The new Wuthering Heights film, directed by Emerald Fennell, is currently in theaters—and it feels like everyone at Indiana University is talking about it. With everyone discussing it on social media, especially the aesthetics and casting of Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie, the movie was all I was seeing everywhere. However, after watching it myself, I will give my honest, spoiler-free opinion, and it may not be what you expect.
Before watching it, I was very excited to see it once I heard it was casting Elordi and Robbie. Additionally, I had heard and seen that the film was going to be emotionally intense.
According to Variety, “So far ‘Wuthering Heights’ has grossed $151.7 million” worth of tickets worldwide against the $80 million it took to make the movie. The casting of Robbie and Elordi was a big attention-grabber to most people. The casting of those actors was a major draw for me, as both characters bring a certain presence to the screen that you can’t ignore.
But to be honest, I did not end up liking the movie at all.
To provide some context, the new Wuthering Heights movie is based on the book by Emily Brontë, published in 1847, according to American Literature. The story is about Heathcliff, the character Elordi plays, an orphan who is offered the chance to live with Catherine Earnshaw, played by Robbie, as a young child. The movie follows decades of their lives and their love/hate relationship.
As soon as the movie began, I was intrigued at first, but then I got bored fast. I thought the film was going to be one of those movies with a slow and boring beginning, but then gets really good… But I was wrong. It wasn’t what I expected. I found myself disconnected at times and unable to fully engage.
I am not saying that everything was awful. There were some scenes that were very intentional and creative. Also, the ending was definitely emotionally engaging, but only until the very, very end of the movie for me.
I’ll be honest here: a big reason I wanted to see this movie was mainly for the actors. While they were captivating to watch in the movie, I felt like they performed much better in other movies and that they had so much more potential in this movie that was unused.
Overall, this version of Wuthering Heights is one of those movies that look amazing in trailers and on social media but end up being unengaging.
If you’re curious, it may still be worth checking out so that you can form your opinion. But if you’re expecting an unforgettable experience, you may want to lower your expectations because you may leave the theater feeling disappointed, as I did.