"Pride and Prejudice" is the kind of novel that feels modern no matter when it's read, but Jane Austen herself died in 1817, more than 70 years removed from the invention of motion pictures. In other words, she probably could never have imagined that, hundreds of years in the future, there would be so many recorded dramatic adaptations of her most celebrated work -- nor that one of them, 2005's "Pride & Prejudice," would be able to capture its spirit so brilliantly as to renew passion for the story of Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) and Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen) for a whole generation.

Arguably the best Jane Austen adaptation, that Deborah Moggach-scripted, Joe Wright-directed take on the novel was so perfect -- so impeccably attentive to the sharp social observation, the warm family dynamic, the richness of local and temporal texture, and the soul-stirring romanticism of the source material --...