Emma. (2020 Film) Review
Autumn de Wilde makes her directorial debut with a more comedic take on a well-known Jane Austen story.Set in Georgian/Regency-era England, the film follows Emma Woodhouse, a vain but beautiful woman, who has no interest in marriage. Instead, she plays matchmaker to her friends and family, with often meddlesome intentions.
Anya Taylor-Joy stars as Emma Woodhouse. Her co-stars include Johnny Flynn as George Knightley, Bill Nighy as Mr. Woodhouse, Mia Goth as Harriet Smith, Miranda Hart as Miss Bates, and Josh O'Connor as Mr. Elton.
Autumn de Wilde directed "Emma." Based on Jane Austen's book, the film was written by Eleanor Catton. Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Graham Broadbent, and Pete Czernin produced the film. Focus Features distributed "Emma."
Overall Thoughts
It has been ten years since Jane Austen's "Emma" has been adapted to film and TV. After such a hiatus, the story of hubris and romantic mix-ups is back on the big screen, with Anya Taylor-Joy as Austen's spoiled and headstrong main character.
Many actresses have played Emma before, some better than others. Despite this, I feel Anya Taylor-Joy makes those negative qualities of the character - her ego, vainness, and general overconfidence - more convincing than the actresses who have come before. You see, with many actors, you can tell when he or she is "acting" snobbish or manipulative. With Taylor-Joy, she preforms so fluently that you don't question it. She does so well at playing Emma's egotistical side, but then also conveying her change of character. Her eyes are particularly effective, enabling the actress to be more dimensional. Taylor-Joy is able to convey two different emotional states. While Emma may say one thing, her eyes express her true feelings, a great choice on the actress's part. This isn't immediately noticeable because Emma's more confident in her ways at the start, but the more the story goes on, the clearer this technique becomes.
If you liked 2016's "Love and Friendship," which happened to star Kate Beckinsale, one of the past Emmas, you may love this latest adaptation of "Emma." This film features some of the same dry humor and nonsensical jokes as that film. Many of them can be credited to Bill Nighy's Mr. Woodhouse, who, as one of his running jokes, goes on about a draft in his sitting room. It may not seem like anything funny at first, but because Nighy takes it so seriously, you can't help but laugh. None of the jokes are total knee slappers and some other characters have jokes that fall flat, but the lightweight tone makes the film a fun watch.
As an adaptation of "Emma," this one may not be the best at telling the story. Because some of the humor choices are so screwball, the dramatic points suffer. Not that they are completely ineffective, but you do sense the uneven shift in the tone sometimes. To its credit, it sticks as close as possible to Austen's original story. For some, that may make the film predictable if they've read "Emma" or seen any of the other adaptations, but because I want to see the books I've read brought to fruition through a new perspective, I appreciate the faithfulness.
"Emma." may not be the best-told adaptation of the Jane Austen novel, but the Anya Taylor-Joy-led film is a treat. It's playful in tone, good-looking in terms of the costumes and cinematography, and its lead performance makes this film's Emma one of the best. The film should delight Austen and "Emma" fans alike. However, I would caution parents that, although this PG-rated film is suitable for families, Mr. Knightley's bare buttocks are shown early on, so there's that to watch out for.
Many actresses have played Emma before, some better than others. Despite this, I feel Anya Taylor-Joy makes those negative qualities of the character - her ego, vainness, and general overconfidence - more convincing than the actresses who have come before. You see, with many actors, you can tell when he or she is "acting" snobbish or manipulative. With Taylor-Joy, she preforms so fluently that you don't question it. She does so well at playing Emma's egotistical side, but then also conveying her change of character. Her eyes are particularly effective, enabling the actress to be more dimensional. Taylor-Joy is able to convey two different emotional states. While Emma may say one thing, her eyes express her true feelings, a great choice on the actress's part. This isn't immediately noticeable because Emma's more confident in her ways at the start, but the more the story goes on, the clearer this technique becomes.If you liked 2016's "Love and Friendship," which happened to star Kate Beckinsale, one of the past Emmas, you may love this latest adaptation of "Emma." This film features some of the same dry humor and nonsensical jokes as that film. Many of them can be credited to Bill Nighy's Mr. Woodhouse, who, as one of his running jokes, goes on about a draft in his sitting room. It may not seem like anything funny at first, but because Nighy takes it so seriously, you can't help but laugh. None of the jokes are total knee slappers and some other characters have jokes that fall flat, but the lightweight tone makes the film a fun watch.
As an adaptation of "Emma," this one may not be the best at telling the story. Because some of the humor choices are so screwball, the dramatic points suffer. Not that they are completely ineffective, but you do sense the uneven shift in the tone sometimes. To its credit, it sticks as close as possible to Austen's original story. For some, that may make the film predictable if they've read "Emma" or seen any of the other adaptations, but because I want to see the books I've read brought to fruition through a new perspective, I appreciate the faithfulness.
"Emma." may not be the best-told adaptation of the Jane Austen novel, but the Anya Taylor-Joy-led film is a treat. It's playful in tone, good-looking in terms of the costumes and cinematography, and its lead performance makes this film's Emma one of the best. The film should delight Austen and "Emma" fans alike. However, I would caution parents that, although this PG-rated film is suitable for families, Mr. Knightley's bare buttocks are shown early on, so there's that to watch out for.
Rating: ★★★
Conclusion
This has been my review of "Emma." I hope you enjoyed it. Have you seen the film? If you have, share your thoughts in the comments below. Should you feel inclined, recommend a film for me to review next. I'm Dallin, your resident film fanatic, and I'll return soon with another review. Thank you for reading.
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