A TALE OF THREE MOVIES -- by naudy

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin is one of those books that is so beloved that it is constantly made into movies. I am intentionally limiting myself to only 3 remakes of this literary classic but only because ya gotta stop somewhere. And because there's no way I'm going to be able to sit through the recent version PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, A LATTER DAY COMEDY. Just thinking about it makes me shudder. So, explanations over, let's get down to business.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (1940) starring Greer Garson and Lawrence Olivier. This film won an Oscar for Best Art Direction. It sure didn't win for costumes. All the women wear Civil War era hoopskirts and corseted bodices the whole time. When I first saw this movie I was about 9 years old. My mom had checked it out of the library to see if it was any good. She didn't like it. I was enthralled. Now that I'm older I don't like it either. All the Bennet girls are big teases and even Elizabeth turns her back and pouts at the softly flirty Mr. Darcy. All the varied scenes and times in the book are jammed into one or two exhanges in the movie and then they start adding stuff. This is bad. Elizabeth out-shoots Mr. Darcy at archery during a garden party. The Bennetts decide to move out of their house after Lydia's shame makes them local pariahs. But, what's worse, Mr. Darcy rides in the carriage with Lady Catherine and after the disasterous chat she and Lizzy have (during which Lizzy is rude and actually kicks Lady Catherine out of the house!) Lady Catherine goes to Mr. Darcy and tells him Miss Bennett will be a good wife for him. So, basically, it's been all Hollywooded up. Refreshing to find our time isn't exclusivly responsible for destroying classical literature. They did it way back when, too.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (1995) starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. Won and Emmy for Best Costumes. At 300 minutes, this mini-series is the definitive version. Nothing is left out, as any unlucky boyfriend forced to watch it knows. Every letter written, every carriage taken, every conversation held or not held is faithfully and beautifully shown to us in exhaustive detail. It's magnificent and I never have the patience to sit all the way through it. Inevitably I just go to the "good bits" which, no surprise, are the parts with Colin Firth. All the humanity and humor of Jane Austin's novel are preserved in this version but most of us don't have the moral strength to sit enraptured for 6 hours.




BRIDE AND PREJUDICE however, is an entirely different sort of movie. Another delightful Bollywood crossover attempt by the director of BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM, it is charming and sweet if a bit silly. Ashwari Rie, former Miss World, is breathtakinly beautiful even though she gained 40 pounds for the role. In this modern-day version, (with songs, of course, since it is Bollywood) Mr. Darcy is an American hotel magnet. Mr. Collins is a silly/cute Indian guy who pays to have everyone come from India to visit him in California, and Wickham is truly truly icky. For the first time Wickham is seen as a predator and you really are frightened for the lost little sister. As for the rest of the movie, there's some light preaching about Indian politics, a really funny cobra dance, and outrageously colorful street scenes, complete with elephants. Very very fun. If you're going to set Pride and Prejudice in modern-day times, India is the place to do it.