“Emily” Review
Emma Mackey brings classic novelist Emily Brontë to life in “Emily,” a film that tells the author’s life story.
I’ve never read “Wuthering Heights.” I make this very clear because after watching “Emily,” a film about the novel’s writer Emily Brontë, I want to drop all of my other reading commitments and start reading that novel. Because if the book is as interesting as this movie, it’s destined to be most captivating. “Emily” was a marvelous film to watch and, during a period of the year when many mediocre films are released, was one of the best films I’ve seen so far this year.
Following the life of Emily Brontë (Emma Mackey), the film focuses on her personal life, insecurities and the tragedies she endured before she wrote her groundbreaking novel. Over the course of this story, we see Brontë become more and more weary of her environment and the societal repression she and her siblings Charlotte, Anne and Branwell (Alexandra Dowling, Amelia Gething and Fionn Whitehead) endure. The film also speculates on her passionate relationship with William Weightman (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), an assistant to the local church, which will influence her work as a writer.
Where many biopics falter is that they become more obsessed with delivering a filmed version of a person’s Wikipedia page as opposed to giving the audience insight into the person being represented. “Emily” does not suffer from this by never focusing on the making of “Wuthering Heights.” Instead, we gain a deep understanding of Emily Brontë and how the world around her frustrated her.
Emma Mackey is no stranger to angst, as seen in the Netflix series “Sex Education,” and she disappears into this role, giving us an immensely strong look at the writer your English teacher made you study but you were too lazy to read so you used SparkNotes to get a C on the quiz. Mackey’s performance is filled with such passion and a liveliness to it that is infectious and I can’t wait to see what the future brings for this incredible talent.
Along with the leading performance, what’s truly remarkable about “Emily” is how this is the screenwriting and directorial debut of Frances O’Connor and what a debut it is. O’Connor’s script is thought-provoking with how well it understands the protagonist and how biting it is. In many ways, Emily Brontë’s life is a tragedy but it’s far more complicated than that. The witty dialogue that comes out of Mackey is extraordinary and the journey O’Connor takes us on ventures into both drama and comedy.
As for the direction, O’Connor has such a clear vision for Brontë’s life story. Combined with beautiful cinematography by Nanu Segal, “Emily” is a gorgeous period film that utilizes every tool in its arsenal, including costumes, production design and atmosphere, to make the most immersive environment possible.
Mackey’s performance is extraordinary with an unbelievable intensity as Emily Brontë tackles societal norms as a writer.
What this film has to say about Emily Brontë and her siblings is also interesting. Most people would assume that the three sisters, who were prolific writers, were the best of friends and helped fuel each other's work. This film dispels such notions by showing a more competitive household and not for the reason you think. Out of the three sisters, Emily is the only one that wants to write but this desire makes her somewhat of a pariah in the town. Emily’s wants conflict with the norms of the time which creates conflict with her sisters.
The only person that Emily seems like she can confide in is her brother Bramwell who is just as much of an outcast as she is. Their relationship is one of the film’s strongest elements as is the passionate affair she develops with Weightman. Jackson-Cohen’s performance is quite challenging as he is drawn to Emily like the rest of us but his position keeps him from exploring his own desire. With such well-defined characters, the film’s torrid emotional conflict is captivating from start to finish.
When most modern biopics seem to be based on 20th century recording artists, “Emily” takes a wildly different approach and, in the process, makes for a film that I found to be exceptional.
