Review: "Wuthering Heights" is a delirious, delicious mess of a romance, with Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi steaming up Emily Brontë's classic
Some people consider Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel “Wuthering Heights” not just a great romance novel but THE great romance novel, against which every love story is measured. So director-writer Emerald Fennell has her work cut out for her as she attempts to fashion a steamy, sensual movie out of it.
Fennell, who gave us plenty to chew on in “Promising Young Woman” and “Saltburn,” has the building blocks to adapt a cracking version of “Wuthering Heights.” Those include windswept moors for locations, a sumptuous visual palette, gorgeous costumes and two leads — Margot Robbie as the flighty Catherine Earnshaw and Jacob Elordi as the darkly brooding Heathcliff — who don’t just fill out those costumes but inhabit their legendary characters.
It’s not always smooth sailing for Robbie and Elordi, because the characters’ moods and motivations flit from one extreme to the other over the course of more than two hours. Both Cathy and Heathcliff swear their love to each other, but they also behave in the most beastly ways to each other and to anyone who comes into their orbit. They are, by turn, both the moth and the flame for each other, and they and others get burned.
Heathcliff starts out as an orphan, taken in by Mr. Earnshaw (Martin Clunes), who has squandered his fortune on gambling and strong drink. Cathy gives Heathcliff his name and, at first, treats him as a pet — but over time they grow into friendship. This stirs jealousy in Nellie, who lives in the Earnshaw’s home, called Wuthering Heights, and as an adult (played by Hong Chau) becomes Cathy’s paid companion.
Cathy and Heathcliff always seem on the verge of expressing their love for each other, but society pressures and occasional external events get in the way. One such event is the arrival of new neighbors, wealthy Edgar Linton (Shazad Latif) and his barely-adult ward, Isabella (Alison Oliver). Cathy is cajoled to think about marrying Edgar, because of his wealth, and abandon the idea of marrying Heathcliff. When Heathcliff overhears Cathy talking about Edgar, it drives him to a desperate decision.
Fennell’s script leans heavily into Brontë’s creaky plot mechanics — there’s a lot of things overheard, or attempts at communication thwarted by third parties — that border on silliness. Where the movie is more sure of itself is when Robbie’s Cathy and Elordi’s Heathcliff are together, getting soaked in the English rain or making out in various settings.
People who watch this “Wuthering Heights” may argue online from here to doomsday about whether Robbie and Elordi have any romantic chemistry here. That’s in the eye of the beholder, really — but it’s clear they are hungry to fulfill Fennell’s sometimes contradictory impulses to capture Brontë’s 19th century moodiness while also working over the classic story into something more current and alive.
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‘Wuthering Heights’
★★★1/2
Opens Friday, February 13, in theaters everywhere. Rated R for sexual content, some violent content and langauge. Running time: 136 minutes.