Ticketworthy! - Wuthering Heights

I will admit, it’s a little refreshing to see a writer/director take a well-known book and just openly admit they are going to make the version of it that they want, rather than adapting it directly. A lot of filmmakers do that, Hollywood history is littered with “adaptations” in name only, but very few of them ever do it as openly or brazenly as Emerald Fennell has done with Wuthering Heights. Her choice to throw as many moans and barely repressed fantasies on screen as possible is probably not going to resonate with everyone. I’m not sure it resonated with me. Still, I admire the attempt.

This version of Emily Brontë’s classic novel tells the story of Cathy (Margot Robbie) and Heathcliff (Jacob Elordi), two childhood friends who have been in love with each other for years. When Cathy meets the wealthy Edgar Linton (Shazad Latif), she agrees to marry him in order to save herself from her family’s rapidly depleting fortunes. This drives Heathcliff away, only to return years later with newfound wealth and resentment that bubbles over into poorly contained lust as he and Cathy drown each other in lust and revenge.

The film thankfully never denies how toxic and destructive the relationship between Cathy and Heathcliff is. These are two deeply broken people who hurt each other and those around them constantly. That aspect of their story is never romanticized, which I admit I was afraid was going to be the case. Kudos to Fennell for knowing where to draw the line.

There’s also plenty of praise to be given to Jacob Elordi for his take on Heathcliff. After his stellar performance in last year’s Frankenstein, I was curious to see how he’d manage a very different character like this. The answer is very well. He broods for the vast majority of the film but never comes off as one-note. There is always a layer of anger, pettiness, and violence hinted at beneath his silent looks, and when it comes time to loose those feelings he delivers. This is two films in a row that Elordi has impressed me, I can’t wait to see what he does next.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure I can give the same compliments to Margot Robbie. She isn’t terrible in the role of Cathy by any means, and it’s clear she dove headfirst into it. She brings an energy to the role that is simultaneously joyful, petulant, and exhausting. While she manages to play each of Cathy’s moods and flights of fancy well enough, it never feels like a believable or whole character. Frankly, this is just a case of miscasting. Robbie is a fantastic actress, but she’s not Cathy.

There’s also shockingly little chemistry between Robbie and Elordi. For a movie about sensuality and passion, it is sometimes hard to imagine these two people feel anything for each other. For all the scenes of people, particularly the leads, in the throes of ecstasy, it all feels very tame. Everything is shot from safe angles and most of the more charged moments are hinted at more than shown. That’s fine for most movies, but it’s extremely odd in one where those moments feel like they were a core part of the premise. It’s possible that Fennell might have wanted to take things further and the studio interfered. That happens and I wouldn’t be shocked to learn it happened here, because this movie wants to be way more intense than it ever is.

The set design and cinematography do the film no favors either. If there is an area where Fennell should have been reined in a bit, it’s with the sets. Almost every setting the characters find themselves in is clearly meant to aid in selling the emotions and raw sensuality of the movie, but most of them just look a little silly. It’s too on-the-nose and a little subtlety would have gone a long way.

That said, the overall film is still mostly enjoyable. I’m probably not the target audience and I suspect that those who are will get far more out of what Fennell was attempting to do here. Had the movie either taken some more chances and dialed up the passion or toned things down a bit and focused on the characters, it may have found a more dedicated general audience. As is, it finds itself in the middle a bit and will likely appeal only to a more niche group. For most, though, Wuthering Heights won’t make you fall in love.