The Bennet sisters engage in the agonies of courtship in the same way as the book – there's just more shooting the heads off the undead. Supporting characters contribute color to this mixed up culture of landed gentry and zombie slaying, particularly Matt Smith as the bumbling Parson Collins, as well as the lauded zombie assassin Lady Catherine (Lena Headey), in pantaloons and a purple eye patch.
However, the feature film length stretches the thin conceit too far. The story itself isn't the pleasure – that's found in the unlikely, though apt, pairing of Elizabeth Bennet and deadly weapons. As the sisters stomp in slow motion into a party full of zombies, it's applause-worthy because it looks so cool (thanks to directing duties by Burr Steers). But that's about it.
Austen upended the notion that women need to be taken care of in marriage, arguing instead for independence and relationships of love. Pride + Prejudice + Zombies extends that theme to zombie slaying, but doesn't offer any radical new takes on the topic. Ultimately, this wild, tongue-in-cheek adaptation isn't actually innovative – it's just monsters and blood sprucing up a literary classic.
Rated PG-13 for zombie violence and action, and brief suggestive material. 1:48. Fayette Mall, Frankfort, Georgetown, Hamburg, Nicholasville, Richmond, Winchester, Woodhill.