First published in 1813, Pride and Prejudice was Jane Austen's second novel. Its hero and heroine, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet, may be the most famous romantic couple, short of Romeo and Juliet. It quickly became one of the most romantic novels of all time, and now has become one of the most sought after films. Directed by Joe Wright the film was released on November 11, 2005.
Pride and Prejudice is a humorous story of love and life among English gentility during the Georgian era. Mr. Bennet is an English gentleman living in Hartfordshire with his overbearing wife. The Bennets' 5 daughters; the beautiful Jane, the clever Elizabeth, the bookish Mary, the immature Kitty and the wild Lydia. Unfortunately for the Bennets, if Mr. Bennet dies their house will be inherited by a distant cousin whom they have never met, so the family's future happiness and security is dependent on the daughters making good marriages. Life is uneventful until the arrival in the neighborhood of the rich gentleman Mr. Bingley, who rents a large house so he can spend the summer in the country. Mr. Bingley brings with him his sister and the dashing (and richer) but proud Mr Darcy. Love is soon in the air for one of the Bennet sisters, while another may have jumped to a hasty prejudgment. For the Bennet sisters many trials and tribulations stand between them and their happiness, including class, gossip and scandal.
“The beginning of a story presents a world of possibilities for a writer, and each beginning will make a different impression….Beyond making a favorable first impression on the reader, the beginning of a story typically needs to complete certain narrative tasks”(Kardos, p344). “These tasks include: introducing the characters and the relationships between them, presenting the underlying situation and the beginning of conflict, establishing a tone, voice and point of view, establishing a setting, and giving readers reason to continue” (Kardos, p344).
The film’s opening is different from that of most. It establishes Elizabeth Bennet, the lead female role, as being both “inside” the action, but also an “outside” observer through which the audience will view the story.
The film begins with overlapping birdsong, which is heard even before the first image appears on the screen. This might suggests to the audience that there is an awakening of nature and will eventually lead to the awakening of other things. The picture then fills the screen, and the audience can see a shot of a beautiful green field and lush trees standing proudly at the end of the stretch of grass, and piano music begins to play as the rising sun peeks over the trees. Mist starts to disperse and a golden glow fills the shot as morning arrives. This scene alone draws the reader in emotionally and makes them feel peaceful before the movie even really begins. In that opening shot, Elizabeth is walking home reading a book. Reaching her home, the audience is able to follow her around the house and we can then see that her home is a “working” estate, rather than what a lot of the traditional “Heritage” films portray. Elizabeth walks behind the sheets hanging on the clothes line. They obstruct our vision, but this can portray to the viewer that Elizabeth’s perceptions are going to be hindered throughout the film.
In the next part of the opening, you see four other girls in the house, one cleaning dishes, two running around, one playing piano. This begins to introduce the different characters that will be a part of the film. It automatically show us their personalities and what type of character they will be. Then the scene moves to show Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, the parents of the 5 daughters, having a conversation about land being bought. Regardless of whether he wants to hear it or not, Mrs. Bennet is very adamant about telling Mr. Bennet what is going on, which begins to reveal to the audience that she is overbearing, while it reveals that he is very calm and collective.
As the story opens up, the scenery and characters alone are enough to draw in the audience and make them desire to see more.
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