EMILY Brontë Re-imagined
Frances O’Connor takes on Wuthering Heights in her writing and directing debut!
I predict interest in Wuthering Heights will increase due to the EMILY movie! I hope so, anyway. I am a big fan of the creative Brontë family, especially Emily. I have been obsessed with Wuthering Heights since I discovered it in 1992. I watched the movie starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche a dozen times. Then I watched every remake I could find. There are many remakes, but I still think Ralph Fiennes as Heathcliff and Juliette Binoche as Cathy is the best remake of the classic gothic novel.
After falling in love with the story, I started collecting Wuthering Heights books. Unfortunately, my collection burned up in 2014. I started my collection over again a few years ago. I recently found an illustrated version! My dream is to find one with Emily’s pen name, Ellis Bell.
As I watched the movie, I knew I had to find out who was behind this re-imagined tale. During my research, I discovered that EMILY was written and directed by Frances O’Connor. I was surprised to learn this movie is her writing and directing debut. Wow! What a way to start your career as a writer and director. Frances hit a home run her first time up to bat. Impressive! EMILY is a masterpiece that I’m sure I will watch repeatedly.
I have always seen Wuthering Heights as a star-crossed romance story, but many will argue my point of view. I have seen the impassioned comments where people yell, “IT IS NOT A ROMANCE.” Frances highlighted the darker side of relationships that makes sense of the gothic and horror label that are attached to Wuthering Heights. I hate horror, but the mask scene is superb! Emma Mackey shined in that scene and throughout the movie.
I loved Frances’s perspective of the mashup that created Heathcliff. That is exactly how I write! It is not one person but a piece of this one and that one who makes up my characters and poetry.
