Based on: The novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Review: The story is perhaps the best romance ever. Matthew Macfayden makes an excellent Mr. Darcy, the best that I’ve seen in all of the versions. He has the right look (handsome but not in a glamorous movie star kind of way) and a very nice British accent. Keira Knightley is fine as Elizabeth, but Jennifer Ehle in the A&E version is much better. All in all this is probably the second best Pride and Prejudice, with the best being the A&E mini-series.

Director: Joe Wright
Starring:

• Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet
• Matthew Macfayden as Fitzwilliam Darcy

Costarring:

• Rosamund Pike as Jane Bennet
• Simon Woods as Charles Bingley
• Brenda Blethyn as Mrs. Bennet
• Donald Sutherland as Mr. Bennet

Random Facts:

• To get used to the house they used for the Bennet house the cast members played Sardines
• Jane Austen was 21 years old when she wrote Pride and Prejudice
• It was called First Impressions before it was published
• She really wasn’t too fond of men when she wrote Pride and Prejudice

After you’ve watched the movie…

Thoughts to Ponder:
Men do not change that drastically, so how does Lizzy change Darcy from the conceited fool he was to the respectable gentleman he becomes? What will be the outcome of Kitty’s marriage? Will Mr. Collins throw the women out when he inherits the house?
For Jane Austen Fans…
Which character is Jane Austen most like? Did she model any of Elizabeth’s sisters after her own, Cassandra?

Adapted From: The play “Everybody Comes to Rick’s”, which was never produced.

Review:
Very likely the best film ever made. I agree with Jeff Siegel in his book The Casablanca Companion, “If one movies defines how Americans think of themselves, it’s Casablanca.” Many old movies have been remade, but not Casablanca. It seems that just about everybody agrees that it was as near perfect as possible. There isn’t a better Rick than Humphrey Bogart and Paul Henreid does very well as Laszlo. Even though I don’t really like Ingrid Bergman she does play Ilsa well.

Director: Michael Curtiz

Starring:

• Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine
• Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund
• Paul Henreid as Victor Laszl

Co-starring:

• Claude Rains as Captain Louis Renault
• Sydney Greenstreet as Ferrari
• Peter Lorre as Ugarte
• S.Z. Sakall as Carl
• Dooley Wilson as Sam
• Madeline Le Beau as Yvonne
• Joy Page as Annina Brandel
• Curt Bois as the pickpocket

After you’ve watched the movie…

Thoughts to Ponder:
Who does Ilsa really love? Yes, the obvious answer is Rick, but think about it. Laszlo never hugs his wife, yet Rick hugs her. If she really did love Rick could she bear to part with him, knowing that it would be forever? Or does she love him so much that she knows it is necessary to never see him again? I’m not quite sure, but I say that she really loves Laszlo even if she doesn’t know it yet.

Not quite so deep…

• Would Ronald Regan have made a good Rick?
• Would Dennis Morgan have made a good Laszlo?
• What about Hedy Lamarr for Ilsa?
• Or Sam played by Lena Horne?

Random Facts:

• Only three of the main actors are American
• Dooley Wilson was a drummer not a pianist
• Sam’s place in the movie was almost filled by a woman
• Joy Page was Jack Warner’s (head of Warner Studios) stepdaughter
• Humphrey Bogart was a wonderful chess player (he’s playing chess in his first scene)