Emily * * * ½

Emily is about Emily Bronte - and boy does it take some liberties!  But seeing that no one knows that much about her private life, perhaps it doesn't?

The story focuses on her time before she wrote the celebrated Wuthering Heights.  She is in her mid twenties and has generally proven to be a bit useless.  Living in a crowded house on the outskirt of a small town in Yorkshire with her siblings and Dad.  Mum has recently died and Auntie has moved in to help run the show.

Out on the Wily Windy Moors..

It goes at snails pace for a while with Emily being a constant daydreamer and a bit of a gorgeous looking Regency sulk. The people in the church and the village refer to her as "the strange one". She's an Emo Girl before it was invented (no piercings or dyed hair though).

Then the new Curate (Vicar), Mr. Weightman comes along and moves in with the family.  He's young, tall, handsome and very charming.  Emily hates him in that Damn! Why am I so attracted to you!? kind of way.  

At this stage we're still dawdling a bit.  Then one night they are having parlour games.  Something like charades. The character Emily pretends to be is.... dead Mummy.  

"Not funny!" the others say; especially when a spiritual force seems to enter the room, blowing everything around.  

Now we're on our way!

After that, the intensity between Emily and Mr. Weightman, Emily and her tragic alcoholic, opium addicted brother, Emily and her sisters Charlotte and Anne, intensifies.  Suddenly we've got a good film with some powerful drama, and we don't really care if she ever gets round to writing Wuthering what's its name,  because this is a ripper of a yarn in it's own right, which gets better as it descends into jealousy, lust, desire and heartbreak, all on the windblown Yorkshire moors. 

Cleverly, each of these characters give subtle suggestion to the makeup of Mr. Heathcliff and Catherine, along with many similar situations from Em's upcoming book. 

It takes too long to get going and too long to wrap up. A bit of editing wouldn't have hurt, but otherwise it really works, especially the second half.  

It's a first time film from Australian actor Frances O' Connor;  I guess it was her pet project. I look forward to her next.