Honestly, we can always use more Mr. Darcys! For this essay, we’ll be looking at the most notable ways in which adaptations, particularly more modern ones, have updated Jane Austen’s classic novel for the screen. Watch out for spoilers ahead, as plot points will be discussed!
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00:00 It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune
00:04 must be in want of a wife.
00:06 You know who said that?
00:08 Jane Austen.
00:09 Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're comparing all the Pride and Prejudice movies.
00:13 You have such different accounts of you as puzzling me, exceedingly.
00:18 I hope to afford you more clarity in the future.
00:21 For this essay, we'll be looking at the most notable ways in which adaptations, particularly
00:25 more modern ones, have updated Jane Austen's classic novel for the screen.
00:30 While we're big fans of the 1995 version, starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth, as
00:36 that's a TV series, we won't be discussing its merits today.
00:40 Watch out for spoilers ahead, as plot points will be discussed.
00:44 Let us know which adaptation is your favourite in the comments below.
00:48 The Big Family
00:49 The Bennett family, and more importantly the Bennett sisters, are the backbone of Pride
00:54 and Prejudice.
00:55 "Daughter, Mary, is that really all you think about?
00:58 When you have five daughters, Lizzie, tell me what else will occupy your thoughts, and
01:02 then perhaps you'll understand."
01:04 Jane, Mary, Kitty, Lydia, and Elizabeth each have distinct personalities that push the
01:09 story's narrative along, and help create the full realised world we love.
01:13 In most adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, the Bennett sisters stay intact, however there
01:18 are notably two more modern takes on the story that switch things up a bit.
01:28 In the 2001 film Bridget Jones's Diary, Bridget doesn't appear to have siblings, a group of
01:34 friends taking the place of the Bennetts.
01:36 These friends are largely inconsequential to the tale, something that's further updated
01:41 with 2022's Fire Island.
01:43 In that movie, each of Noah's friends stand in for a sister, and the five-some are as
01:48 close as family.
01:49 "It feels like it gets smaller every year."
01:50 "Are you kidding me?
01:51 It's perfect."
01:52 Class Conflict
01:55 In Jane Austen's novel and most iterations of the story, Class Conflict plays a large
02:00 part in the divide between Mr Darcy and Elizabeth.
02:03 One of his biggest hang-ups about his feelings for her is the difference in their social
02:07 status.
02:08 "Perhaps these offences might have been overlooked had not your pride been hurt by my honesty
02:11 in admitting scruples about our relationship.
02:13 Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your circumstances?"
02:17 "And those are the words of a gentleman!"
02:19 During that time, when the story was originally written, this perceived difference would have
02:24 realistically caused an issue for the two of them.
02:27 However, many modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice tweak and twist this aspect
02:31 around to fit an updated experience.
02:33 "In our community, money isn't the only form of currency.
02:37 Race, masculinity, abs.
02:40 Just a few of the metrics we use to separate ourselves into upper and lower classes."
02:44 The central couple in Fire Island have to navigate the different ways they fit into
02:49 the gay social scene on the titular island.
02:52 With that comes themes of status and, yes, class, but in a context centering the LGBTQIA+
02:58 community.
02:59 "Yeah, they were wondering where you got your Speedo from."
03:03 "It's so cute.
03:04 Did you get it on Amazon?"
03:05 "No, it's an heirloom.
03:06 It's been in my family for generations."
03:09 "What?"
03:10 "Mine's this little boutique brand.
03:12 You probably haven't heard of them."
03:13 Jane Bennett and Mr. Bingley.
03:15 "I'm so pleased you're here."
03:17 "So am I."
03:18 Just as Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are the essential piece of Pride and Prejudice, Jane and Mr.
03:23 Bingley are their essential support.
03:26 After all, every good couple needs a supporting couple.
03:29 And so much of the conflict between Elizabeth and Darcy stems from how fiercely protective
03:34 they are over their respective sister and best friend.
03:37 "Because I perceived his attachment to her to be far deeper than hers to him.
03:41 I believed her to be indifferent."
03:43 "Indifferent?
03:44 She's shy!"
03:46 Fire Island replicates this protective quality in a very similar way, with Howie and Charlie
03:51 corresponding to Jane and Bingley.
03:53 Even Pride and Prejudice and Zombies incorporates the characters.
03:58 "Alone must be happy."
04:02 So how do some other modern adaptations get away with eliminating the duo altogether?
04:07 Bridget Jones's Diary actually does so quite smartly, by changing one of the story's major
04:13 themes to be loneliness.
04:14 "I suddenly realized that unless something changed soon, I was going to live a life where
04:19 my major relationship was with a bottle of wine.
04:23 And I'd finally die fat and alone and be found three weeks later half eaten by Alsatians."
04:29 The titular protagonist is initially struggling to come into herself, and though she has friends,
04:34 much of her journey ends up being an introspective one.
04:37 By taking the Jane character out of the equation, Bridget's sense of isolation, and subsequent
04:42 growth, is further explored and built upon.
04:45 "Lots of prospects for a person who, you know, perhaps for personal reasons has been
04:53 slightly overlooked professionally."
04:55 "Thank you, Daniel, that is very good to know."
04:59 Why doesn't Mr. Darcy like Elizabeth at first?
05:02 While class comes into the equation quite a bit in Pride and Prejudice, there are some
05:06 other reasons why Mr. Darcy is initially averse to Elizabeth.
05:10 At a dance, he claims that he doesn't think she's very pretty, something which she overhears.
05:14 "You are dancing with the only handsome girl in the room."
05:17 "She is the most beautiful creature I have ever beheld.
05:20 But her sister Elizabeth is very agreeable."
05:22 "Fairly tolerable, I dare say.
05:24 She's not handsome enough to tempt me."
05:27 Funnily enough, some modern updates to the material keep a version of this as one of
05:31 Mr. Darcy's original faux pas.
05:34 In Bridget Jones's diary, Bridget hears Colin Firth's character share that he is disturbed
05:38 by the way she dresses and acts.
05:40 "Mother, I do not need a blind date.
05:43 Particularly not with some verbally incontinent spinster who smokes like a chimney, drinks
05:47 like a fish, and dresses like her mother."
05:48 "Yummy."
05:53 That's actually fairly typical and on-brand for an early 2000s romantic comedy, wouldn't
05:58 you say?
05:59 Meanwhile, the Mr. Darcy character's distaste in Fire Island isn't so much based on looks,
06:05 but it does lie in a dislike of the way the Elizabeth stand-in and friends conduct themselves.
06:10 "Okay, yeah, they're a little quirky, but, um, what about Noah?"
06:16 "He's fine.
06:17 He's not hot enough to be that annoying, though."
06:20 Can Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth be the same gender?
06:24 While Pride and Prejudice is generally told as a heteronormative story, there's nothing
06:28 about the bones of the novel that necessitate that.
06:31 "Do you think Mr. Bingley's handsome?"
06:32 "With his income, Lydia, you'd think him handsome if he had half a zombie face."
06:36 Love, and the challenges that come with it, aren't gendered.
06:40 In 2022, Fire Island proved that to be the case.
06:43 "I like the rom-com stuff, like kissing in the rain and standing outside my window with
06:50 a boombox or confessing things in a gazebo."
06:54 However, the movie is not unaware of the straight, white history of the story it's retelling.
06:59 The main character, Noah, even pokes fun at the idea that someone like him could exist
07:04 in the Jane Austen tale towards the beginning of the film.
07:06 "No offense to my girl Jane, but that sounds like some hetero nonsense.
07:10 Listen, I don't know much about a good fortune, but not every single man is looking for a
07:17 wife."
07:18 The argument and people's hubris exists in all relationships, regardless of the gender
07:22 of the two people involved.
07:24 Fire Island understands that, and expertly incorporates all of the best elements of Austen's
07:30 beloved work while modernizing the rom-com to spotlight an oft-marginalized community.
07:35 The result speaks for itself.
07:37 Looking forward, we hope to see way more queer representations of Jane Austen on screen.
07:43 "Hey, it's just a dance."
07:45 "Yeah, but then what?
07:48 Guess we'll find out."
07:54 The Kiss at the End
07:56 This portion of the Pride and Prejudice tale connects to a very important aspect of the
08:00 story, how that's modernized, and the ensuing debates.
08:04 Allow us to get specific.
08:05 The 2005 Pride and Prejudice film, starring Keira Knightley and Matthew McFadyen, is one
08:11 of the most beloved adaptations of all.
08:14 However, there is some dispute over which ending is the best.
08:18 "You have bewitched me, body and soul.
08:20 And I love, and love, and love you."
08:23 When the film was released in the United Kingdom, there was no kiss between Elizabeth and Mr.
08:28 Darcy at the end.
08:29 However, for the North American release, the filmmakers added one to try and appease romantic
08:34 audiences.
08:35 "Mrs. Darcy.
08:36 Mrs. Darcy."
08:37 Many fans took great issue with this change, calling it "inconsistent" with the style
09:03 of the movie and Austen herself.
09:06 Where do you stand?
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09:31 Intimacy in Pride and Prejudice
09:33 The issue of the kiss leads us to our final point of comparison.
09:37 How do filmmakers incorporate intimacy into modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice?
09:42 "Dancing.
09:43 Even if one's partner is barely tolerable."
09:47 In Jane Austen's work, the sexual chemistry lies in the language, in lingering touches,
09:52 in the general sense of yearning.
09:55 Modern versions of the story have mostly stayed loyal to that, but it's not an exact science
09:59 either.
10:00 In Fire Island and Bridget Jones's Diary, intimacy exists in the world of the protagonists.
10:06 Indeed, both Bridget and Noah get intimate, albeit with people who are not Mr. Darcy,
10:12 or his equivalent.
10:13 "Bridget Jones, wanton sex goddess with a very bad man between her thighs.
10:18 Mum, hi."
10:21 When it comes to the Darcy character himself, the sexual interplay is still largely subtextual.
10:27 The films rely on the chemistry of the leads to bring it to life in subtle but incredibly
10:31 effective ways.
10:32 "You sure you don't want to come out?"
10:33 "Yeah, no, I'm not very good at parties."
10:34 "What?
10:35 You're not good at parties?
10:36 Not well.
10:37 No, you're not good at parties."
10:38 "Calm down."
10:39 In the end, modern adaptations of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice have found new and clever
10:50 ways to take a centuries-old love story and make it feel fresh.
10:55 We have butterflies in our stomachs just thinking about it.
10:58 "I don't understand."
10:59 "I love you.
11:00 Most ardently."
11:01 Do you agree with our picks?
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11:13 -END TRANSCRIPT-