Movie Review: Emily

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

A simply wonderful film based on the life of Emily Bronte (the author of the classic novel Wuthering Heights).  

This film may take a lot of creative liberties with the true-life story of Emily Bronte, but it is an incredibly engaging and moving movie. Like Emily's short life, this film is in many ways a tragic one. This film deals with the isolation and loneliness of being a free spirit in a world that doesn't welcome those who don't fit in. Despite having not only a talent but a pure genius for writing, she often finds few people who understand or appreciate her for her she is. She is told multiple times that there is simply something ungodly in her. This is type of isolation is felt through much of the film and portrayed wonderfully. This is felt not only shown through the dialogue or story points, but also in the visual storytelling. While the cinematography and the use of outdoor environments is very beautiful to look at it is also very empty. This combination of beauty and emptiness perfectly captures the essence of what makes this movie so special. This becomes even more impressive when you consider that this is the first film for Frances O'Connor as a director (though she has been acting in both movies and TV for a couple decades). With the pure skill she shows in this film, I have a feeling we may be looking at one of the next great directors. Despite this film's exploration of loneliness and isolation, it is not completely depressing. There are actually some really joyous moments here. Some of the scenes with her and her brother are full of a joyous passion for life that makes them simply wonderful to watch. The romantic scenes here with her and a young pastor are also greatly effective and do a wonderful job capturing the excitement of a secret love affair. Yet none of these scenes take away from the tragedy of much of the film. In fact it enhances it. If a story like this is told well, the happier the joyous scenes are the more tragic the sad scenes are. This is partly because of contrast and also partly because of making the audience feel that something truly beautiful is being threatened.

This movie is also greatly helped by how well the main character is treated. It is true that this version of Emily Bronte may not always be the most accurate but she is always an intriguing and compelling character. She is very easy to relate to and care about and there are many scenes where I simply wanted to give her a hug. Yet this film does not portray her as perfect in any way. There are scenes where she can actually push the realm of likability. Yet this is done in a completely natural way that never makes her feel out of character and never actually pushes her past the line, where she would become unlikable. Much of this is due to the fact that even in these scenes we can relate to and understand why she is doing what she is doing and while we may not like it, we still like her. Much of what makes this character work though is due to a wonderful performance by Emma Mackey. There is never a false note in her performance and she always makes the character feel real and natural. She also makes her feel both larger than life and deeply human at the same time. There is an equal amount of vulnerability and inner strength in this performance without either feeling like it is contradicting the other. 

This is simply a great movie.