Most diverting films
Am I alone in loving Pride and Prejudice? Seriously? Because whilst it doesn't match up to the TV series, that doesn't automatically disqualify it from any artistic or narrative merit.
I felt that the cinematography alone made it worth watching. It was obvious how much painstaking care had gone into ever aspect of this film's visual quality: the editing, the shots taken, the lighting... the whole thing was utterly rich in colour. When people say that films are 'a visual feast' I usually dismiss them as hyperbolic gushes. This time I thought they were right on the money.
I originally had the same reaction as most to Keira Knightley as Elizabeth: she's too pretty. I still think that her feaures are a little too refined for Lizzie, but can Keira help that? Of course she can't. I don't have the resentment a lot of people harbour for Keira, and I personally think she's one of the best young actresses around, and I wish her the best in the world. She seems utterly down to earth and level-headed in her personal life, and I respect anyone with her self-humour. But moving on from that, I felt that she managed to embody the essence of Lizzie perfectly. The way she laughed wrinkling her nose, the way she delivered those cutting remarks... after a while I just forgot that she was Keira Knightley and absorbed her as Elizabeth Bennett.
Matthew Macfayden certainly looked the part, and by the end he had grown on me as Darcy-- I felt it was quite amazing how his physical appearance (which I think was managed through lighting more than anything ^^) seemed to soften and lighten as Elizabeth's... well, affection, grew. Whilst I went in with a clear mind and determined not to compare with the TV series, I had to concede that Colin Firth was better :p
I thought everybody was perfectly cast. Lydia and Kitty were singularly annoying and twittery, Mrs. Bennett was flustered and genially irritating... I felt that Donald Sutherland quietly stole every scene that he was in with Mr. Bennett's lovely little remarks; you really understood that Mr. Bennett probably cared more deeply than his wife, and he put this across in a very unassuming way. Mr. Bennett was always my favourite character from Pride and Prejudice (though of course, I always wanted to be Lizzie), and Donald Sutherland did a wonderful job. Simon Woods was a lovely Mr. Bingley-- you felt that you could easily get along with him. He did seem a little... simple at times, but still, it was a nice characterisation.
Overall, everybody did their characters supreme justice, and the world felt very complete.
In fact, the one thing I didn't like was Mr. Darcy saying 'I love you'-- twice. Mr. Darcy does not say 'I love you'. It is one my favourite things about the book. But there again, and I say this in the most pleasant way possible, people less capable of reading subtext, or grasping things not spelt out for them, would be infinitely more likely to watch the film than to read the book, so I suppose it can be forgiven.
People, please, give this film a chance. Go in with an open mind, ready to see a beautifully crafted film, and don't compare it to the BBC original-- I have had many films ruined for me but fixating on an original or definitive version, and I like to think that I now appreciate so much more by not doing that. Pride and Prejudice has hit the right notes of drama, tragedy, humour and warmth, and I would like others to share this.
Unfortunately, Elizabethtown looks like a nice little film, with an interesting story. I may give it a chance on DVD, but it appears to be the type to be carried by an expressive actor, who can convey emotion through his face and eyes. Unfortunately, Orlando Bloom is not this actor. I still don't think that Orlando can be anything but a sidekick-- I am willing to be proven wrong, but I doubt that it will happen. The only time I've believed Orlando's character has been in Pirates, but Will Turner's character is much what Orlando Bloom is- an amiable, generally unemotional 'stick', as it is put. Face it, Johnny Depp carried that movie. Elizabethtown looks capable of falling down just because Orlando does not have the range of emotion to carry the story-- there were about three facial expressions in the trailer. Three.
I can't wait to see Corpse Bride. It seems to be getting some stick from the Burtonites, but there we go. I'll probably like it purely in deference. chewbeaker, are you still on for Friday? Let me know! :)
La Terra Trema is, for lack of a better word, boring. Seriously. THREE HOURS OF FISHERMEN. I agree with Pooley: half way through (we watched it after college), he stood up, grabbed his bag, and left, shouting BOLLOCKS! as he went. Ah, wonderful ^^
Ayres passed his driving test! WHOO! I'm so, so, so happy for him. I'm next! :D
Erm... I think I have other stuff to say, but it can wait. Hope everyone's good!
Fran xxx
Sexy new Mackenzie icon courtesy of hundredxhundred. Love it!