Emma. (2020)
Feb. 20th, 2020 02:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shallownessAs seen on Monday night.
That much discussed full stop after the title, as if this were the definitive version, is gubbins. There’ll surely be another adaptation in a generation’s time. Besides, the best screen version of ‘Emma’ is still Clueless (background: ‘Emma’ is NOT my favourite Austen and everyone has ‘their’ Austen adaptation of each book, somewhat influenced by their age when they saw it), but I enjoyed this a lot.
It’s in confection box colours, peach and pale blues, filmed with a very visual sensibility by debut features director Autumn de Wilde, which came up with the flock of girls at Harriet’s school seen everywhere in their identical red cloaks.
There’s an interest in dressing and undressing, with the ladies in ruffles and ruffs and the men, especially Mr Knightley, in high, high collars. I started giggling when the BBCF certificate came up with a warning for ‘natural nudity’. The very concept! (and really I think that it could only apply to a newborn. Will the BBFC start warning for unnatural nudity now? What does it warn for in the DVD of the recent Sanditon TV adap?) Basically, full male nudity form the back isn’t what I expect from a U. They could have cut it or given it a PG.
Anyway, I relaxed at the familiar dialogue. It’s been a while, probably including the Romola Garai BBC version, since I read the novel. Of the changes that were made, I didn’t much get some of them e.g. why make John and Isabella so mismatched? Also, there are a lot of moments where Emma seems to realise the true state of her feelings and then it recedes, when it is Austen’s genius that Emma only gets it after Harriet declares her feelings for Knightley. Whereas making Knightley blind to his feelings (i.e. not falling in love with her when she was twelve like in the book, la la la) until their dance at the ball and then have her struggle with her hot and coldness works. But I liked the visual of her humbling herself by making atonement to Robert Martin, as she had to Miss Bates, and if they added a nosebleed and delay to the romantic crescendo, I’ll forgive them.
Anya Taylor-Joy (who I remember from Atlantis, although clearly her career has taken off since then…in films I didn’t want to see) is really very good, what Gwyenth Paltrow was aiming at without having to strain for the accent. She made me feel sympathetic towards Emma’s loneliness driving her towards friendship with Harriet, and shows the flashes of real feeling and goodness under the vanity, while getting that vanity down. And I think Bill Nighy pulled off my fave Mr Woodhouse on screen ever, his sensibility meshing well with the hypochondriac worrywart. Miranda Hart was a touch less immediate classic as Miss Bates, possibly because we saw less of her than if this were a lengthier adaptation.
Johnny Flynn managed real sizzle when required, but he and Callum Turner seem like obvious period drama casting (and, showing my age are no Jeremy Northam-orJohnny Lee Miller – and Ewan McGregor). Though the eyes Turner’s Frank was giving Jane Fairfax made me swing towards pardoning him for treating her so badly, which is where I generally land. After all, he also draws out the worst in Emma. Meanwhile, Mia Goth elicited real sympatchy for Harriet’s various dilemmas, while, to me, the actor playing Robert Martin looked as if he should be doing his A-levels.
The whole ‘Emma.’ thing is married to seasonal titles that point to this being a very stylish Emma. The film is at its most arch, look-at-me in the design for the shop Emma frequents. Both her pad and Knightley’s are a step up from what I always imagined, though they build up to a nice moment when Knightley is willing to give up his home to live with Emma and her father. Granted, he was only half-living in it, seeming happier out for a walk or dropping by at the Woodhouses'. I felt for Mrs Reynolds, his housekeeper, now going to be even more underemployed (that’s the trouble with making the servants more visible, film.)
Emma had a few good points in their arguments, (though it may be direct from the book) on men’s expectations of women. Mr Knightley cannot always be right!
His jealousy of Frank was played for laughs. Meanwhile, I Emma’s rivalry with Jane, Jane isn’t so much an accomplished musician as a talented one, although sure, we only saw Emma play for show, but a little part of me was more kindly inclined than I expected towards Emma in being able to go ‘but you are clearly the greatest dancer!’
If you like Austen in general, go see it – it doesn’t mess it up too much and offers some nice perspectives on certain aspects of the novel. (It's not stiflingly 2020ish.) Normally, I get more critical in the days after seeing a film, but not so much with this one.
[Slight edits made on 30/12/22.]
That much discussed full stop after the title, as if this were the definitive version, is gubbins. There’ll surely be another adaptation in a generation’s time. Besides, the best screen version of ‘Emma’ is still Clueless (background: ‘Emma’ is NOT my favourite Austen and everyone has ‘their’ Austen adaptation of each book, somewhat influenced by their age when they saw it), but I enjoyed this a lot.
It’s in confection box colours, peach and pale blues, filmed with a very visual sensibility by debut features director Autumn de Wilde, which came up with the flock of girls at Harriet’s school seen everywhere in their identical red cloaks.
There’s an interest in dressing and undressing, with the ladies in ruffles and ruffs and the men, especially Mr Knightley, in high, high collars. I started giggling when the BBCF certificate came up with a warning for ‘natural nudity’. The very concept! (and really I think that it could only apply to a newborn. Will the BBFC start warning for unnatural nudity now? What does it warn for in the DVD of the recent Sanditon TV adap?) Basically, full male nudity form the back isn’t what I expect from a U. They could have cut it or given it a PG.
Anyway, I relaxed at the familiar dialogue. It’s been a while, probably including the Romola Garai BBC version, since I read the novel. Of the changes that were made, I didn’t much get some of them e.g. why make John and Isabella so mismatched? Also, there are a lot of moments where Emma seems to realise the true state of her feelings and then it recedes, when it is Austen’s genius that Emma only gets it after Harriet declares her feelings for Knightley. Whereas making Knightley blind to his feelings (i.e. not falling in love with her when she was twelve like in the book, la la la) until their dance at the ball and then have her struggle with her hot and coldness works. But I liked the visual of her humbling herself by making atonement to Robert Martin, as she had to Miss Bates, and if they added a nosebleed and delay to the romantic crescendo, I’ll forgive them.
Anya Taylor-Joy (who I remember from Atlantis, although clearly her career has taken off since then…in films I didn’t want to see) is really very good, what Gwyenth Paltrow was aiming at without having to strain for the accent. She made me feel sympathetic towards Emma’s loneliness driving her towards friendship with Harriet, and shows the flashes of real feeling and goodness under the vanity, while getting that vanity down. And I think Bill Nighy pulled off my fave Mr Woodhouse on screen ever, his sensibility meshing well with the hypochondriac worrywart. Miranda Hart was a touch less immediate classic as Miss Bates, possibly because we saw less of her than if this were a lengthier adaptation.
Johnny Flynn managed real sizzle when required, but he and Callum Turner seem like obvious period drama casting (and, showing my age are no Jeremy Northam-orJohnny Lee Miller – and Ewan McGregor). Though the eyes Turner’s Frank was giving Jane Fairfax made me swing towards pardoning him for treating her so badly, which is where I generally land. After all, he also draws out the worst in Emma. Meanwhile, Mia Goth elicited real sympatchy for Harriet’s various dilemmas, while, to me, the actor playing Robert Martin looked as if he should be doing his A-levels.
The whole ‘Emma.’ thing is married to seasonal titles that point to this being a very stylish Emma. The film is at its most arch, look-at-me in the design for the shop Emma frequents. Both her pad and Knightley’s are a step up from what I always imagined, though they build up to a nice moment when Knightley is willing to give up his home to live with Emma and her father. Granted, he was only half-living in it, seeming happier out for a walk or dropping by at the Woodhouses'. I felt for Mrs Reynolds, his housekeeper, now going to be even more underemployed (that’s the trouble with making the servants more visible, film.)
Emma had a few good points in their arguments, (though it may be direct from the book) on men’s expectations of women. Mr Knightley cannot always be right!
His jealousy of Frank was played for laughs. Meanwhile, I Emma’s rivalry with Jane, Jane isn’t so much an accomplished musician as a talented one, although sure, we only saw Emma play for show, but a little part of me was more kindly inclined than I expected towards Emma in being able to go ‘but you are clearly the greatest dancer!’
If you like Austen in general, go see it – it doesn’t mess it up too much and offers some nice perspectives on certain aspects of the novel. (It's not stiflingly 2020ish.) Normally, I get more critical in the days after seeing a film, but not so much with this one.
[Slight edits made on 30/12/22.]
