Thoughts on Keira Knightley

A sensual and earthy Elizabeth

Keira Knightley has an unrivaled ability (for an actor, anyway) to polarize opinion. She is the marmite of the movie industry. While her fans are of course everywhere, I always seem to be bumping into people who can’t stand her, or stumbling onto critical forum posts about Ms Knightley that reflect a toxic mixture of spite, rage and usually a seeming inability to TURN CAPS LOCK OFF. Meanwhile, tabloid newspapers in the UK mercilessly maul her for her thinness, peddling rumors of eating disorders and doctoring images of her in swim wear to make her appear like the bride of skeletor.

Critics, however, rightly gushed over her performance in Pride and Prejudice 2005, likening her in several cases to Audrey Hepburn. A reviewer in the Washington Post put it most strikingly, even appealing to the heavens in his review:

Lord God, can she take control of a scene, dominate a movie, project to the last seat, radiate power and personality unto the rafters. It’s a great performance. I love the way Knightley’s eyes light with furious intelligence when she cuts the pompous Darcy a new something or other.

Keira Knightley's fiesty and cutting Elizabeth

Director Joe Wright was also unsurprisingly forthcoming in his praise of Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth, although in more earthly terms, explaining that he wasn’t looking for someone like her at first:

I originally hadn’t considered someone as beautiful as Keira. I was looking for someone who didn’t fit the normal feminine conventions, and was bright and slightly difficult. I figured Lizzie Bennet would be quite difficult to live with; she’s tough-minded and questions everything all the time.

Wright thinks of Elizabeth as something of a tomboy, which gels nicely with Andrew Davies’ description of Elizabeth’s character. According to the director, she also possesses a certain ‘originality of thought,’ which is so essential to the role of Elizabeth.

Knightley said that being offered the role was ‘every girls’ dream,’ but unsurprisingly found it a little daunting:

…it is scary, because when you read Pride and Prejudice, you feel like you own her; I know I did, and I’m sure everybody feels the same way and that they’ll have a very clear idea of who Elizabeth Bennet is.

Keira's spirited and youthful Lizzy

Elizabeth Bennet herself shared Keira Knightley’s ability to arouse bewildering levels of anger and disapproval in others, so even in this she makes a good choice for the role. Elizabeth’s independent mind, her tomboyishness – and perhaps also her comfort in the company of men – alienated her mother, offended Lady Catherine de Bourgh and caused immense jealousy in Caroline Bingley. I wonder how Elizabeth would have been treated had the Internet existed back in the Regency era?

I think Keira Knightley made an excellent and compelling Elizabeth Bennet. Other performers have shared her intelligence and spirit, but it was nice to see someone of the right age in the role giving Elizabeth a  touch of youthful naivety that is not so evident in other adaptations. Am I alone in thinking that she gets an unfairly hard time from the public, the press and blogosphere?