Wuthering Heights (1939) [Region 2]
by William Wyler
![Wuthering Heights (1939) [Region 2]](/images/Wuthering-Heights-1939-Region-2-B00028HCEW-L.jpg)
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: David Niven, Donald Crisp, Flora Robson, Laurence Olivier, Merle OberonDirector: William Wyler
Cinematographer: Gregg Toland
Editor: Daniel Mandell
Producer: Samuel Goldwyn
Writer: Ben Hecht
Writer: Charles MacArthur
Writer: Emily Brontė
Writer: John Huston
DVD: Region Code 2
Audio: English (Unknown); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: PAL
Running Time: 104 minutes
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: MGM
Movie Reviews of Wuthering Heights (1939) [Region 2]
Movie Review: A dark romantic triumph
Summary: 5 Stars
The 1939 version of Wuthering Heights may be a Sam Goldwyn picture but here at least he has the taste not to bury it under his usual excessive (over)production values and let the mostly British cast get on with it under William Wyler's inspired direction, with screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur saving their reverence for the characters and spirit of Emily Bronte's novel rather than the set dressing and place-setting details which obsess modern costume pictures.
The film grips from its atmospheric opening to its tragic and genuinely moving conclusion and while it may end at chapter 17 it never soft-peddles the characters - neither good nor bad, they all choose their own personal Hells and have to live with the consequences. Even if you're no admirer of Laurence Olivier, you will be astonished at how his mixture of ruthlessness and emotional vulnerability makes the part his own forever. Merle Oberon's mercurial Cathy, torn between Olivier's force of nature and David Niven's pillar of society, may not match his power but it's still probably her best work while Geraldine Fitzgerald is a revelation as the woman Heathcliff marries for revenge, her unrequited love compellingly transformed to bitter desperation.
Gregg Toland's photography is black and white at its best and Alfred Newman's score is perfection. A genuine all-time great - and then some.
The Region 2 PAL DVD has no extras but does have a fine transfer.
Summary of Wuthering Heights (1939) [Region 2]
United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: English ( Mono ), French ( Mono ), German ( Mono ), Italian ( Mono ), Spanish ( Mono ), Danish ( Subtitles ), Dutch ( Subtitles ), Finnish ( Subtitles ), French ( Subtitles ), Greek ( Subtitles ), Norwegian ( Subtitles ), Swedish ( Subtitles ), SPECIAL FEATURES: Black & White, Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: William Wyler's Wuthering Heights is one of the earliest screen adaptations of the classic Emily Brontė novel. A traveler named Lockwood (Miles Mander) is caught in the snow and stays at the estate of Wuthering Heights, where the housekeeper, Ellen Dean (Flora Robson), sits down to tell him the story in flashback. In the early 19th century, the original owner of Wuthering Heights, Mr. Earnshaw (Leo G. Carroll), brings home an orphan from Liverpool named Heathcliff (Rex Downing). Though son Hindley Earnshaw despises the boy, daughter Catherine develops a close kinship with Heathcliff that blossoms into love. When Mr. Earnshaw dies, Cathy and Heathcliff grow up together on the Moors and seem destined for happiness, even though Hindley forces Heathcliff to work as a stable boy. When Cathy (Merle Oberon) meets wealthy neighbor Edgar Linton (David Niven), Heathcliff (Laurence Olivier) gets jealous and leaves. Cathy marries Edgar, and Heathcliff returns with his own wealth and sophistication. He buys Wuthering Heights from the alcoholic Hindley (Hugh Williams) and marries Edgar's sister, Isabella Linton (Geraldine Fitzgerald), out of spite. Still obsessively in love with each other, Cathy gets deathly ill while Heathcliff grows into a bitter old man. Ellen continues telling Lockwood the story as Dr. Kenneth (Donald Crisp) enters and reveals the fateful ending. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Oscar Academy Awards, ...Wuthering HeightsSimilar DVD Movies
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