Emily Fox

While it has been beautifully set I’m sorry to say that this is one of the most excruciating period dramas I’ve ever seen. Sadly while slouching, forced pouts and whistful looks may cut it in the modelling world, acting requires depth and substance none of which seem apparent in Kiera Knightly’s uncomfortable and confused performance as Elizabeth Bennett. And it seems no relief can be found in the casting of her fellow counterpart Mr Darcy who is played by Matthew Macfadyen. Attempts at ‘stern’ result as wooden and one-dimensional in his portrayal of this complex chatacter. Between them the script is often delivered as if being read from the page with little imaginative characterisation from either actor. It was perhaps only due to the supporting cast that I managed to get halfway through this frustrating film. Rosamund Pike was as reliable as ever in her performance as Jane Bennett who she presented with true authenticity and observation of the times in which the story is set. Similarly Tom Hollander brought us a fantastic and original Mr Collins. Indeed it is members of the supporting cast such as these who performed to a bar that Knightly and Macfadyen just don’t even seem to come near to grasping.