Pride and Prejudice - 1995 TV serial from BBC

Pride and Prejudice is the most famous of Jane Austen's novels and one of the first romantic comedies in the history of the novel. The novel has been the subject of numerous television and film adaptations — this was the sixth adaptation for the BBC alone.

This version of Pride and Prejudice is simply outstanding and excels in essentially every aspect. It is faithful to the book, particularly capturing the spirit of the book and the energy and constant tension of the story. It excellently portrays the world of the book as it relates to the story. This timeless tale of hate that blossoms into love is as good as it gets.

It is its faithfulness to the original that makes this drama so good. No one has ever written a more tightly plotted novel. Its series of climaxes make the novel difficult to put down; just as one plot-line reaches its climactic conclusion, another is building. And the duel of wits and sharp dialogue between Darcy and Elizabeth as they get to know each other is entrancing. And then comes that moment. She is at the piano befriending Darcy's sister, Georgiana, when he holds her gaze with a silent declaration of his love and admiration. This involved a fine piece of editor-timing.

Moreover, the actors were on the whole outstanding. I fail to see how anyone could have portray Darcy better than did Colin Firth, who perfectly captured the character's aristocratic refinedness, his shyness and sense of decorum that come across as apparent stuffiness and disdain, and his underlying passion, all at the same time. He perfectly blends all these different traits and is utterly convincing in portraying the outward stiffness as a simple facade for the strong emotions and character underneath, rather than simply being stiff and wooden. His looks, and especially his eyes, say so much of the complexity of his character and his feelings with subtle expressions. Similarly Jennifer Ehle excellently portrays Lizzie, showing her to be tender, witty, thoughtful, occasionally prone to strong judgments without all the information, yet trying to grapple with different feelings as her involvement with Darcy, et al., progresses.

I would recommend this miniseries to anyone, especially those not yet familiar with Austen. This specific miniseries is so well done many people I have watched it with have sparked incredible interests in the intrigues of Austen's works. Good job BBC!

Preview this series at http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/prideandprejudice
For more information about this series : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pride_and_Prejudice_(1995_TV_serial)