Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016)
Directed by Burr Steers
A zombie outbreak has fallen upon the land in this reimagining of Jane Austen's classic tale of the tangled relationships between lovers from different social classes in 19th century England. Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is a master of martial arts and weaponry and the handsome Mr. Darcy is a fierce zombie killer, yet the epitome of upper class prejudice. As the zombie outbreak intensifies, they must swallow their pride and join forces on the blood-soaked battlefield in order to conquer the undead once and for all.
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I can recommend Joe Wright’s faithful “Pride and Prejudice” adaptation as readily as airhead Austen parody “Clueless” or zombie gut-muncher “Night of the Living Dead.”
It helps enormously that Jane Austen’s romantic and comic novels are surprisingly sturdy beasts, regularly prompting great adaptations (Sense & Sensibility), witty updates (Metropolitan, Clueless), ethnic riffs (Bride & Prejudice, From Prada to Nada) and serving as a skeleton for other classics, too (Bridget Jones’s Diary).
I can recommend Joe Wright’s faithful “Pride and Prejudice” adaptation as readily as airhead Austen parody “Clueless” or zombie gut-muncher “Night of the Living Dead.”
Zombie films may not be held in the highest regard, but that hasn’t stopped such directors as George A. Romero from creating at least a pair of masterpieces (“Night of the Living Dead,” “Dawn of the Dead”) from the concept.
The zombies themselves, meanwhile, depart from the now well-worn playbook of Night of the Living Dead director George A. Romero; instead of automatically coming back to life as flesh-eating ghouls, they only lose their minds after tasting the brains of others.
Zombie films may not be held in the highest regard, but that hasn’t stopped such directors as George A. Romero from creating at least a pair of masterpieces (“Night of the Living Dead,” “Dawn of the Dead”) from the concept.
All great respect to Ms. Austen and her classic novel, but we’ve seen so many film and television adaptations, not to mention modern twists such as “Bridget Jones’s Diaries” and the web series “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries,” and the Bollywood gem “Bride & Prejudice,” and the time- travel-themed “Lost in Austen” miniseries, etc., that if we MUST get another variation on the story, the weirder the better.
It helps enormously that Jane Austen’s romantic and comic novels are surprisingly sturdy beasts, regularly prompting great adaptations (Sense & Sensibility), witty updates (Metropolitan, Clueless), ethnic riffs (Bride & Prejudice, From Prada to Nada) and serving as a skeleton for other classics, too (Bridget Jones’s Diary).
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In the vein of movies like Snakes on a Plane and Bad Santa, Burr Steers' Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a film that very much tells you what it’s all about with its title: it’s Jane Austen’s classic romantic tale retold with a bit of Walking Dead action.
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is: (a) the greatest movie title since Snakes on a Plane and (b) the worst movie with a great title since Snakes on a Plane.
That would be a shame, since director Burr Steers (he had a small role as an actor in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction") has graced his movie with gorgeous photography, fabulous costumes, and well-choreographed action sequences that do not wear out their welcome.
If the “Fox Force Five” referenced in “Pulp Fiction” were transported to early 19th century England, well here they are.
In the vein of movies like Snakes on a Plane and Bad Santa, Burr Steers' Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a film that very much tells you what it’s all about with its title: it’s Jane Austen’s classic romantic tale retold with a bit of Walking Dead action.
I haven’t suffered such anguish at the movies since reviewing Uwe Boll’s appalling Alone in the Dark back in 2005.
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Perhaps he's unaware of the "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" phenomenon, or he might have worked "Pride and Prejudice and Orgasm" -- or perhaps "Pride and Prejudice and Zowie!" -- into his review, too.
When it comes to literary classics given a gross-out horror twist, let’s just say it’s no Tromeo and Juliet.