Film

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Name: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Genre: Romance, Horror, Comedy, Thriller
Released: 2016
Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston, Bella Heathcote, Douglas Booth

Fantasy

Jane Austen's social comedy collides with zombie carnage in this 2016 adaptation that plays the collision for genuine laughs. Lily James's Elizabeth is a martial artist and Darcy a zombie-slaying aristocrat—the period romance scaffolding holds while the film gleefully adds gore, gunplay, and the absurdist comedy of watching Austen's drawing-room tensions explode into literal combat. It's for people who love both Austen and horror-comedies, and aren't precious about either.

TMDb rating

3.1

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like Austen's bickering couples and can enjoy a deadpan romance tangled up with zombie gore, where the mannered dialogue keeps a straight face through the carnage.

Skip it if you find the mash-up gimmick wears thin fast, or want Austen's social comedy played with its full wit rather than as a sideshow to action and gore.

What it asks of you: Plan on about an hour and three-quarters of tonal switching, where prim drawing-room manners give way to bloody set pieces, and you must go along with it.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Shaun of the Dead2004

The definitive zombie-comedy that actually cares about character and emotional stakes alongside the gore. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost's genuine friendship anchors the mayhem, and it lands every genre beat with precision.

But If you need fast-paced action throughout, the first half moves slowly. Some of the humour is very British and very 2004.

The Cabin in the Woods2012

A horror-comedy that deconstructs genre tropes with real ingenuity and style. Drew Goddard plays with audience expectations in ways that feel fresh even on repeat viewings, and the escalation is genuinely thrilling.

But The smirking self-awareness can feel exhausting if you're not in the right mood. It works better if you've seen a lot of horror.

Army of Darkness1992

Bruce Campbell's comic performance against impossible odds is perfect slapstick-horror balance. The film knows it's ridiculous and commits fully, with practical effects that still hold up and a confidence the genre rarely achieves.

But It's the third film in a series, so some context helps. The humour is very '90s comedy-action, which means it can feel dated.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Crimson Peak2015

Both take historical literary romance seriously while layering in genre thrills. Both use the formal constraints of period settings to heighten absurdity and tension.

Guillermo del Toro's gothic romance with gorgeous production design and genuine supernatural threat. It's a period film that takes emotion seriously while delivering atmosphere and visual grandeur—Austen's social tension meets haunted-house dread.

But It's slow and atmospheric rather than plot-driven. Some find it more pretty than scary, and the twist is guessable.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

A horror-comedy that flips slasher tropes by making the 'killers' sympathetic and the teenagers the actual threat. It's smart, funny, and surprisingly touching about friendship and misunderstanding.

But The premise is stronger than the execution in places. It leans harder on comedy than scares, which some horror fans find thin.

What We Do in the Shadows2014

Vampire roommates in modern Wellington treated as a dry mockumentary. Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement's chemistry is perfect, and it finds endless comedy in eternal creatures dealing with mundane landlord issues.

But The humour is very dry and low-key; if you need big laughs and spectacle, this will feel slow. It's more character study than plot.

Evil Dead II1987

Sam Raimi's cartoonish horror-comedy remix of his own film, where Bruce Campbell escalates from survival to pure physical comedy. The inventive camera work and practical effects are genuinely impressive alongside the jokes.

But It's deliberately silly in ways that alienate people wanting actual scares. The plot is deliberately thin, serving comedy over narrative.

Fright Night2011

A vampire thriller-comedy with style and genuine tension under the jokes. Colin Farrell as a seductive predator and Anton Yelchin as the terrified neighbor create real chemistry, and the film balances scares and laughs.

But It tries to be both a thriller and comedy, which means it doesn't fully commit to either. Some will find it caught between tones.

Club Dread2004

Broken Lizard's horror-comedy parody on a tropical resort. It's goofy and absurdist, with a cast clearly having fun and genuine affection for the slasher films it's lampooning.

But The humour is very broad and juvenile. If you need sophisticated comedy or real scares, this lands on neither side convincingly.

One Cut of the Dead2017

A Japanese film that begins as a chaotic zombie movie before pivoting into something far more clever about filmmaking and love. The central twist recontextualizes everything you've seen and rewards attention.

But The first 30 minutes are intentionally grating and confusing. Subtitles required, and it's a completely different film in its second half.

Let the Right One In2008

Both use undead/supernatural creatures to explore class, isolation, and what humans owe each other. Both refuse easy answers about morality and belonging.

A Swedish vampire film about connection between an isolated child and a young predator. It's quiet, genuinely unsettling, and heartbreaking—genre filmmaking at its most emotionally precise, with minimal gore but maximum atmosphere.

But It's bleak and glacially paced. There's no action spectacle, no humour, and no resolution that comforts. It requires patience and emotional openness.

The Scarlet Pimpernel1934

Both set Austen-adjacent social tension and romance against historical chaos. Both feature protagonists performing false identities while navigating class, wit, and genuine feeling beneath the performance.

Leslie Howard in a swashbuckling adventure about hidden identity and romance during the French Revolution. It's witty, romantic, full of disguises and double meanings—Austen's social comedy DNA expressed through action and romance.

But It's a 1934 film, so the pacing and acting style feel theatrical. The gender politics are pre-feminist, which can sting. The print quality varies.