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The acclaimed 1996 BBC/A & E Version of "Pride and Prejudice" at a special BuzzFlash price, including shipping and handling.

This is a 2-DVD set and more than 300 minutes in length.

From an online reviewer:

This A&E/BBC miniseries is a true masterpiece, bringing Jane Austen's most popular novel to life in a near perfect production. It has everything: authentic Regency Period atmosphere, costumes, settings, a beautiful musical score, excellent performances by a well-chosen cast. Andrew Davis's script does full justice to Austen's original. Colin Firth is excellent as Mr. Darcy, but Jennifer Ehle just takes my breath away with her magnificent performance, which catches every nuance of Elizabeth Bennet's character exactly right in every scene. It is a pleasure to watch all 4 1/2 hours straight through again and again. As a longtime devoted admirer of Jane Austen's works, I am very critical of any movies based upon her novels, but this has to be one of the very best adaptations of any major literary work.

From another online reviewer:

1996's BBC production of "Pride and Prejudice", starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle as Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett, is likely the standard dramatization of Jane Austen's romantic novel. For viewers not addicted to Masterpiece Theater, its point of comparison is the 2005 theatrical release starring Matthew MacFadyen and Keira Knightley, which offered a compressed version of the story coupled with stunning outdoor visuals, a highly polished delivery, and its attractive leading stars.

The BBC version closely follows the original novel. It features a fascinating variety of detailed Regency settings and costumes. The characters, including the Bennett family, are fully developed people. Mr Bennett's patient patriach is in stark contrast to Mrs. Bennett's brashness and palpable desperation to marry off her five daughters. Elizabeth's sister Mary, who is all but a cypher in the 2005 movie, is here fleshed out in priggish contrast to her flirtatious but foolish sister Lydia. Mr Collins, the ordained cousin of the Bennetts, is repellently simpering, obsequious, and obnoxious, making Elizabeth's spinster friend Charlotte's decision to marry him for security a more visibly difficult choice to swallow. In contrast, Tom Hollander's Mr. Collins in the 2005 version is more inept than offensive.

The real attraction of this version is the slowly evolving relationship between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, here played out in much greater detail and with a delicious subtlety. Jennifer Ehler's Elizabeth is older and visibly headstrong. Her investment in her first impression of Mr. Darcy has an edge no doubt sharpened by the class distinctions that underlie Mr Darcy's initial objections to the Bennetts and to Elizabeth herself. Colin Firth's Mr Darcy is less sure of himself and more vulnerable than Matthew MacFadyen's take in the 2005 movie. His interest in Elizabeth is visible early on, making his proposal of marriage to Elizabeth less of a surprise than Matthew MacFadyen's thunderclap announcement in the later movie. The slow dance of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy toward a mutual understanding has the genuine push and pull of two strong-minded people.

This BBC adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" is very highly recommended to fans of Jane Austen. Those whose introduction to this story was the 2005 movie will find the 1996 version to be a much fuller evocation of Jane Austen's enduring novel.

Another online reviewer:

This version of Pride & Prejudice is by far and away the very best production available. I've owned the DVD box set for several years. I've watched it on countless occassions. It NEVER becomes stale.

It is so very well cast and produced. If you like Jane Austin books and the movies they produced based on them, you will find this particular production head and shoulders above all the rest.

Make the investment. It's worth every penny.

One more online reviewer:

Jane Austen's novel, Pride & Prejudice, is set in rural, early nineteenth century England. It centers around Elizabeth Bennet, the second daughter of five. Though her family lives in what today seems a mansion, and her father is a gentleman, they are considered poor in the society in which they live. Mrs. Bennet seems to think of nothing but having her daughters married to the finest, richest men, she contrives to know of and meet. When two such men (jovial and friendly Mr. Bingly, and distant and proud Mr. Darcy) enter the community, the Bennet household is sent into an uproar of chatter and anticipation. Pride and prejudice on both sides, however, threaten to spoil the blossoming prospects.

This adaptation of the classic was made in 1995, by A&E and the BBC, with Colin Firth (as Mr. Darcy) and Jennifer Ehle (as Elizabeth Bennet). In this version, the photography is on a grand scale, with picturesque scenery. Many of the lines were taken from the book, and the story was accurately depicted. The cast was well-chosen, and the chemistry between them all is excellent. Also not to be forgotten, is the beautiful, sometimes serene, musical score, which sweeps the viewer into its mood.

Taking a more modern approach, the 2005 adaptation casts Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Darcy, and Keira Knightly as Elizabeth Bennet. It also stars Judi Dench as Lady Catherine de Bourg, aunt of Mr. Darcy. The photographic angles in this version were contemporary, as opposed to the traditional drawing room style of the BBC. This was an interesting experiment, and some liked the change, but it actually seemed dizzying to me in two or three of the scenes. This version takes much more liberty with the story and customs of the times. All of the actors had big shoes to fill, but Macfadyen somewhat, and Knightly more especially, did a good job at casting new, and well-executed light on their characters. Most of the other actors, however, I don't think filled those shoes. The costumes, music, and sets in this were all much shabbier than those in the 1995 version (the one on this page). Also, in trying to make the script different from other versions, the lines just didn't have as much to them.

All this said, I prefer the 1995 adaptation, because it adheres to the story and times; the music, landscape, and costumes are elegant; the acting (in my opinion) is superior.

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