Now Showing: Pride & Prejudice & Zombies
February 24, 2016
Although I try to go into every movie open mindedly, it’s hard to say that I walked into “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” without any biases. The title speaks for itself, sounding like a joke taken too far and every English teacher’s worst nightmare. Although the original mash-up novel by Seth Grahame-Smith proved to be a hit, this on-screen adaptation was horrifyingly gruesome—in all the wrong ways.
The most impressive part of this not-quite remake is that it manages to stay true to Jane Austen’s classic 19th century novel “Pride and Prejudice,” even matching much of the dialogue faithfully with the book.
The five Bennet sisters search for a stable future through a marriage into wealth, having the zombie invasion being simply a minor obstacle in their search for love. Although they keep their elegance and grace, they train to be highly skilled warriors in the event of a spontaneous flesh eating attack. Jane (Bella Heathcote), the supposedly most desirable sister, quickly finds herself an equally as desirable partner, Charles Bingley (Douglas Booth). Meanwhile, Elizabeth (Lily James), the second Bennet daughter, finds herself in a situation with the stiff and mysteriously charming Fitzwilliam Darcy (Sam Riley), in the midst of a war between the undead and the living. Darcy and Elizabeth take being “violently in love” into literal terms, even taking part in hand-to-hand combat while discussing their undeniable love for each other.
The cast is scattered with familiar faces, such as James (“Cinderella”), Matt Smith (“Doctor Who”), Lena Headey (“Game of Thrones”), and Riley (“Maleficent”). James’ breathtaking beauty aside, she brings the cunning, deadly, Elizabeth to life. Her portrayal of Elizabeth brings out the strong female heroine that Hollywood has been slowly introducing onto the big screen. Although Riley’s performance is by no means weak, James proved to be superior over her male counterpart. Though they shined when apart, their on-screen chemistry was only passable.
Director Burr Steers seems a bit too eager about the undead. He doesn’t hesitate to cut straight to the action, opening the film with a graphic zombie beheading. Many of the scenes were showy displays of the makeup and costume design, however I can’t deny that it was both superb and visually petrifying. The moment a zombie steps on screen, the scene suddenly became intense and dramatic. Everything else, including the plot, is disregarded, as the zombie became the focus of attention. However, this resulted in the combat scenes being some of the best throughout the film, including the camerawork, and fight choreography.
Steer delivers a clumsy movie progression that severely lacks transition and balance. He offers no blending of the plot with the whole zombies fiasco, and a scene with genuine emotion and significance to the romantic storyline is just a cut away from zombies being blown to bits.
I’m not someone to be bothered by gore and violence, but the PG-13 boundaries are being pushed to the limit. Because many of the zombie scenes lacked plot, genuine suspense and thrill was replaced with shock factors such as jump-scares and extremely graphic deaths, which had even me feeling squeamish. However, there were points where the violence was taken so ridiculously over the top and featured obvious CGI work that it seemed almost comedic.
The film didn’t quite find its happily ever after, and many unanswered questions still remain, which, unfortunately, pleads for a sequel. Perhaps beloved classics such as “Pride and Prejudice” should remain as classics, and left at peace in their original, renowned state, free of the undead.
