I was excited to watch this after reading several other very positive reviews. I'm happy to see twists and adaptations of Jane Austen, such as "Lost in Austen" which was excellent, or "Clueless" (closely based on Emma).
This film simply had nothing to do with Austen save for a couple of names. It wasn't just that the entire plot and subplots of Pride & Prejudice were absent, but the tone was entirely wrong.
The main character "Liz" is rude and gauche and quite stupid from the outset. As an example, Mr Darcy quotes: "my good opinion once lost is lost forever" and Liz asks with genuine bewilderment "what does that mean?"
Mr Darcy just smirks and looks handsome. There's no real arrogance, just a fairly polite rich boy.
So let's put aside Austen and not judge this movie on that, since there are really no true associations between the two.
Is this a good move in itself, then, as a lighthearted romance? It's certainly not my kind of movie, even though I enjoy romance. I've seen a couple of other Hallmark movies (the one with Leanne Rimes and Eddie Cibrian springs to mind) and while they're pretty saccharine fare, they're not bad for what they are. They're watchable.
But "Unleashing Mr Darcy" is truly dire. It's pastel cutesy shiny glossy all the way, no depth, nothing funny or even plausible. There's no romantic tension or chemistry. You won't find yourself caring about any of the characters. If you enjoyed Legally Blonde but groaned with disappointment at the execrable sequel, you'll get a sense of how and why this is so awful.
The constant music is also profoundly irritating: the movie is barely allowed to breathe without the silly, frothy, jingly tunes bouncing up every few seconds.
I simply don't get what there is to enjoy here. I've been watching quite a few comedies - including "screwball" comedies - from the 1930s and 1940s recently, and they are so much funnier, sharper and overall more adult than slack lowball fare like this.
In summary: there's really nothing for Austen fans here, and there's really nothing for romance fans either. It's not even a "watch once" for me, you'll have wasted your time.
This film simply had nothing to do with Austen save for a couple of names. It wasn't just that the entire plot and subplots of Pride & Prejudice were absent, but the tone was entirely wrong.
The main character "Liz" is rude and gauche and quite stupid from the outset. As an example, Mr Darcy quotes: "my good opinion once lost is lost forever" and Liz asks with genuine bewilderment "what does that mean?"
Mr Darcy just smirks and looks handsome. There's no real arrogance, just a fairly polite rich boy.
So let's put aside Austen and not judge this movie on that, since there are really no true associations between the two.
Is this a good move in itself, then, as a lighthearted romance? It's certainly not my kind of movie, even though I enjoy romance. I've seen a couple of other Hallmark movies (the one with Leanne Rimes and Eddie Cibrian springs to mind) and while they're pretty saccharine fare, they're not bad for what they are. They're watchable.
But "Unleashing Mr Darcy" is truly dire. It's pastel cutesy shiny glossy all the way, no depth, nothing funny or even plausible. There's no romantic tension or chemistry. You won't find yourself caring about any of the characters. If you enjoyed Legally Blonde but groaned with disappointment at the execrable sequel, you'll get a sense of how and why this is so awful.
The constant music is also profoundly irritating: the movie is barely allowed to breathe without the silly, frothy, jingly tunes bouncing up every few seconds.
I simply don't get what there is to enjoy here. I've been watching quite a few comedies - including "screwball" comedies - from the 1930s and 1940s recently, and they are so much funnier, sharper and overall more adult than slack lowball fare like this.
In summary: there's really nothing for Austen fans here, and there's really nothing for romance fans either. It's not even a "watch once" for me, you'll have wasted your time.