“Wuthering Heights” (2009)
I found the recent Wuthering Heights Masterpiece adaptation on PBS mostly disappointing. It felt romanticized rather than rough; Wuthering Heights looked much too clean.
EDITED TO ADD in 2014. Originally I said some flip and unkind things here about Charlotte Riley as Catherine and some production decisions. They were excerpted elsewhere and read by Riley and others, and I was correctly chastised for my glib, bitchy tone. I’m trying to be entertaining on this blog, but as Nigel notes in This is Spinal Tap, there’s a fine line between clever and stupid. Thus, I will say after re-watching this adaptation, Riley is spirited and lovely as Cathy, but her groomed eyebrows and white teeth made her look too modern to me. (end of this edit)
Heathcliff, on the other hand, was done very well by Tom Hardy. His crooked teeth, wild hair, large frame, jolie-laide countenance and well-done acting all helped convey the palpable menace, sexiness and craziness that is this complex character.
I’ll re-read the book soon, as I couldn’t tell quite how many liberties they took with the dialogue.
Edited to add after a 2014 rereading of that Oxford edition. The 2009 version takes a number of liberties with the text, including having Cathy and Heathcliff actually consummate their passion, and Heathcliff actively takes his own life at the end. It’s one of the few adaptations that does include both generations, though, and Hardy does Heathcliff well, so I do recommend it. Also, Riley and Hardy ended up together in real life, so Riley FTW, says I.
January 27th, 2009 at 3:34 pm
Thank you so much for sharing such a marvelous word! I had never heard of “jolie-laide” before and came across a wonderful article detailing the intricacies of the word. It made my day (which might say something for how drab that can be).
January 27th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Oof. Read Wuthering Heights in 12th Grade and no power on this earth would have me re-read it… not even a PBS adaptation. How anyone has ever categorized it as a love story is beyond me. I hated Heathcliff & Cathy at 17, and I’ve been finding myself increasingly unsympathetic to characters in novel who just need a large helping of therapy, so I doubt I’d be more sympathetic to their plight a second time round.
January 28th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
I’d have to agree. Catherine was miscast. But I did like Tom Hardy very much. I need to reread the book too.
February 3rd, 2009 at 9:33 pm
Steph, it’s a very polarizing book because Cathy and Heathcliff are such extreme and not very likeable characters. But I’ve come to love it over repeated re-readings, because it’s got a fascinating framing story, and an intricate timeline that is subtle but perfectly wrought. And, love em or hate em, Heathcliff and Cathy are complex.
I broke down and bought the brand new Oxford World Classics edition, published last year. It’s quite good looking. We’ll see how soon I manage it. And yes, make fun of me, because I have about six other copies on the shelf, bought for their illustrations, their footnotes, their portability, etc.