Summary
The Earnshaws live at Wuthering Heights, a gothic mansion set on the bleak moors in the
north of England. Young Cathy Earnshaw is given a playmate when her father adopts
a gipsy boy Heathcliff. The two children develop a close friendship which
blossoms into love when they come of age. But then Cathy meets a wealthy landowner,
Linton, who asks her to marry him. Cathy accepts and Heathcliffe disappears
in a rage. Years later, Heathcliffe returns, determined to bring a terrible revenge
on his own and Linton’s families...
Review
Watching this film, you quickly get the impression that the production set out with one
aim: to come up with the most faithful, authentic-looking adaptation of the famous novel
by Emily Brontë. Not only does the film adhere religiously to the novel, even
quoting passages from the text, but its cinematography and period detail vividly evoke
the kind of images you imagine when reading the book. Unfortunately, that is really
all there is: visual images. This is a film which lacks soul, lacks imagination,
and leaves little for the spectator to do than get bored. Reading the original novel
is an infinitely more rewarding experience than watching the film.
The film’s biggest problem is its choice of lead actors. Both Juliette Binoche and
Ralph Fiennes are very capable actors, but neither is remotely suited to the role each
plays in this film. Binoche lacks the passion of the first Catherine and the vulnerability
of the second, so, despite what is technically a good performance, she appears totally
out of place. Ralph Fiennes’s performance is much worse, however, and borders on the pantomime
villain. Fiennes shows none of the tortured complexity of the Heathcliff in Brontë’s
novel. All we see is a bitter, twisted man who likes hitting women and shouting.
In a performance that lacks subtlety of any kind, Fiennes more or less single-handedly
destroys any humanity the film may have possessed. Not only does he fail to have
any rapport whatever with Binoche, he appears to have no rapport at all with the character
he is playing.
This could have been an admirable adaptation of a fine romantic novel - it has the production
values an excellent period drama. Unfortunately, it is marred by miscasting and
some complacent direction.
© James Travers 2000
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