"PRIDE AND PREJUDICE" (1940) Review

There have been at least eight adaptations of "Pride and Prejudice", Jane Austen's 1813 novel. But as far as I know, only four are well known or constantly mentioned by many of the novelist's present-day fans. And one of the four happens to be the movie adapted in 1940 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Directed by Robert Z. Leonard, "PRIDE AND PREJUDICE" told the story of the five unmarried daughters of a 19th century English landowner and the efforts of his shrill wife to get them married before his estate is inherited by a distant male cousin. For years, this version...

SOCIAL CLASS AND THE BENNET FAMILY IN "PRIDE AND PREJUDICE"

Considering how long I have been a fan of Jane Austen’s 1813 novel, "PRIDE AND PREJUDICE" and its numerous television and movie adaptations, I am surprised that I have never considered something about its heroine, Elizabeth Bennet, and her family. Ever since I have been reading numerous articles about the novel and its adaptations, I have noticed that many have labeled the Bennet family as members of the middle-class or the upper middle-class in Regency England. And it finally occurred to me that many of these fans were in error.


I...

When I first heard that a new Pride and Prejudice film was in the works, I was both apprehensive and excited. I had seen every single film adaptation made of my favorite Jane Austen book and considered the A&E version starring Colin Firth as Mr Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennett the end-all. As a miniseries, it was able to closely follow the book and not omit any of the wonderful parts that made the novel a classic. With a movie made for the big screen, important plot twists and scenes would have to be removed to fit in the allotted time. It was with slight trepidation that I...