While I spent some time complaining about the latest film adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense & Sensibility, I have to confess that I’ve always been more worried about this Netflix miniseries adaptation of Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. I like many of the actors involved, and I think it’s actually very smart to have Olivia Colman as Mrs. Bennett. I’ve been intrigued by the choice of Emma Corrin for Elizabeth Bennett too. Corrin is such a talented actor, and it’s refreshing to see someone who is not a “cookie-cutter beauty” playing Lizzy. No disrespect, but you know what I mean? While Keira Knightley was put in period drag in the 2005 P&P, you could still see that she was such a strikingly beautiful woman, and that fits for Lizzy. With Corrin styled like this, their Lizzy is kind of frumpy. Corrin might have been a better pick for Persuasion’s Anne Elliot. Well, in any case, the full-length trailer is here. Jack Lowden as Mr. Darcy, just FYI.
Something is missing, something doesn’t feel quite right. I’ll give it a chance though. Mostly because I think Jack makes for an interesting Darcy. But the whole thing hinges on whether Darcy & Lizzy have that chemistry, and I’m not sure. Jack’s Darcy is smoldering very well, so at least there’s that. Fun fact: that’s Rufus Sewell as Mr. Bennett.
Photos credit: Justin Downing/Netflix
The actors do look really good but I didn’t like the trailer at all. The tone seems off, too light and modern in sensibility. Also the Bennet sisters were not particularly close, except Lizzy and Jane. But I’ll definitely be watching it and I do hope it’s not too terrible compared to the 1995 BBC mini series, the gold standard.
It feels bridgertonized.
Yes bridgertonized.
The trailer doesn’t isn’t charming me by its characters and the laughs seem unnatural. I hope I’m wrong because I’m all in for this type of film.
That’s exactly the thought I came away with…the tone was all wrong and felt like we would be hearing/seeing Lady Whistledown in the next scene.
This trailer actually convinced me to watch. I think prior adaptations resist making Elizabeth frumpy and they do that here in the Emma and I think that’s a huge part of this. And I think Jack is smoldering the right amount from what the trailer is showing us.
We shall see.
No thank you.
Agreed!!
Oh dear God, what’s with these horrible color grading in these period drama lately? In this version lizzy looks very poor and unkempt, but that’s not what lizzy supposed to be. She grew in upper middle class . Just meh this version , as millennial I love Keira knightley version. Hear music is just meh too.
I’ll definitely be watching. I like the casting but i’m unsure about the chemistry between the leads. I think Jack is a good actor but Darcy needs to give proper, reserved, and arrogant with lots underneath. I’m not sure I’m getting anything from the glimpses we seen in the trailer.
I can’t wait for Coleman’s Mrs.Bennet. Her methods may have been terrible but the character had a point!
Also, one other amazing part of this adaptation is that it is being written by Dolly Alderton. Dolly is a British journalist and pop culture critic turned very successful fiction authour. The main subject of her writing has been about love and relationships. I think she is a wonderful choice to adapt this material.
Why should Lizzie be frumpy? Jane was the “beauty” of the family but Lizzie was also considered attractive.
Okay I read that in Mrs Bennetts voice – “why should I see that? why should that be? WHY SHOULD LIZZIE BE FRUMPY??!?”
But I agree – she’s not frumpy. She’s attractive in her own right. Jane is just the family beauty.
Yup, Lizzy is described as a beauty, all the sisters except Marty are. She’s just not as beautiful as Jane. No one is, Jane is the town beauty.
Plus, to my eye, clearly Emma Corrin is lovely/beautiful. I’m not sure about watching and Colin Firth is still my favorite Darcy.
All Darcy’s weren’t as good as the Darcy’s I imagined. But Keira knightley’s Lizzie was the best for me.
Yes, Douches I agree. Keira is my fav Lizzie and it’s a good point about imagination from reading is best… and Colin’s my highest ranking Darcy still. Maybe it was the swim.
Wasn’t Lizzie always described in the book as having “beautiful eyes”?
Well if you have good writing and casting even the most mousy of the sisters, Mary, can become quite splendid. I recommend Austen lovers to watch “The Other Bennett Sister”. It’ll surprise you and also quite charming amd funny. The actress who played Mary, Ella Bruccoleri, gave her character great depth as we watch Mary grows and finds independence.
So who knows with this new Lizzie.
I’ll watch it, because I always watch all Austen adaptations sooner or later, but I agree, something is missing. Maybe in the movie itself, things will fall into place. I do love that they seem to have lit things correctly! Such a nice change for a movie lately.
I will watch purely for Rufus Sewell and Olivia Coleman – looking forward to seeing Olivia’s Mrs Bennett.
I’m with you!
I’ll watch this, but I’m still not over what Netflix did to Persuasion. If Emma Corrin talks to the camera once…..
In general I don’t love a frumpy lizzie – I actually thought Jennifer Ehle was perfect because she is very pretty but not drop dead gorgeous, and she let Lizzie’s personality really shine through in her facial expressions. We always talk about the best Darcy (cough Firth cough) but to me the best Lizzie was Ehle.
Same here!
Jennifer was the perfect Elizabeth. Keira wasn’t terrible, either, but other recent Elizabeths (Death at Pemberley, The Other Bennet Sister) have been all wrong.
Agreed that Jennifer had may favourite depiction and the one closest to the novel. I think many adaptations capture Lizzie’s intelligence and love for her family but what Jennifer nails that no one else did, is her wit. One of the things that the narrator tells us is that Darcy is attracted to her mix of sweetness and archness. For me, her delivery of that quality is perfect.
I just rewatched the 1995 version on YouTube – always the best. But the 1980 version had it’s moments. Elizabeth Garvie was good – pretty, with an edge of lively wit and very fine eyes. Judy Parfitt was a great Lady Catherine and Pricilla Morgan had her moments as Mrs. Bennet – “SPASMS in my SIDE!” But poor David Rintoul was like a waxwork.
I agree on Ehle! She was perfect. And Alison Steadman was so great as Mrs. Bennet. I’ll probably just watch the BBC version again (for the gazillionth time).
Lizzie isn’t supposed to be strikingly beautiful, but these actors are too old to be playing these characters.
That was my first thought.
Not excited but more curious with this remake.
I think if they are going to cast older and upend things, I rather see yummy Rufus Sewell as Darcy and delightful and witty Olivia Coleman as Elizabeth. Those two have chemistry.
That’s my first reaction: Lizzy is supposed to be 20 years old, which is the perfect age to (incorrectly) assume she knows everything, and that aspect is critical to both the plot and her character. I have hopes that Corrin is charming enough to make this watchable anyway, but I am a little suspicious that it will fall into the same trap a lot of Austen adaptations fall into: focusing on the romance and ignoring the social nuances that MAKE the story so romantic.
And Mr. Darcy, too. He took on the responsibilities of his position when he was quite young, which made him overly serious, rigid and prideful.
I can’t watch any of these new period dramas. Too much modern stuff in there. I don’t know why people can’t watch about people who lived in other times, the way they lived in those times. Why must they have modern music, flowing hair, women’s lib etc etc
Make it real FFS
Just for a few hours of realness
It won’t hurt anyone
It’s historical
I don’t get Emma Corrin in general. To me she comes across as a bit vague and insipid? Was so against the casting for Darcy initially but in the trailer he’s not awful… maybe. I don’t know…
She’s meh.
They*
Emma Corrin is non binary 🙂
I agree.
Colin Firth will always be my Mr Darcy. I loved the entire cast of the BBC 1995 series. It’s brilliant. I chose the beautiful intro piano music as part of my wedding. I’ll probably try watching this just for fun but won’t take it too seriously.
I know, nothing will ever be better than that adaptation! Maybe dating myself but that’s a hill I will die on!
I’ve never found Colin Firth sexy, not even as Mr Darcy. Decent actor but no. I know I’m in a minority.
I like Jack Lowden and maybe he can be Darcy. Maybe. But Emma Corrin doesn’t have the right eyes to play Elizabeth Bennet.
Everyone attached to this is very talented so I will absolutely watch.
Just a note because I’ve seen a few comments already using “she” to refer to the actor not the character…Emma Corrin identifies as non-binary/gender fluid and uses they/them pronouns.
Darcy is 28 and Lizzie is 20 during the events of the novel. Why do these actors look a decade older than their characters? And WHY are we getting the unkempt, frumpy Lizzie treatment AGAIN? The 2005 version already drove me up the wall with this. She is a GENTLEMAN’S DAUGHTER. The Bennets are landed gentry. She can be spirited and outdoorsy while still owning a comb and wearing respectable clothes! Her muddy arrival at Netherfield attracts comment because it’s unusual, not because she habitually looks like she’s been dragged through a hedge.
And Jane is supposed to be exceptionally beautiful, the loveliest of the Bennet sisters. Even Darcy acknowledges it! Why does the styling do absolutely nothing to establish that? It’s an actual plot point, for heaven’s sake.
Get it together, Netflix. These details are RIGHT THERE IN THE BOOK. Stop spending a fortune adapting Austen if you can’t be bothered to pay attention to what she actually wrote.
So re: landed gentry – I think that newer versions get it wrong bc they’re trying to overemphasize the class difference and since both the Bennetts and Darcy are landed gentry…they have to really emphasize the Bennett’s poverty. But the thing is – the Bennetts aren’t poor. we never hear that they’re poor, just that they didn’t plan well for the girls’ dowries bc they thought they would have a son and the whole entailed estate thing would not be an issue. It’s more of a manners difference – Darcy looks down on the Bennetts bc of their manners (the class issue is a part of it, but the manners are the bigger part.)
But Darcy puts up with the Hursts and Miss Bingley despite their manners. So maybe it’s money after all and country mouse syndrome.
But he doesnt seem to especially like Miss Bingley, its more just about her being Bingley’s sister – who is objectively nice and a good person. But also, Caroline Bingley is a bitchy but she’s a bitch with the proper manners and understands social protocol, so that might be enough for him at the beginning. By the end his understanding of good manners has shifted a great deal to align with what Austen considers good manners (which is not Miss Bingley.)
A big part of the underlying satire of the novel is Austen pointing out that while Lizzie’s family IS inappropriate, ill-mannered, and poorly positioned thanks to the choices of her parents, characters like Caroline, Madame de Bourgh, and Darcy himself are (or can be) equally rude. They just hide it better behind the veil of social propriety.
The “pride and prejudice” of the novel is Lizzie having to face that her family is deeply flawed, no matter how much she loves them, and that obviously comes to a head when Lydia elopes with Wickham…whose character she misjudged because he played into her resentment over Darcy’s behavior. Darcy has to face that it was unfair to judge Lizzie and Jane the actions of their family and that his arrogant presumptions cost both himself and Bingley something meaningful. Both have to amend their behavior to meet each other in the middle.
As I mentioned above, this is one of the social nuances that make the story great, and too many film adaptations ignore: the Bennets are WEALTHY. There is no excuse for the girls not to have dowries, other than they have shitty, irresponsible parents. (Particularly their father, who actually has the decision-making power in this scenario.) One of the reasons Darcy sneers at the Bennets is because they should, by rights, be in far better shape. This is actually a mark in his favor that Elizabeth initially refuses to acknowledge—he doesn’t (just) look down on her father because he’s poorer, he looks down on him because he’s a crappy dad.
In ‘Mansfield Park’, there’s a line about how the heroine’s nasty aunt might have been awful, but she also would have been a more respectable parent on a tiny income than her more superficially pleasant but lazier sister. Austen consistently acknowledged the value of competence, even when it came in unpleasant packaging.
None of that makes for swoony romance like a hand-flex, though, so too many films just skip it.
And we see it in Persuasion as well, where part of Anne’s appeal is that she’s capable and practical and responsible (but not in a boring way – she’s still funny and intelligent and interesting and well read etc.) her father and sisters are more of the villains because they lack any sort of financial competence or responsibility.
Every generation deserves “their” version of key classics like Pride and Prejudice featuring a cast that reflects their era. I would watch Olivia Coleman and Rufus Sewell read the phone book. That said, I would rather watch paint dry than Emma Corrin in anything and will skip this. The performance as Diana in the Crown was shockingly bad and one of the worst I have ever seen in a major production. Jack Lowden will make a great Darcy though.
I admit, I don’t understand what Corrin could possibly bring to this role that hasn’t already been personified by Jennifer Ehle. I’ve liked Jack Lowden in Slow Horses, but I’ve not seen him in much else. I think this adaptation might be premature, although if they’re running on an “every 20 years” schedule, it’s right on time.
Based on the trailer alone this is like William as Darcy “wooing” Kate as Lizzie Bennett where Kate is more of a bitchy, mean girl like Caroline Bingley who tasers other women within her orbit. William as Darcy would never unbend, be rejected by Kate for being an obnoxious, snobby bore with a ghastly family!! That first horrific proposal of Darcy ‘s though is pure Will, isn’t it? I am doing YOU a big favour bestowing myself, my titles and vast estates on your unworthy self but I have to marry and breed an heir and spare and so you’ll do because you have so much to be grateful for!
I think I like this? I’ll be watching for certain…if just for Jack, Olivia and Rufus…
I’m not sure I’m ready for a middle-aged Darcy, and I can’t understand the Lizzy casting at all.
This looks a mess, horrible Netflix lighting as usual, and this casting isn’t doing it for me at all. Maybe I’m superficial but lighter-haired Liz and Darcy feel really wrong!
Anybody seen the recent Sense and sensibility remake? I was disappointed with the casting of Marianne ‘s two suitors as both were wet blankets. Willoughby is famously hot, dashing, young and impulsive. Actor was ten years too old, looked and acted like a cold with a naff cloth cap? He’s supposed to be stylish and literally sweeps hoof her feet! Colonel Brandston Pickle has a real job to register opposite Willoughby but Alan Rickman excelled in 1996 version. New guy was dull and had zero chemistry with Marianne. 1996 version is heartbreaking and funny.
This isn’t it for me (I live for ’95) but I will say all the versions seem to have nailed one particular casting…and that is Mr. Collins. Just a complete visceral “ugh” when those actors open their mouth as Mr. Collins.
I very much like Jane Austen, but I’ve never been into watching any of her novels as movies (though I know a ton have been made and very good ones, too). I do like Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre as a book and a film (loved the black and white one with Elizabeth Taylor as the little girl) and I love Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights as a book (stunning) and a film. I watched a fairly recent woman-directed Wuthering Heights, I believe with a multi-racial cast. I absolutely ADORED it, but as always, the critics hated it (THEY ARE WRONG). I’ll look up the Wuthering Heights movie I loved so other Celebitches can see it. It was really magical. 2012, directed by Andrea Arnold, with Heathcliff as a Black man. Sublime! I shudder to think of Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff and will never watch that one.
In case you haven’t seen it, the Bollywood version of P&P — “Bride and Prejudice” — is so much fun.
I love this movie!
Oh Captain, my captain.
Quite Contrary, thanks for the recommendation. Does Mira Nair direct it? I love her movies.
I liked Emma’s performance in The Crown but she’s not Elizabeth Bennett. Keira takes it for me, with the exception of the scene where she has to burst into tears. Jennifer Ehle was also wonderful in the role. But Elizabeth Bennett is supposed to have dark eyes, and this does irk me. I mean, can they not let us brown-eyed girls have this one little thing?!
I find Emma Corrin to be quite a boring actress, so I don’t think this’ll work at all.
Sorry but they were phenomenal in The Crown before the show got incredibly bad.
‘Something is missing’ was my exact thought after watching the trailer and then I scrolled down and saw that was the very next line in this post! haha.
The DM said that “fans” were worried that this version might be “sexless” so I don’t think any of these persons have ever read any Jane Austen lol.