Wright's film, with a screenplay by Deborah Moggach, manages to brilliantly condense the novel into the just over two hour running time. Though some moments from the novel are lost, the entirety of the story is conveyed, and infused with the same sort of humor that Austen included in her book.
Visually, the new Blu-ray release of the film is not all that one would hope. While much of it looks outstanding, particularly scenes in some of the more palatial homes and the outdoor scenes, the film is inconsistently grainy, at times looking very filmic and at times not. There is a great level of detail in the costumes (which are wonderful in this period drama), but some scenes within the film are hampered by digital noise. Additionally, definition within blacks is almost wholly lost within the film. There are certainly scenes which were intended to be almost exceedingly dark, but even in well lit scenes, details of darker items cannot be made out. The sound, a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, does a better job than the video. Some of the more quiet dialogue is slightly muddled, but the score is completely immersive and helps sweep the viewer into the film.
The extras included on the Blu-ray disc include two brief featurettes where the cast discusses the experience of making the film. Although they spend a lot of time expressing the great deal of joy they had working on the movie, their words come off as far more genuine than the majority of DVD extras which feature such talk (this reviewer would bet that while the actors here are good, the emotion is in fact genuine). There are also discussions of Jane Austen and dating in the 18th century (particularly as it affects this story) included on the Blu-ray as well as the HBO First Look episode focused on the movie, a commentary with Wright, and a look at some of the more impressive homes used in the film. It is this last piece which is the most interesting; it features both people who worked on the film as well as those who work in the homes in question discussing not only the way in which the estates were utilized in the film, but their actual historical significance as well.
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Article comments
1 - Ragtag
I prefer this version to the 1995 version. *Ducks*
Perhaps because i didn't 'study' the novel in school, perhaps because i didn't squee over the wet shirt scene. Matthew Macfadyen is my preferred Darcy, and a 2 hour movie which captures the essence of the novel is preferable to 6 hours with some draggy parts.
2 - Mar
"I prefer this version to the 1995 version."
Alas, poor Ragtag... I guess someone has to.