"WUTHERING HEIGHTS"
Starring: Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, Hong Chau, Alison Oliver, Shazad Latif, Martin Clunes, Charlotte Mellington, and Owen Cooper
Director: Emerald Fennell
NICK
The title “Wuthering Heights” is in quotation marks because this is a loose adaptation of the novel, at best. There are story beats, and even straight-from-the-book moments, yes, but the skeleton of director Emerald Fennell's film is far more sexually-charged, and at times akin, to Fifty Shades of Grey. Although there’s nothing wrong with that on the surface, the over-indulgence of it begins to feel like a cheap attempt to garner gasps from the audience over telling a fleshed-out story. It’s a shame because Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie both give engaging performances and visually the film is gorgeous, but that can’t save the hollow narrative.
ADRIANO
To be three movies deep and have your films’ recurring issues be so obvious is a bad sign for writer/director Emerald Fennell. For the first half of “Wuthering Heights”, its gorgeous cinematography allowed even the messiest aspects to at least be watchable. Then the back half devolves to the point of disaster. Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie’s attractiveness are not substitutions for chemistry, and the eroticism is much safer than Fennell thinks. Her provacteurism is as see-through as ever, and trapped within the confines of the classic source material, it feels more fan-fiction than it should.
BODE
Beyond knowing “Wuthering Heights” inspired Death Cab for Cutie’s “Cath…”, I have little attachment with Emily Brontë’s literary classic. So, I’m not one to say if writer-director Emerald Fennell’s interpretation is a desecration or a great new transformation. I can say that simply taken as a Gothic portrait of people being toxic to each other, her depiction is aesthetically accomplished, but emotionally inert, and not nearly as anachronistic (especially given the Charli XCX songs) or erotic as it initially promises. At the least, I found it more watchable than Saltburn. But coming from me, that’s not exactly saying much.
PAIGE
While Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights” is visually striking, with beautiful cinematography, an evoking soundtrack, and stunning costumes, the rest of the film leaves a lot to be desired. This rendition lusts for longing rather than actually being hot and steamy. Although the lead performances from Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are solid, the soulless script makes it extremely difficult to care about these unlikeable characters or their doomed romance. The story is meant to portray yearning, lust, and love, but ultimately fails at emotionally conveying any of that to the audience and ends up being an underwhelming and bland adaptation.
AMARÚ
I should hate everything about “Wuthering Heights”. Loathsome people who thrive off of despair torturing each other and calling it love. But for 90 minutes, there was a mischievous humor where Catherine (Margot Robbie) played as a long-lost descendent of Harley Quinn, a character whose mischief I quite enjoy. So while she and Heathcliff (Jacob Elordi) are horrible for each other, Robbie’s entertaining snobbishness and Elordi’s effortless sincerity made their clear chemistry watchable. But those malicious extra 50 minutes grew very tiresome, even if director Emerald Fennell technically delivers the salaciousness of this “love” story. Love in the same quotes as the film’s title.
KATIE
“Wuthering Heights” was what I expected from director Emerald Fennell. The eroticism feels immature, meaning to simply shock the audience, and subsequently isn't sexy at all. Granted, it looks good, but the costuming was sometimes confusing and looked cheap. Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are fantastic performers, but their casting felt wrong. They had decent chemistry, but couldn’t portray the yearning and conflicted desire needed to drive their obsession. Plus, the Charli XCX score is so out of place. The songs are not bad, but are employed recklessly with little thought or reason, and continuously distracted me from the scene.
