First we had Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (released in 2012) and now this piffle. Written and directed by Burr Steers (Igby Goes Down), based upon the best- selling novel by Seth Grahame-Smith, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a fresh twist on Jane Austen’s classic novel Pride and Prejudice.
A mysterious plague has badly affected 19th century England. The land is overrun by the undead, upending genteel Victorian mores and turning the bucolic English countryside into a war zone. No one is safe and friends can instantly turn into ravenous and wild foes. Enter feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet (Lily James), a master of martial arts and weaponry (learnt alongside her four sisters in China), independent, clear-eyed and strong-willed. The deadly circumstances of the day force her into an alliance with Mr Darcy (Sam Riley from Maleficent), a handsome but arrogant gentleman whom she dislikes intensely. Nevertheless, she has grudging respect for his prodigious skills as a zombie killer. Casting aside personal and social prejudices, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy must unite on the blood-soaked battlefield to rid the country of the zombie menace.
While the filmmakers have retained the flavor of Pride and Prejudice, they set the action in an alternate world where the zombie apocalypse, as opposed to the Napoleonic Wars, is taking place. The themes of wealth and marriage translate well and the zombies primarily replace the working class. The film story starts like Austen’s novel, with Bennet living at home with her mum and dad, all the girls unwed, struggling with the fact that unless they were married off they would be left potentially penniless. Except, of course, there is the threat of zombies, a war and total annihilation as the backdrop.
The opening scene is more like a whodunit (which I very much appreciated), before we peel off to the real story. That’s when it seems totally absurd elements have been introduced.
Here you have young women minding their p’s and q’s, getting all hot and bothered by the prospects of marriage and then one of them wandering off alone into the woods that zombies frequent. Some of it is truly preposterous as we cut back and forth to the real Austen yarn. So, lavish costume drama sits alongside humour and vicious decapitation. Put this down as schlock horror.
Lily James (Cinderella) makes a decent fist of playing the uppity heroine, while Sam Riley’s adopted arrogance constantly threatens to undermine any appeal his persona may have.
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is probably best seen as a “C” grade telemovie with some luxurious settings. Some will no doubt see it simply because it is so out of the ordinary and they want to judge for themselves what the fuss is all about. It is hardly all that worthy, but it is a bit of a hoot.
Also featuring Lena Headey (300: Rise of an Empire) and Charles Dance (The Imitation Game), Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, rated MA, scores a 5 out of 10.
Director: Burr Steers
Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston, Bella Heathcote, Douglas Booth, Matt Smith, Charles Dance, Lena Headey
Release Date: 25 February, 2016
Rating: MA 15+ – strong comedic violence
Alex First
David Edwards is the editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television
