Pride & Prejudice (2003 LDS Version)
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"Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us." --Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice
Plot Summary:
Story of Elizabeth Bennet, an aspiring author, who unlike all of her roommates has no desire for marriage. Of course, that changes when the right guy shows up. Much discussion of marriage ensues...
Opinion:
The new Utah version of Jane Austen's book of the same name is a light, but enjoyable addition to the new genre of Mormon cinema. Admittedly, it could be considered, perhaps, only a 'fringe' candidate for inclusion on a "Church film" list, since the religious beliefs of the main characters are only hinted at, and at no time does any doctrinal principle play a part in the resolution of the plot. In a way, that's significant by itself, because it shows "Church" movies have reached a point where they don't feel the need to always be
about Church stuff--either as a serious study, or a foil for jokes at the expense of local culture--but can be about normal, everyday things with an LDS atmosphere merely as a backdrop. While there are deeper issues involving common Latter-Day Saint attitudes towards dating and marriage that can be gleaned from the movie (discussed below...) there is nothing in this version of Pride & Prejudice that would preclude any non-Church member from watching and understanding. (Show this movie to a 'Gentile' group of people from the East Coast, for example, and most probably wouldn't catch that the characters were Mormon at all...)
You might gather from the fact that the filmmakers of this 2003 version kept the "Pride & Prejudice" name that this film stays pretty close to the original source material in terms of characters and plot. All the main characters have more or less the same personalities from the book (even the same names), with only minor changes to the story's setting, befitting the change of time and venue. (Instead of five sisters, there are now five female roommates living in Utah, and the parent characters of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have been excised completely--the only major character change. Too bad in a way, because Mr. Bennet had some of the best lines in the book...) If you've read the book anytime in the last decade, none of the events in the plot will be a surprise--but then again, romantic comedies have never been about surprises and plot twists ("Hey, do you think the lead female character and the lead male character featured prominently on the cover of the movie will...
get together in the end?") It's all about the
journey, not the destination...
"Pride & Prejudice" is not a
great movie by any means, but it's simple and lighthearted, and achieves its modest goal of being romantically fulfilling with some 'girl power' overtones and a few laughs thrown in. Don't expect a 'roll-on-the-floor-laughing' kind of comedy, but more of one that throws out witty lines here and there while continuing on with the main story. The movie also has a certain style to it--with bright colored sets and backdrops that give the movie more 'personality' (and having title cards with quotes from the book every once in a while is a good touch). It's not flawless: the acting is serviceable (and occasionally over-the-top), and not Oscar-worthy by any means, but the two leads are good and that's what matters most in any romantic comedy. There's probably one or two too many musical montages (pretty much every major city any main character travels to gets one...), but that's a minor point. This one's worth a dollar or two as a rental.
Content Analysis: (PG, nothing objectionable)
P&P avoids gross humor (a welcome sight) and everyone stays pretty chaste (it IS a Church movie, after all...) One scene has one of Liz's roommates cutting electrical wires with metal scissors (not a good idea), but any young impressionable kids who might get some ideas wouldn't be seeing a romance movie like this anyway...
In-depth Analysis:
Effective satire works when it's (a) funny and (b) not all that entirely far removed from reality. The character of Collins in "P&P" not only works as comic relief, but those in the know (residents of Utah County in particular) might actually wonder what the joke is supposed to be, since the character of Collins is quite similar to actual Church members they know. My memory has faded as to what the character Collins was like in the original book, but Collins in the movie is a weird looking returned missionary who has a direct and awkward method of finding a wife. Apparently, according to Collins, a single temple-worthy sister should grab onto the first temple-worthy returned missionary who crosses her path without questioning. (He explains this in a sacrament meeting scene which is unrealistic NOT because of what he says--which I found completely plausible--but that an LDS bishop would let him go twenty minutes over time before telling him to stop...) The only thing missing in the portrayal of Collins was a line about "an angel appeared to me in a vision last night and told me that you are my future wife..."
Frequent readers of my blog have probably noticed more than a few criticisms of LDS girls who spend more time picking their wedding dress than they do their marriage partner. (See: the character of Lydia in the movie...) I may have seemed a little one-sided in my criticism, since the girl isn't the only one involved. A guy has to propose before a girl can accept, and it takes two people to rush into marriage together. Sometimes the guy may even be
more at fault, because of Neanderthal attitudes towards finding a wife (you'd almost believe if it was socially acceptable, Collins would club a girl over the head and drag her away by her hair...) and a common attitude that being a priesthood holder makes the man's desire for marriage overrule any alternate feelings from his prospective marriage partner. (Never underestimate the ability of men to use any such authority or power given unto them for their own personal and selfish gain. See D&C 121:39-41)
Collins loses his credibility (assuming he had any to begin with...) when his rapid fire marriage proposals to his female acquaintances just happen to be in decreasing order of beauty. It's funny how most of the girls who get the lines of "It's God's will that we get married" from guys they've barely met just coincidently happen to be among the upper echelon of good looks--as if God purposely goes around arranging marriages for only the good looking girls while ignoring the others, even though logic suggests the first group doesn't need the help to begin with...
Let's close with a quote from the late Elder David B. Haight:
"Considering the enormous importance of marriage, it is rather astonishing that we don't make better preparation for its success. Usually, young couples date for a few months or for a year or two, enjoying romance and getting acquainted. But once they are married, they soon learn that romance must blend with spiritual beliefs, in-law relationships, money issues, and serious discussions involving ethics, children, and the running of a home. Too many people are inadequately prepared for this lofty responsibility. They go to college for years to prepare for a vocation or a profession that is not nearly so rewarding or important as a good marriage. Serious transgressions, as well as injured lives, all too frequently make it clear that husband-and-wife relationships deserve a great deal more prayerful attention than many are giving them. Fewer marriages would become troubled, and more would be happier, if couples visited a warm-hearted bishop or counselor who could suggest ways to avoid pitfalls, and who could encourage them to thoughtfully use self-discipline and needed restraint and develop the loving attribute of unselfishness."
--David B. Haight, A Light unto the World [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997], 131 - 132.)
Random Notes and Comments:
(1) This version of Pride & Prejudice didn't hit the spot for you? Try the "Bollywood" version, entitled "Bride & Prejudice", or look for another movie version of P&P starring Keira Knightley in early 2005.
