2005: a year when many students at Tualatin High School were either babies or unborn. It was also the year that Joe Wright’s Pride and Prejudice came out, a well-loved movie by Jane Austen fans and casual moviegoers alike. That movie, however, posed a question that has been quite controversial: is it better or worse than the Pride and Prejudice miniseries made in 1995?

Now, before solving the ultimate dilemma, an understanding of the original novel is required. The story is set in Regency-era England and starts with the rich Mr. Bingley buying Netherfield Park, which neighbors the Bennet family’s estate. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet parent five daughters: Jane, Elizabeth, Lidia, Kitty and Mary. Mrs. Bennet hopes the young Mr. Bingley will fall in love with the eldest, Jane, while the second eldest, Elizabeth, is annoyed by Bingley’s friend, Mr. Darcy. The story is a complicated yet charming love story between Darcy and Elizabeth that ends with both them and Jane and Bingley married, much to Mrs. Bennet’s delight.

The movie condenses the novel into a little over two hours, but despite the cuts, it retains the allure from the novel and shapes characters and relationships in a natural way that well reflects the book. The goal of the movie is to simply not be an adaptation but to be a work of art in itself, which the film achieves rather gracefully. One could watch the movie on a school night and go to bed with the comfort of the film’s resolution still in mind. 

However, the mini-series is a bit longer to finish. At a whopping six and a half hours, it might take a weekend to complete, but you will get the full experience of the book fleshed out on your screen. It follows the book very closely and often uses the exact words written by Austen. The audience is able to experience the entire novel without turning a page.

Comparing the two is rather difficult, as they are so different. The movie seeks to be a bit more independent from the book’s subthemes and solely focuses on the comfort and story of the book. The series sticks strictly to the book and doesn’t quite bother with the theatrics. All of this leads to the simple fact: neither is better than the other. One may have a personal favorite, but the two have separate objectives that led them to become different adaptations. Both are enjoyable in their own right and should be watched without prejudice.