Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-day Comedy

A Regency romance reimagined--in Provo, Utah? Whoda thunkit?

In 2000 the movie God's Army was released, more or less spawning a new subgenre:  the Mormon-centric indie feature film.  The protagonists of these films are either overtly or implied members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and more often than not, faith or belief is a primary component of the storyline.  The films are usually produced and shot locally, and the production values run the gamut from high quality to hokey, but all seem to have found an enthusiastic audience—primarily in Utah and other Mormon strongholds.

I haven't seen very many of these films, but I've liked a lot of what I've seen—even the hokey ones.  Still, I didn't have Pride and Prejudice anywhere on my must-see list of holiday movies; somehow I'd assumed it would be a poorly-executed update of the Jane Austen story.  It took two of my sister's visiting friends—both film aficionados, neither one LDS—to convince me to go and see it with them.  And I was pleasantly surprised.

If you've read the book or seen the A&E adaptation, you already know the basics, but this "Latter-day comedy" has a few localizations:  Elizabeth Bennet (Heskin) is a 26-year-old BYU student who's far more concerned with graduating from college and publishing her novel than with getting married.  Besides, it seems she's always attracting the wrong kind of men, whether it's the cute scoundrel Jack Wickam (Henry Maguire) or the ploddingly self-righteous Collins (Hubbel Palmer).  However, Elizabeth's roommates—Argentinian beauty Jane (Solá), hyper-awkward Mary (Rainy Kerwin), and ditzy sisters Lydia (Stables) and Kitty (Nicole Hamilton)—are all on the prowl for eligible bachelors.  Jane's ravishing good looks land her the attentions of wealthy goofball Charles Bingley (Ben Gourley), Lydia and Kitty try to attract men by following the "Rules"-esque advice of The Pink Bible, and poor Mary attempts to rely on her dubious singing talents.

Meanwhile, in her job at the bookstore, Elizabeth happens across a rude, abrasive customer named Darcy (Seale) who instantly rubs her the wrong way and continues to irritate her with his condescending behavior.  And yet there's something strangely attractive about him.  You can already see how this is going to end, can't you?

What's interesting about this film is how well the germ of the Austen tale adapts to a modern setting.  Contemporary Mormons have many of the same societal mores and taboos as seen in Regency-era England—the shame associated with premarital sex, the concern for one's public reputation, and the pressure on both men and women to marry before a certain age.  Further, the writers have taken technological advances such as e-mail and cell phones into consideration, largely dispensing with the communication delays which caused Austen's characters so much grief.  Darcy spends less time brooding in this film, and more time in purposeful action.  For the most part, this adaptation compares to the original Pride and Prejudice much as the film Clueless compares to Emma.

Considering that it was shot on a bare-bones budget of $350,000, Pride and Prejudice has the look and feel of a much bigger film.  With the exception of a few scenes in Las Vegas, the movie was shot on location in and around Provo and Salt Lake City, and these areas have some beautiful locations which were used to good advantage.  I did notice a few places—especially noticeable to local viewers—where there were telltale location stand-ins and unlikely walking distances, but this is probably extreme nit-picking on my part.  The cast has varied acting ability; all the principals are fine, with Heskin and Seale offering particularly charming performances, but some of the supporting players leave something to be desired.  The filmmakers also succumbed to the temptation to give local celebrity and American Idol finalist Carmen Rasmusen a bit part, for no readily discernible reason—an unwise choice.

Perhaps the most interesting experience associated with this movie was discussing it afterward with my sister's aforementioned friends.  Both were very pleased with the movie, and one expressed a real excitement at the resurgence of locally-produced regional cinema—something he said hadn't been in evidence since the silent movie era.  I reflected that, for Mormon feature filmmakers, the hardest audience to please may well end up being other Mormons.

With that said, if you haven't considered seeing Pride and Prejudice, think it over.  It's not Great Art, but it is a fun and enjoyable flick that's worth your time and money.

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