Pride & Prejudice: The 10 Best Movie & TV Adaptations, Ranked According To IMDb
By: MARIANA FERNANDES
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Pride & Prejudice: The 10 Best Movie & TV Adaptations, Ranked According To IMDb
Jane Austen's iconic novel Pride And Prejudice has been adapted to movies and TV shows many times. We are ranking the best adaptations of the book.
Jane Austen's novels are a staple for anyone who loves 18th and 19th-century romance. Her witty heroines and dashing yet complex romantic interests have been adapted into movies and television shows for decades, delighting audiences and giving Austen all the credit her writing deserves.
No novel is more popular than Pride and Prejudice , which follows the turbulent relationship between the intelligent and stubborn Elizabeth Bennet and the elusive Mr. Darcy. Many times has the book been translated into the screen, and while some adaptations were more popular than others, they still deserve some credit. Let's take a look at the best Pride and Prejudice films and TV series, ranked according to IMDb.
10 Pride And Prejudice (2003): 5.1/10
This particular adaptation was one of the many that attempted to transport Jane Austen's story to modern times. In this case, the action takes place in Utah, with Elizabeth Bennet portrayed as a career-driven woman who dreams of becoming a writer and Mr. Darcy as a successful businessman.
The movie isn't made to be taken seriously and is more a comedy than a faithful retelling of an epic love story. The rating isn't great, but it's still a fun movie to play on a Sunday afternoon.
9 Pride And Prejudice And Zombies (2016): 5.8/10
Pride And Prejudice And Zombies is an adaptation of an adaptation. The book that inspired this 2016 movie took Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship and turned it upside down by including zombies. Yes, zombies in the 19th century.
Austen purists weren't exactly happy with the book, and the IMDb rating of the adaption isn't brilliant. Still, it makes for an incredibly entertaining watch, and Lily James' take on the famous heroine is commendable.
8 Bride And Prejudice (2004): 6.1/10
The Bollywood take on Pride And Prejudice is yet another instance where the beloved characters are transported to the modern-day, including plenty of colorful dance numbers and stunning visuals.
Bride And Prejudice stays as faithful to the novel as an adaptation like this can and includes pretty good performances by the two main actors. Plus, it's wonderful to witness a clash of cultures within the realm of Austen.
7 Bridget Jones' Diary (2001): 6.7/10
It's funny how many people missed that Bridget Jones' Diary is meant to be a very loose adaptation of Jane Austen's original work. The best part is that the team behind the movie actually got the ultimate Mr. Dracy, Colin Firth, to play...Darcy!
Mark and Bridget make for the most amusing retelling of Darcy and Lizzy, and even though it's clearly not meant to be a straight-up adaptation, the movie has managed to become a classic of sorts. And it's absolutely hilarious!
6 Death Comes To Pemberley (2013): 7.1/10
The saddest thing about Jane Austen's novels is that they never got sequels. But the good news is, the world of television doesn't quite care. And the product of that sentiment is the mini-series Death Comes To Pemberley.
Even though it's not an adaptation per se, it still features the characters we know and love, this time married for six years already, as they are wrapped up in a murder mystery. Yet another incredible series brought to us by BBC.
5 Pride And Prejudice (1980): 7.3/10
Jane Austen meets the '80s in this very interesting mini-series. When it comes to faithfulness, no one can clock this adaptation, since it's probable the one that remains closer to home.
The two leads have incredible chemistry, and it makes for a very different watching experience with the outfits and the hair trying to stay true to the 19th century, but still giving away the '80s. A must-watch for any Austen aficionado!
4 Pride And Prejudice (1940): 7.4/10
You already knew Jane Austen adaptations had been around for a while, but no one would guess eight decades! And yet, Pride And Prejudice saw its first movie incarnation all the way back in 1940.
Far from being accurate where history is concerned, this movie is a fun and light-hearted adaptation of the beloved novel that paved the way for all the others featured on this list.
3 Lost In Austen (2008): 7.4/10
Much like Death Comes To Pemberley, Lost In Austen isn't a faithful adaptation of Pride And Prejudice, but it's still one of the most interesting takes on Austen's story, and a very amusing one at that.
The heroine of this story trades places with Elizabeth Bennet, and she gets to be the one falling in love with Mr. Darcy. After so many re-tellings of the story, this version is a very welcomed breath of fresh air.
2 Pride And Prejudice (2005): 7.8/10
Oh, the Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfayden adaptation! For many younger generations, this was the movie that made that got them into Austen. And for good reason - the cinematography and soundtrack of the movie are stunning.
And even though the movie takes quite a few liberties with story and dialogue, it's still a beautiful piece of art, portraying the tension and chemistry between Darcy and Elizabeth in a unique and captivating way.
1 Pride And Prejudice (1995): 8.9/10
BBC's Pride And Prejudice does in a miniseries what the 2005 version couldn't do in a movie - it remains completely faithful to the source material. This was the project in which Colin Firth cemented himself as the ultimate Mr. Darcy.
Plus, Jennifer Ehle's performance as Lizzie was no less iconic than Firth's, and the two share wonderful chemistry together. It's perfect for purists and casual fans alike, and remains to this day the number one adaptation of Pride And Prejudice.
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When I was in grade 11 (third year high school) our English teacher, Miss Dixon, required us to do a book report on P&P. I was enamoured by that novel by Jane Austen. I must have read the book twice and then submitted my report, but I got a bad mark because contrary to her belief, I wrote that I thought both Elizabeth and Darcy were both proud and originally prejudiced against each other. However, the experience of reading that novel prompted me to major in English Literature for my B.A. As for the movies, I have not seen all the ones on this list, but I have watched numbers 9, 8, 7, 5, 4, and I have the DVDs for numbers 2 and 1. Some years ago when I administered a group called Classic Cinema I wrote and posted an article much like this one, but at the time had not seen all the movies on this list.
# 2 is my favorite and I'll admit that I have seen it over 10 times. Add Donald Sutherland and Dame Judi Dench to the reason I prefer it.
I hope you get a lot of responses Buzz, but I wouldnt hold my breath. I suspect you are by far the largest Jane Austen fan on this site.
Unfortunaely that appears to be correct. Literature does get "trumped" by politics and religion on NT.
The 2005 P&P definitely doesn't deserve the #2 spot. The 1980 BBC version with Elizabeth Garvie deserves that, David Rintoul notwithstanding. the 1940 version should also be farther down the list.
And I really tried to like Death Comes to Pemberley, but I just couldn't. Jane Austen wasn't about murder mysteries. If you're going to write an Austen sequel, it should really adhere to Austen's style, IMO.
They should have just stopped after 1995. It was perfection.
I thought David Rintoul was kind of "wooden", even though the series did follow the novel fairly well. As for stopping at 1995, I would agree other than the fact that I thought the Bollywood version was quite charming, and did hit on a lot of the novel's principal aspects. The adaptations were clever - Mr Coley instead of being a pastor was an accountant, Darcy's Beverley Hills family owned considerable real estate in the form of hotels instead of land, Darcy's mother took the place of the original Darcy's aunt - lots of colour, song and dance and the cultural differences taking the place of social status disparity - quite charming, I thought.
I have to admit, I haven't seen the Bollywood version.
My favorite retelling has been Bridget Jones' Diary. I imagine Colin Firth accounts for that.
He's become one of my favourite actors. I fist saw him in the BBC P&P, then The King's Speech, then Bridget Jones Diary, and more recently, Gambit.
This isn't along the line of Pride & Prejudice and such, but have you seen him in Nanny McPhee? I really enjoyed it.
I've not seen it, but I just watched the trailer and it looks like fun.
#1 is indeed #1. It is to some extent disappointing that Emma did not get the same lengthy treatment although Anya Taylor-Joy of The Queen's Gambit fame was once again superb as Emma.
I'm hesitant to watch that one. Ordinarily, I like Billy Nighy, but just from the trailers, it seems he may have been either miscast, or isn't portraying the Mr. Woodhouse from the books. One trailer showed him hopping down the stairs like a schoolboy. That's not the Mr. Woodhouse I've come to know.
And I hear there's this nosebleed scene...
Oh, well, I'll probably give it a try eventually.
Wow. I was surprised to see this article show up again, but happy that there are literate members on NT that have interests beyond politics. There are more articles about Jane Austen and her writings on the group site.