'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies'

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies — based, at one remove, on one of my favorite novels — is strangely appealing. Never having read Seth Grahame-Smith’s book, which first added the zombies, I can’t tell how much of his work made it to the screen, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much of Austen’s original could be found in this sly adaptation.

When the Bennet sisters dress for a ball, concealing an arsenal beneath their voluminous skirts, I begin to rethink my wardrobe. Wouldn’t those wide boots now in style make a good place to stash a knife? When the sisters, in their finery, calmly take on a horde of zombies, I realize that gym wear needn’t be quite so casual. And when their romantic banter includes swordplay, I consider signing up for fencing lessons.

Lily James’s Elizabeth Bennet puts Mr. Darcy (Sam Riley) in his place with both wit and weaponry. Their combat adds a certain zest to the scene in which she refuses his proposal amidst a great deal of broken crockery. Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s (Lena Headey) threats carry much more power when we know she’s capable of killing, and George Wickham’s (Jack Huston) villainy goes beyond seduction, making him a much more dangerous foe.

The rest of the Bennet sisters are, as always, almost interchangeable except as plot devices, although they too have been trained in swordplay. Their mother (Sally Phillips) is more believable and less annoying than usual. Matt Smith, as Parson Collins, puts a whole new spin on some of the problems I had with him as Dr. Who; he is priceless, whether singing his own praises or stumbling over the furniture.

Unanswered questions

Some aspects of the film are not quite believable within the world of the film, which is saying a lot about a film that has no basis in reality whatsoever. Although there are zombies roaming the countryside, young women are allowed to wander about wherever they please, with only the admonition not to go into the woods alone. If Darcy is such an accomplished zombie hunter and his world is threatened, why does he care so much about Bingley? Why, when their world is falling apart, is everyone so appalled at Lydia making a bad match? And, most importantly, why are they able to kill all those zombies without messing up their clothes?

As with each new adaptation, I wonder why this story has such enduring power. Is it because I want to believe that powerful men can fall for smart women? Is it that I want to believe that class and money don’t matter? Am I just a hopeless romantic who thinks love can survive even a zombie attack?

Love, says Darcy, is the most dangerous weapon. Even when our world is threatened, we still want to think that love will triumph. So whether this is a good film or not is irrelevant: It reminds us that love can be found in the direst of circumstances.

And it’s good fun.