Pride and Prejudice (2005) dir. Joe Wright

Consider this (based on a conversation I had with some friends a while ago): Pride and Prejudice and Zombies for people who actually like Pride and Prejudice. Look–I tried to read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and I got about 20 pages in before I came to the conclusion that the person who wrote it did so out of the belief that the original Pride and Prejudice was stuffy and boring. There were out of character vulgar puns. And the trailer for the movie did not convince me that I had missed anything by cutting short my reading experience. So, what I’m talking about here is this premise: the world of Pride and Prejudice, but if you die, it’s highly likely, almost certain that your corpse will get up and try to eat people. But no one dies in Pride and Prejudice, you might say. In fact, few or no people die in any Jane Austen novel. This is true. But people do get sick with some regularity. Imagine the tension added to Jane getting sick after going to visit Bingley if there was the chance that she would become a zombie after she died. Becoming a zombie in an eligible bachelor’s house probably would have seriously wrecked any chances of any of the living sisters ending up with him. Imagine Mr. Collins, as a minister, having the duty upon someone’s death of severing their head with a ceremonial plate or something that would prevent the corpse from rising. Obviously important, but this only makes him more self-important and obnoxious. And dangerous. For you see, in this version, Mr. Bennett, who stays in his office all the time, whose life is the only thing allowing Mrs. Bennett and her daughters to stay in the house–Mr. Bennett is definitely a zombie. He died at home, and Mrs. Bennett decided that, no way were they dealing with this, and so…just started faking it. Jane and Elizabeth know. The younger sisters don’t. In this universe, I think we have to go with zombies that are not any faster or stronger than the humans they were, and in fact tend to get weaker as time passes because their flesh is rotting. And…hmm, okay, how about they are pretty violent upon rising, and for about a week afterward, trying to bite people and spread the infection (even though most people are carriers anyway, but getting a nasty bite from a corpse will give you other stuff that will have you die while carrying the virus). But then they calm down and basically just start sort of attempting to act like they did in life, that is, taking habitual actions with no consciousness, in a depressing and desiccated way. So Mr. Bennett is a zombie, and Mrs. Bennett’s number one goal is to get her daughters married before anyone finds that out. And this, actually, makes Elizabeth’s refusal of Mr. Collins more frustrating for Mrs. Bennett–obviously Mr. Bennett didn’t tell Elizabeth that she could refuse Mr. Collins, because Mr. Bennett is dead, but Mrs. Bennett can’t say anything or the game would be up. Another question in this version–does Mr. Darcy find out about Mr. Bennett being a zombie somehow? Does Elizabeth find out that he knows and didn’t say anything and this is something that helps repair his earlier actions? Anyway, this is the Pride and Prejudice and Zombies that I was looking for.

Okay also: in the original, when Elizabeth walks through the rain all the way to bingley’s to care for Jane while she’s sick, it’s a very dramatic expression of both Elizabeth’s love for her sister and her penchant for flamboyant rebellion, but consider, if there is a chance Jane will wake up a zombie and Elizabeth knows it, how does that change the dynamic? Elizabeth might be going to help take care of Jane, or to *take care* of Jane should things take a more morbid turn…by killing her zombie sister.

This works especially well if zombieism is communicable prior to death; if mr. Bennett is a zombie and only the elder Bennetts know, that means Jane has been pre-exposed and is almost certain to wake up as a zombie should she die in the Bingleys’ care— which the Bingleys do not know. Elizabeth has to forge through the rain to be there in case things get ugly, because she knows that the Bingleys aren’t prepared.

And I think you pretty much HAVE to make Mr. Bennett’s zombie status play a role in how and why Darcy separates Bingley from Jane—the heavy implication behind Darcy’s line about the want of propriety shown even by her father hits Elizabeth like a ton of bricks as she realizes he knows—he knows, and he thought Jane lying to Bingley about it was evidence that Jane didn’t love Bingley—but—but Darcy must not have told Bingley that part of it. Bingley couldn’t keep a secret on his life; if he knew, his sister would know, and word would already be out and they’d have been ruined by now—

And of course, not only does the fact that Darcy, who owes their family nothing, has kept and continues to keep this secret for them even after Elizabeth’s refusal deepen the gratitude she begins to feel for him after the letter of explanation, but it also liberates Elizabeth to fall in love with him. Because Elizabeth-who-wants-to-marry-for-love would never be happy marrying someone who didn’t know the family secret in advance. She had resigned herself to spinsterhood because she couldn’t be satisfied with having to hoodwink someone to have their hand, but also couldn’t put her family at risk by trusting someone who wasn’t bound to them by more than an engagement. (Maybe she was even tempted to confide in Wickham at one point, and hasn’t Darcy’s letter proven she was absolutely right not to yield to that passing thought.) But Darcy figured it out himself, and he’s kept her trust, and she could fall in love with him without guilt—if she hadn’t already turned him down.

AND THEN LYDIA HAPPENS. And Darcy realizes immediately that Mr. Bennett can’t do anything to recover her—and if Mr. Bennett doesn’t do anything about Lydia, Mr. Collins might become suspicious, or even just officously involve himself, so find out the while thing. When Darcy blames himself for not revealing Wickham’s character, it’s with a much more immediate sense of urgency. It’s not that the other sisters’ marriage prospects being ruined may impoverish them down the road—it might immediately drag them all into destitution. That’s why he rushes off to go look for Lydia himself.

an endless list of favourite movies

↳ Pride & Prejudice (2005)

You must know… surely, you must know it was all for you.

One of my favorite things about Pride and Prejudice is the Bennet family’s complete cluelessness about Darcy and Elizabeth. Like, if this were a tv show about the Bennets, Darcy and Elizabeth are like, the D storyline. The whole family is trying to get Jane and Bingley together, the regiment is stationed in Meryton, Mr. Collins is taking the house, Lydia and Wickham are obviously the climax, these people have a lot going on. And then, once the regiment has left and Jane and Lydia and Mr. Collins are married and everything seems resolved: plot twist! They’ve got random nobility at the door in the middle of the night telling the know-it-all sister who has been home on and off through the year not to marry the rando rich guy they all hate simply because they’re family and loyal to each other damnit and he called the know-it-all sister ugly once. 

And then, of course, they all find out Lizzy and Darcy are actually very in love and literally all of the good things that have happened to them this year are a direct consequence of Darcy loving Lizzy lolol. 

You know, this is a great take. Never thought about it this way.

get to know me: [2/10] movies » PRIDE & PREJUDICE (2005) (insp.)

21 FILMS OF THE 21ST CENTURY Pride & Prejudice (2005) dir. Joe Wright

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (2005) dir. Joe Wright

MINIMALISTSOURCE’S 1K CELEBRATION film genre per member • period drama • by emma ( @evanbuckleys ) pride & prejudice (2005) • dir. joe wright — you have bewitched me, body and soul. and i love…i love…i love you. i never wish to be parted from you from this day on.

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY as ELIZABETH BENNET Pride and Prejudice | dir. Joe Wright

Pride and Prejudice 2005 | Joe Wright / for @madame-wilsonn

No because pride and prejudice isn't "I changed myself for you so you would love me back." It's "your blatant rejection and disdain for me made me realize things about myself no one had ever been bold enough to tell me so I sat down and evaluated all my behavior patterns and why they came about and came to the realization myself that I had to work on myself. Also I don't expect you to love me now that I'm a work in progress, so I'm just going to do nice things for you because I don't like seeing you hurt." No wonder P&P fans refuse to settle.

Trivia from Pride & Prejudice (2005) dir. Joe Wright

Pride and Prejudice (2005) + letterboxd reviews (Elizabeth and Darcy edition)

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen was first published on the 28th of January 1813. 

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (2005) movie adaptation directed by Joe Wright

i’m sorry i’m doing this but not as sorry as i will be once i’ve finished. these are, according to facts and my opinion (same thing) the top five moments in PRIDE & PREJUDICE 2005 that aren’t the Hand Stretch, the Dawn Powerwalk For Love, The Wet Gazebo, the There’s No One Else In The Room And We’re Dancing or the He Knows She’s Very Fond of Walking scenes. in NO order because that would be insane:

1. lizzie bennett is apologising on that amazing terrace (is that what it is?) for accidentally witnessing mister darcy act like a human and joyfully hug his sister. matthew macfadyen’s DELIGHTFULLY painful expression of “i worship you privately and torturously please don’t apologise i love you” is for me the emotional equivalent of running your hands through a cat’s fur the wrong way. i know this scene is technically a part of the “i’m very fond of walking” “yes. yes i know” scene but it’s DIFFERENT. 

2. mr darcy declares that an accomplished woman must -besides having a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, and the modern languages wank WANK thank you caroline bingley- improve her mind by extensive reading while glancing COMPLETELY without surreptitiousness at the book lizzie is holding. ELIZABETH BENNETT promptly snaps the book shut and, without actually saying it, calls mr darcy a bit of a stupid dickhead. she may as well have hit him in the face with it. fantastic. 

3. “mayihavethenextdance, miss elizabeth?” 

“you may.” 

THAT’S LOVE, BABEY. 

4. “your unfortunate brother once had to put up with my playing for a whole evening.”

“but he says you play so well!”

and the subsequent look of complete and utter despair and frustration that mr darcy gives to his little sister. LOVE WASN’T INVENTED UNTIL 2005. 

5. mr. darcy STRIDES into that little private room while lizzie’s trying to write a letter AND DOESN’T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH HIS HANDS. stands there for APPROXIMATELY 25 years simmering in his own awkwardness and also his LOVE. i’ve never heard someone say “no, thank you” so softly or with so much genuinely excruciating feeling after being offered a cup of tea. 

honourable mention to mrs. gardiner for saying “there’s something… pleasant about his mouth when he speaks” because she’s right. i’ve overwhelmed myself. i’m in bed but i feel like i have to lie down.

… a most beloved sister.

PRIDE & PREJUDICE (2005) dir. Joe Wright

mr darcy + miss elizabeth