silverusagi

It's Valentine's Day. Let's talk about the loveliest miniseries ever, the 1995 P&P. How much do I love this miniseries? For me, it IS Pride and Prejudice. It's as close as adaptation as you can get. I remember seeing a comment in the "making of" feature where someone said that they wanted to make an adaptation that felt like the book feels, something light and sparkling. And I think they succeeded.

Why is this miniseries so awesome? First, it's not rushed. Everything unfolds naturally, and lets us spend as long as possible in these characters' world. The exposition is skillfully worked into the dialogue so that those unfamiliar with the story know the ins and outs of what's going on (like how entails work), and nothing is given in annoying "as you know" dialogue. Second, the casting is brilliant. From the perfectly cast Colin Firth (can there be another Mr. Darcy?) down to the minor roles like Maria Lucas, everyone just seems to fit. The Bennets are silly, Mr. Collins is ridiculous, Bingley is wonderful, Lady Catherine is snooty, Jane is perfect, and Elizabeth is smart and lovely. Even Lydia is awesome. (I've complained before about how hard it apparently is to play a very silly character without overacting it.) The locations are wonderful. Every house seems to be just as it should be in scale of grandness and design. The costumes are gorgeous (and ACCURATE, I'm looking at you, 2005 P&P). The outdoor locations are beautiful and rolling. Then there's Darcy and Elizabeth at the Netherfield ball! Elizabeth and Jane being confidants in each other! Darcy's proposal scene! Darcy being so obliging at Pemberley! Elizabeth telling Darcy everything about Lydia! It's all so perfect! I could just watch it over and over and over. And I have, LOL. It's the perfect piece of escapism.

Weirdly, I have no opinion on the pond scene. The first time I saw it, my reaction was THIS DIDN'T HAPPEN IN THE BOOK. Now, I'm decidely meh. Sure, Colin Firth looks yummy, but it is a liberty with the story that seems there just to pander to modern audiences. And even though the miniseries is almost perfect, I do wish the scene of Darcy randomly asking Elizabeth to dance while she's staying at Netherfield with Jane had been included. I'm also partial to Elizabeth discussing Bingley's character, and Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardner talking about Wickham. There's also a weird piece of editing where, discussing Lydia's marriage, Mr. Bennet says, "They shall never be invited to Longbourn," and the next scene is Lydia's carriage pulling up, with no explanation of Mr. Bennet changing his mind. Also, there's no way Mr. Collins could afford to drive 50 miles just to deliver his speech about Lydia's disgrace. In the book, he wrote a letter. Though I do really like the scene of Lydia's marriage, where you see her go to the church, and you see Wickham stand up, and then Darcy stands into shot behind him. This series also handled the problem of letters well. And letters (especially long ones) can be a problem to translate to film. But they had a pretty good mix of voiceovers reading the letters, as well as flashbacks while the letters are being read to let the audience see action. And the adaptation ends with a double wedding! With a sermon that succinctly sums up what Jane Austen thinks about marriage. We see all the couples that have been married, and are given to understand why they weren't truly good matches. Contrast this to our two couples standing up, who are getting married because their characters truly compliment each other.