I went to see Emerald Fennell's "Wuthering Heights". I am a bit nonplussed about it although I was happy to set the book aside and let it be what it was in Fennell's story, a love story. Those who know the book well will know that it is really anything but a love story and is full of extremely nasty goings on and pretty nasty characters and revenge. However, the film stands alone, no problem.
The great success of the film is Martin Clunes who had a rewritten father role as a drunk and a gambler and he nailed it, perfect. (In the book it is his son Hindley who is the drunk and the gambler but he isn't in the film at all). If only there could have been as good a Nellie Dean as Martin Clunes was to father. . Nellie Dean is central to the book being the lying, nasty piece of work, servant to Cathy and narrator of the story to Lockwood. I can't explain it really but I was vey disappointed in her character in the film and was unable to totally set the book aside with her as she is so central to the story. She was just totally disappointing.
I liked Edgar played by Shazad Latif. He was sensible and unshakeable and like Martin Clunes as father, he brought it all back to earth and credible.
Will I see it again? No.
I may go and see it just for clunes
ReplyDeleteBe prepared for wanting to leave before the end.
DeleteThank you for the interesting and honest review. It's not a film I have intended to see, but it is good to know that it works best if one sees it as something separate from the book.
ReplyDeleteIt fairly rare that I have read a book of a movie but this one I knew pretty well because I studied it for a semester in my recent Masters course. However, I know to set books and films apart.
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