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The zombie mash up film with Jane Austen’s classic romance novel finally opens today. The long gestating project went from the hands of David O’ Russell and Natalie Portman and found life after death in this weekend’s pre-Valentine’s day release.

The film directed by Burr Steers adapts the novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Graham-Smith, which added zombies to the plot of literary classic by Jane Austen. In this version the Bennett sisters are deadly maidens who have been trained since a young age in martial arts and weaponry to defend themselves from the zombie outbreak in Great Britain. Along with their mother eager to marry them well off, they attend the party that the wealthy eligible bachelor Mr. Bingley (Douglas Booth) attends with his friend the brooding Mr. Darcy (Sam Riley).  At the party Bingley falls for the lovely Jane Bennett (Bella Heathcote)  while her sister Elizabeth Bennett (Lily James) engages in verbal sparring with Darcy and anyone who finds her too ill-suited for a husband due to her quick wit. But before love and matrimony begins it’s process the party is of course crashed by the undead.

James and Heathcote carry the film more-so than the relationship they have with their leading men. Booth was a handsome Bingley but most of the time it was painful to listen to Sam Riley’s who’s voice now sounds like his throat is chruning gravel. That undermined a lot of the iconic exchanges between Darcy and Elizabeth. As the Bennett sisters though James and Heathcote work so well together to kick ass when zombies take over the party. The stunt work and choreography was great and the costuming looked spectacular. The film wasn’t as bloody as most zombie films but that’s mostly due to the teen friendly rating.

Above everything else, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies was a solid movie in that it’s main characters who happened to be women were constantly interacting with other women while also being the action stars of the film. The boys really took the damsel roles in this one which was a fun turn of tables. The ensemble provided good performances and Matt Smith delivered a very hilarious turn as Parson Collins that we’ve never seen before. Lily James proves that she is a lead to keep an eye on with her current choices, she followed up playing Cinderella with Elizabeth Bennett. So she rocks and we can’t wait to see her in Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver.

Grade: B

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Sabina Ibarra

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