Emma
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Movie Reviews of Emma
Movie Review: Excellent adaptation of Austen's work!
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is far superior to the one starring Gwyneth Paltrow. Kate Beckinsdale gives the part of Emma a greater depth of character than Ms. Paltrow does...and a great deal more fire and attitude - as Emma should have. Character development in this version is much better than in the Miramax version. Ms. Beckinsdale's Emma is much more lovable and understandable than Ms. Paltrow's. In the end, this makes the audience symphathetic to Emma - she deserves this. Remember, she is only a child, still finding her place in society.The scene on Box Hill is played quite brilliantly in this version - Emma, you must remember, is very naive and is not really aware of what she is doing. You get a better sense of her blunder and of her remorse in this version than in the Miramax version, in which she seems to be nasty on purpose.
The casting (and acting) in this version is superb - Jane in the Miramax version is saucier than one would expect; her expressions were much harsher than author Jane Austen may have wanted.
A nice nod to the Pride and Prejudice version - the inclusion of Ms. Lucy Robinson (Mrs. Hurst in P&P) in Emma as Mrs. Elton was a great choice. She makes a wonderful, loud, brassy wife.
If you must insist on watching the Emma starring Gwyneth Paltrow, watch that version first, and then watch this version. Otherwise, you will be very disappointed.
Movie Review: Wonderful Adaption
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a wonderful adaption of one of my favourite novels of Jane Austen.
A short summary of the story:
The heroine of the story is Emma and is a young, intelligent and very beautiful woman of high social rank and with a large fortune. Due to all these factors she is a little bit spoiled and has sometimes a too good opinion of herself. She is determined never to marry except when being in love- she needn't to marry only to rise socially nor to gain more fortune anymore.
So she thinks that she does a good deed by helping other women of inferior social status to marry better but ends up in doing everything much worse.
Happily, like in all books by Jane Austen, there is a happy end.
Some points which I like most in this film:
This film may be not made as cinematique as all the other Emma adaptions, but it shows a very realistic, amiable, charming and also funny picture of the society of the 19th century.
The characters of Emma and Mr Knightley are excellent portrayed, especially the latter is the Mr Knightley I've always imagined. I've seen some extracts of the new Emma- film and I have to admit that I don't like Knightley in those one very much, maybe because Johnny Lee Miller looks so young and he plays Knightley a little bit too nice, but this is a matter of taste.
Movie Review: lovely adaptation of Jane Austen's classic
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a wonderful adaptation, with a marvelous script and a superb cast. I've seen other versions of this novel brought to the screen that did not capture the relationships nearly so well. Frank Churchill's double entendres, as well as other characterizations and events, are realized more visually; servants and townspeople are seen going about their business; scenes take place outdoors and in the town. This version really fleshes out the written word and makes Austen -- the ultimate drawing room author -- cinematic, beginning with the marriage of Mr. Weston and Miss Taylor and including Emma's actualized fantasies and daydreams.The only disappointments here are the paltry dvd features: a paragraph about Jane Austen, a list of four A&E web sites, and optional English subtitles. That's it. No cast info, no commentaries, no interviews .... let alone any kind of scholarship from people who have obviously made an authentic commitment to create high quality interpretations of British and American literature.
Normally I would demote this item to 4 stars based on the pathetic extras, but this adaptation is to Emma what Merchant-Ivory are to E.M. Forster. This is a brilliant, beautiful rendition of a novel dear to the hearts of many. One must believe that our Miss Jane would approve.
Highly recommended.
Movie Review: The Perfect Emma!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have to say that I love Jane Austen's book "Emma". I like it much better then her other works like Pride & Prejudice. So I'm glad that A&E did a version of "Emma" since they do such a good job at making great movies. Anyway, this adaption of Emma is perfect! Much better then the Gwyneth Paltrow version.
Kate Beckinsale IS Emma. She was nice yet had that snotty air about her that Emma is suppost to have. Paltrow's Emma was to goody-goody. I thought the point of Emma was that she was a sort of a brat.
I love Mark Strong as Knightly. He was just PERFECT! I think Jeremy Northam did very well as Knightly in the GP's version of Emma but he looked to young. And I missed the scolding that Strong's Knightly did to Emma. JN's Knightly was to soft.
Raymond Coulthard is great as Frank Churchill. He's handsome and very charming. I can see why Emma found him pleasing. Ewan MaGregor who played Churchill in other version didn't seem to be right to play the part. And what was with his hair??? That's NOT cute!
I'm so glad that A&E did the whole Frank Churchill/Jane Fairfax thing that they DIDN'T show in the GP version.
Take my advise and buy this version. If you are a TRUE Jane Austen lover, you won't be disappointed.
Movie Review: Excellent adaptation
Summary: 5 Stars
I also first saw 1996's Emma prior to watching this one. However late I was in arriving at viewing, I'm glad I was finally able to compare and contrast the two films and find this version truest to Austen's depicition of plot and characters.
No offense to Jeremy Northam, but Mark Strong fit the role of Knightley to a tee. Yes, he was combative and argumentative, but this is how he was in Austen's book as well. He might not have Northam's classically handsome silhouette but, to borrow an Austen phrase, he does possess a pair of hypnotic, 'fine eyes'. Strong and Beckinsale made for a wonderful on-screen pairing.
Samantha Morton played Harriet Smith to a tee, but special kudos must go to Olivia Williams and Raymond Coulthard who brought spark and believability to their interpretations of Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill respectively - an element I found lacking in Miramax's release. Bernard Hepton and Prunella Scales as Mr. Woodhouse and Miss Bates were secondary characters that were far better developed in Davies' film and much truer to how they were written on the page.
Andrew Davies is a true interpreter of fine British literature. I only hope he might someday do the same for Austen's Mansfield Park and Northanger Abbey.