Austen Reign

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY DAZZLES IN PRIDE & PREJUDICE

You, likely being "Jane Austened out," may not think you need to see another version of Pride and Prejudice. But you do: (a) for Keira Knightley's sly, modem, yet not at all anachronistic performance as Elizabeth Bennet (Knightley's neck, by the way, is a physiological marvel that seems to have half again as many vertebrae as do those of mere human beings), and (b) for the skillful adaptation by director Joe Wright and screenwriter Deborah Moggach, which moves almost imperceptibly from light comedy to a darker, sometimes painful drama of genuine romantic longing. Austen has been done justice before on-screen, but rarely if ever has she been as moving. The cast also includes Donald Sutherland, Brenda Blethyn, Jena Malone, and Judi Dench. Matthew Macfadyen, the slightly doughy star of a BBC spy series, plays a Mr. Darcy who, unlike, say, Laurence Olivier's, does indeed seem a hard sell at first blush. (Rating: ★★★½)

BRUCE HANDY