Pride and Prejudice
Over the years Jane Austen’s most popular novel Pride and Prejudice has suffered greatly in the hands of period costume dramas made for TV and equally forgettable movie versions devoid of the humour and astute anthropological observations that the author intended. It was I suppose only a matter of time before someone was eventually going to get it “spot on” and I am relieved that it should happen in my lifetime because its been a long wait. Pride and Prejudice (2005) starring Keira Knightly, Donald Sutherland, Matthew MacFadyen and Judi Dench head up a spotless performance that completely immerses the viewer in the story concentrating on the characterisations rather than period pomp. The whole experience is washed down with beautiful cinematography and an ideal soundtrack. I couldn’t recommend this movie more highly and suggest you rent it soon if you haven’t got round to it yet. This movie marks the high watermark of Austen adaptations so I really just hope that’s the end of it, no more - please.
As I’m in a movie review mood I thought I’d mention another gem, which is Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar’s The Sea Inside (2004) Starring Javier Bardem who plays the true life role of Ramon Sampedro, a quadriplegic who is campaigning for euthanasia and his own right to die. Don’t be deceived into thinking this will be some cheesy weepy because its far from it, this is the tale of a powerful yet immobile man who wielded considerable influence on all around him in his determination to end what he alone felt was a pointless existence. A moving and uplifting film, demonstrating remarkable talent and well worth watching.
