My overall reaction to this movie is: "fine, I guess". And perhaps that's less a function of the film itself as of the state of the character, who has received five different cinematic takes in thirty years, the last two of which have converged on a sort of a Batman orthodoxy that mandates gloom, brooding, and violence. But even allowing for the tiredness of the material, Matt Reeves's version feels uninspired, stitched together from the pieces of previous attempts, lightly rehashing ideas that have already been thoroughly chewed over, and adding nothing new to the concept or the character. The guiding principle was clearly " The Dark Knight , but more so". The film is structured more as a crime story than a superhero story, with a strong presence for the Gotham police department, an emphasis on organized crime and institutional corruption, and a deranged villain—Paul Dano as the Riddler—who is obsessed with exposing the seedy underbelly of the supposedly re
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(Also, Keira Knightly looks like she'd collapse into a heap of panting bone if she walked three miles unassisted.)
I think that the new adaptation will be enjoyable on a different level -- I'm a bit of a sucker for ridiculous romantic stuff, so I think I'll be able to deal with the Bronte-esque bits. :) Although the Austen-lover in me stomps her feet in protest at the outrage, I'm going to make an attempt to enjoy it regardless. (I wish myself luck.)
I'm one of the interlopers from Bookslut. And a Jane Austen fan. Great list. I was punching my husband in the arm during the trailer: "They're about to kiss! They're Austen characters ... they shouldn't kiss!" I didn't mind the romantic license in Persuasion but Miss Bennett is not Anne Elliot.
However, I have no plans to compare this new P&P with the BBC/A&E version. My benchmark will be the 1940 Olivier/Garson movie: if the acting is half is good and the editing of the narrative only half as distracting in the new movie than it was in the old, I'll leave the movie theatre quite happy.
I really enjoyed it (and I'm a fan of the BBC one), and while it's necessarily contracted for time, it is by no means a bastardisation.
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