Anna Maxwell Martin, although seems like a good actor, does not fit the aesthetics of Elizabeth. She looks so much older than Darcy despite the actress being 4 years younger. The lack of makeup combined with her puffy eyes makes her look very tired. Her attitude is also very matronly in this adaptation and she has lost all characteristic Lizzie wit and charm. The pedestrian costumes do not help her portrayal either. So disappointed!
shareThis what I wrote on another post about the casting choices; I agree with almost everyone who posted here.
"Actually with This leading man Rhys), I had hoped the TV production would somehow change, enliven & make it interesting & much better than the awful book. But right off the bat, they have a totally unbelievable & miscast Lizzie. She's a good actress like in Bletchley Circle but she's not even half pretty enough to be our "Lizzie" so wonderfully portrayed by Jennifer Ehle! My goodness, even Kiera Knightly looked the part though she's no actress.
Completely miscast in my humble opinion. I will watch the conclusion because I never finished the book but this is one bad production for Masterpiece. I'm
very disappointed. "
The producers take a chance when you take beloved characters and show them in something else and this time they made an awful mistake with Miss Martin. We're not shallow - Lizzie is very dear to us and all other P &P fans and to fail so badly makes us all disappointed.
They need to fix her up more. They need to fix up Elizabeth Darcy, and they need to fix up Anna Maxwell Martin. Harsh, but true. Also, they must finally allow Lizzie's spark which is why I suspect Anna Maxwell Martin was chosen... She may not be the prettiest actress around (sorry) but she's fun.
shareThey need to fix her up more. They need to fix up Elizabeth Darcy, and they need to fix up Anna Maxwell Martin. Harsh, but true. Also, they must finally allow Lizzie's spark to emerge which is why I suspect Anna Maxwell Martin was hired... She may not be the prettiest actress around (sorry) but she's fun.
shareI completely agree that the casting was utterly misguided, but alas, nothing else made up for it. I was looking forward to this mystery as a treat, but from the beginning I could only stare in horror at the insipid Elizabeth (no aspersion on the acting itself--the actors are not to blame), who seemed to be menopausal, the weaselish Darcy with the crazy hair, the morose attitudes and predictable dialogue throughout... Where was the playfulness, the wit, the pithy pronouncements? Nothing seemed to really fit the era or the characters as Jane Austen drew them. The actress who played Lydia would have been better cast as Lizzie. Even Pemberley was lackluster. This was painful to watch. I have no compliments to give. I am seriously displeased!
I better go immerse myself in one of Jane's novels. 😞
As others have discussed, huge miscasting of Anna Maxwell Martin as Elizabeth. Not even possible to understand why anyone would even think to cast Anna Maxwell Martin in this role? And Matthew Rhys not really right either....
Janet Montgomery (Salem) or Katie McGrath might have been good choices (and are at least about the correct age.)
And Matthew Goode could have played Darcy...
I think Matthew Goode is way too pretty to play Darcy, IMO. Darcy is supposed to be handsome, but he's not as handsome as Wickham is.
And this Colonel Fitzwilliam is too good-looking -- we are told in the book that the Colonel is not an especially handsome man. So this adaptation turned him into an obnoxious creep, while making him much better-looking than he should be.
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I like the actress playing Elizabeth, she has very interesting and unusual eyes. I think the main lack was not having Jane Austen's dialog. The sparkle showed a little in the tea with Lady Catherine, but there should have been a lot more. I also liked her dresses. The delicate aqua's were lovely and becoming. As far as Lydia being flashier, that's because that is all she does, and she uses other people's money to do it. Then she complains about how "mean" the free checks are.
Semper Contendere Propter Amoram et Formam
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This Col Fitzwilliam is also too rich. Austen makes it clear that Col F. needs to marry well because he has no money, being a younger son. His father’s earldom and money will pass to his elder brother. Yes this Col. F appears to have financial resources far beyond what Austen described. Darcy is compelled to approve the match of his sister and cousin based mostly on his wealth.
shareI just watched about half an hour of the miniseries and boy do I agree. She's a good actress but not only does Lizzie have no spark, the actress is so plain. Lizzie is supposed to be 30 at most, but she looks 40. She has saggy lines around her mouth and eyes. She has nice bone structure and would be pretty enough except for her eyes!
In the book Lizzie is second in beauty to Jane, who is beautiful. Darcy notices her eyes make up for whatever other flaw he find in her, calling them "fine eyes." But this Lizzie's eyes are small, beady, deep set, dull, and have ZERO eyelashes. Like, to the point it seems like they were singed off or something. I don't expect her to look like she's wearing mascara but ugh! I couldn't stop looking at them and not in a good way!
Lydia is not supposed to be as pretty as Lizzie. Attractive but nothing special. But IMO the actress playing Lydia was much, much prettier than Lizzie. Georgiana was gorgeous.
It's a pity because the casting was great otherwise. I love Rhys as Darcy: he's perfect. I can't wait to see him in the feature-length version of "Everything Carries Me To You." Fingers crossed it gets made.
I have it recorded and plan to watch the rest when I get the chance. But Jeez, the Lizzie casting annoys me. How did THAT happen?!
Every time Elizabeth was on the screen it took me right out of the story, because I couldn't help but notice how different she was from the Lizzie everyone knows and loves from the book. There was no sparkle, no wit, no character at all. The actress was too old, she looked too drab and wasn't pretty at all.
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She's ugly. Plain. She could play Jane Eyre... but not Elizabeth. This could have been a good series but she is such a bad choice I cannot get lost in the story.
Don't much like the actor for Darcy either, to be honest. But then, there will never be anyone who can hold a candle to Colin Firth for that role.
I thought Matthew Rhys was a terrific Darcy. Darcy takes himself very seriously, and whose friends and family all take him seriously. Except for his wife, who is the only person who can poke fun at him. I thought Rhys absolutely nailed the character.
As for Colin Firth, I liked him much better as Mark Darcy than Fitzwilliam Darcy.
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I was wondering if it was just me. I found her very distracting. She just did not do it for me as Lizzy. I feel terrible saying it, but I just felt like she looked too plain to be Lizzy and the makeup/wardrobe department didn't help her any. Should have cast someone else.
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