Review of Pride and Prejudice (1940) by Marina N — 14 May 2013

Jane Austen's books never get old and I am always eagerly anticipating the next adaptation of her books. This time, while waiting, I decided to have a look at an older adpatation from 1940.

Unfortuantely, I cannot agree with the extraordinate ratings. It's not a bad version but is did not touch me as others did. Looking at the different sides of it might explain why.

Greer Garson as a lead actress is a good choice. While she is older than I would have imagined Elizabeth (and so are all the other actors), she perfectly captures the sassiness, the wit and intelligence that are characteristic of Elizabeth. Her sisters with the oldest sister played by the Maureen O'Sullivan and Lydia played by , both actresses I knew from other movies, are perfectly cast as well. Ibviously, since it's the story of Elizabeth and Darcy, the casting of Darcy is a key determinant. And this is where I was very unhappy. Undoubtedly, Laurence Olivier demonstrated superb acting skills in other movies and deserves his place as one of the best actors of his generation. However, here, his character is too plain and weak to attract attention and affection. Ultimately, this leads to an overal disappoiting impression the movie had on me.

In addition to the largely good cast, the dialogues are witty and intelligent. A good mix of Jane Austen's line and modern phrases, keeping a fresh balance. The deviations from the novel were not really necessary but are nevertheless forgivable.