The video below presents an interesting discussion about Netflix’s coming version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice as compared with previous productions. I made the following comment about the previous productions:

The 1980 version with Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul lacks the production values of the 1995 and 2005 versions, but it is more faithful to the story and the characters. Colin Firth may appeal to the female audience, but he does not play Jane Austen’s Darcy. Though without the same appeal, David Rintoul is closer to Austen’s Darcy. I invite people to actually read Jane Austen’s descriptions of Darcy and the dialogue he has in the story. The same holds for Elizabeth Garvie’s Lizzie, who maintains her sweetness and refinement while tearing Darcy apart in the drawing room scenes. Jennifer Ehle’s Lizzie is too vulgar to be an authentic Jane Austen Lizzie. As for Mr Collins, the two actors who played the part in the later versions made a farce of the character, particularly David Bamber in the 1995 version. Mr Collins was a pompous fool, but, as Charlotte Lucas pointed out, he was educated with a respectable position in society. He didn’t eat like a grunting pig. I regularly watch the 1980 version and enjoy it each time.