develop the characters very well which is the cornerstone of Janes' writing, the spoken word does not follow the book, the characters are not as mannerly as they are written in the book, major parts of the book are missing (ie., the Bingley sisters, many of the piano performances by Elizabeth are missing, some of the balls are not in this version), the English dialect is not constantly spoken. I given this version 3 stars.
1996: Given the luxious length, this version does develop the characters very well, is true to Janes' book, is stellar in the use of manners of the day, major parts of the book are not missing including the best part of the whole series which is Janes' performance at Penberly on the piano - she and Mr. Darcy actually make love just looking at one another - yummy performance, and the English dialect is spoken throughout. The Bingley sisters are present and a major part of the movie as well as Elizabeths' mother which is so excellently played!! I would say Jane herself would be so proud of this version that I would given it 10 srars if I could but for now we'll give it 5 stars
Love the movie with slight exceptions First of all, I thought this was a great movie, and was extremely faithful to the book - I even followed along with the book ocassionally to see just how close they were and there were very few times when they did not match up word for word. The movie took a couple of liberties here and there (such as the scenes with Lydia and wickham), but mostly just to add to the movie - it did nothing to take away from it. Until watching this, the only version I had seen was the recent one with Keira Knightley. While I thought that one was decent enough, I felt they changed too much of it. That being said however, I much preferred Keira Knightley's performance of Elizabeth Bennet - it just felt more passionate to me, Jennifer Ehle was too subdued in my opinion - she just didn't have that same spark as the original character in the book and didn't draw me in as much. I realize it's all a matter of character interpretation and personal taste as to which actress you'd prefer - that's just my opinion. Also, while I love Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy, and I think he was a great casting choice, there were certain parts in the end that he could have been softer, and less stern - again though, that's just my interpretaion of the character. Overall, this A&E version is excellent, I thought they did a great job casting the male roles and thought they had a much better casting for Lydia Bennet than in the new movie version. This version is certainly less "flashy" I guess you'd say, than the movie, but I much prefer this version for its faithfulness to the story. I didn't have any problems wiith color or sound either.
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