Pride and Prejudice: A Very Amiable Movie

I'll be the first to admit that the 2005 movie directed by Wright and starring Keira Knightly did not accurately portray the Jane Austen novel. And you can go on just about any website to find all of the inaccuracies of the movie rendition. However, I think that Wright managed to portray a few major themes from the novel very well. One of these themes is the constraints on marriage. 

Constraints on marriage are mentioned by various characters throughout the entire movie, just as they are in the novel. Mr. Bingley is at first hesitant to propose to Jane because of Mr. Darcy's insistence on avoiding the Bennetts, whom show little regard for decorum and propriety. But he is also swayed to delay his proposal because of Jane's lack of wealth. As we have discussed, these were important factors to consider in the marriage context of the early nineteenth century. Therefore, Mr. Bingely's hesitations, or rather, Mr. Darcy's hesitations on Bingley's behalf and his own, were very reasonable and rational ones. Marriage was a delicate matter to consider, and all factors needed to be regarded with utmost seriousness. 

And men are not the only ones shown considering the more practical aspects of marriage. Charlotte's out-lash at Lizzy over her marriage to Mr. Elliot also keeps close to the theme of marriage constraints. Charlotte who is neither pretty nor wealthy has few marriage prospects. So when Mr. Elliot offers his hand in marriage, she gladly accepts, for now she has security, protection, and in a way, more freedom. Love, in her mind, is not a requirement to be happy with her marriage. This is something inconceivable to Lizzy, but quite real and rational to Charlotte. Austen and Wright, with the case of Charlotte Lucas, provide the eye-opening view that marriage was a practical and economical matter in the nineteenth century, despite the wishful thinkings of women such as Lizzy. While Lizzy may have, in the end, received all that she ever wanted in marriage, she was one of the rare ones. 

Overall, I enjoyed Wright's movie. I feel that he did a decent job of portraying Mr. Darcy in the beginning as very proud, snobbish, and somber, and then, slowly throughout the movie, as a man conscientious to others' needs, loyal, and utterly devoted to and in love with Lizzy. He was like an onion, and as the movie progressed, the layers were peeled away to reveal the Darcy that we all are smitten with. I also enjoyed Lizzy's portrayal. Though decidedly more outspoken and defiant than the Austen character, Knightly makes Lizzy bold, headstrong, and intelligent, the kind of modern character many long to see in the nineteenth-century setting. I liked this more brash Elizabeth, and it made her interactions with Darcy all the more enticing. 

To conclude, though  you shouldn't watch this movie if you are expecting an accurate theatrical rendition of the Jane Austen novel, you should watch it to be provided with an idea of the whole marriage process in the nineteenth century, to see these peoples struggles, hopes and aspirations, and to grasp their opinions on love and matrimony.