P & P Lite

Though it did not remain strictly loyal to the words of Ms. Austen, some of the liberties that were taken in the most recent rendition of Pride & Prejudice -- starring Keira Knightley, Donald Sutherland, and Dane Judi Dench -- were artfully integrated and remarkably beautiful.

This lite version is a great quick treat for when you need a little 19th century Brit lit pick-me-up, but regrettably do not have the time to read the novel or watch the BBC mini-series. Being that it's a Cliffs Notes summary of the novel, I would not recommend it as an absolute replacement, but simply as a temporary substitute.

You don't get the opportunity to fall in love with Mr. Darcy. Mr. Bingley is presented as a bumbling dimwit. Mr. Bennett is portrayed to be simply tired and old rather than bitter and vaguely malicious. Mrs. Bennett is even toned down a bit, with their marriage being oddly romanticized. And though the ending left something to be desired, it is an interesting interpretation of the book, offering views I might not have considered before.

Austen is in the ranks of Shakespeare in being infinitely adapted and endlessly analyzed, any semblance of original intentions being lost forever. Authors replaced by schools of thought. Shakespeare to Shakespearean. Austen to Austenesque. When is Slaughterhouse Five slated for processing? Or perhaps Vonnegut might hold evident that Shakespeare and Austen might not approve of such liberties taken with their words. Still, the sheer flattery of being mimicked and re-presented throughout generations probably makes it well worth it.