Wuthering Heights (1939)

classic always

Life is so hard. This movie helps me in my belief about life, love. death. Excellent classic January 9, 2008

A dark romantic triumph

The 1939 version of Wuthering Heights may be a Sam Goldwyn picture but here at least he has the taste not to bury it under his usual excessive (over)production values and let the mostly British cast get on with it under William Wyler's inspired direction, with screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur saving their reverence for the characters and spirit of Emily Bronte's novel rather than the set dressing and place-setting details which obsess modern costume pictures.

The film grips from its atmospheric opening to its tragic and genuinely moving conclusion and while it may end at chapter 17 it never soft-peddles the characters - neither good nor bad, they all choose their own personal Hells and have to live with the consequences. Even if you're no admirer of Laurence Olivier, you will be astonished at how his mixture of ruthlessness and emotional vulnerability makes the part his own forever. Merle Oberon's mercurial Cathy, torn between Olivier's force of nature and David Niven's pillar of society, may not match his power but it's still probably her best work while Geraldine Fitzgerald is a revelation as the woman Heathcliff marries for revenge, her unrequited love compellingly transformed to bitter desperation.

Gregg Toland's photography is black and white at its best and Alfred Newman's score is perfection. A genuine all-time great - and then some.

The Region 2 PAL DVD has no extras but does have a fine transfer. November 29, 2007

Will Never Forget It

I remember this film well,but in a hazy way....Merle Oberon after she dies, running with Laurence Olivier to gather heather she loved.

To me , this is one of the top romantic classics...the cinematography was interesting and very artistic. Each scene seemed to be filmed to capture the feeling of that moment.

Either Merle in all her brilliance resting in the sun, or the fading scene of these two lovers wandering off to the heather.

I just cannot express rightfully the greatness and depth of this film.

Love so strong it lives on after they've died.

Highly recommended ! August 4, 2007

More than a love story....

Few films explore the depths of dysfunction quite like the 1939 version of "Wuthering Heights." It is perhaps one of the greatest love stories ever captured on film, great because it is more than just a love story; it is a portrait of the long term results of alcoholism and child abuse. Based, of course, upon the novel of the same name, the film stops after the first few chapters. The book, however, goes on to show with immense psychological detail how the abused Heathcliff himself becomes an abuser and replicates, to the best of his ability, the circumstances in which he was mistreated. The film captures in a short but intense manner the brilliance of the original story-telling.

In spite of the all the melodrama, the 1939 "Wuthering Heights" is a subtle film compared to the remakes. There are no sex or rape scenes, little bloodshed, just phenomenal acting and a stirring score. When Hindley places his muddy boot on Heathcliff's hands, one feels the humiliation, the degradation. And no R-rated love scene can compare to the passion with which Catherine rips off her fine frock so she can don her usual shabby attire and dash off to join Heathcliff on the moors.

The obsessive love between Catherine and Heathcliff is the result of the bonding which occurred when they were children in a brutal situation, with no one but each other to turn to for help. Although Catherine loves Heathcliff, her desperation to escape from her alcoholic brother dominates all other emotions. She marries wealthy Edgar for material security and seems to be happy, until Heathcliff comes back. The division in her soul destroys her; in the book she dies giving birth, so tormented that not even the love for her child gives her any peace or hope.

Throughout both the book and the movie are the recurring mentions of the devil, of hell, of witchcraft and curses, so that one has the distinct impression that the religion of the characters in more Manichean than Christian. The evil spirals into consuming jealousy and hatred. No sins of the flesh are committed, that anyone is aware of, although suppressed passion simmers in every chapter. The tempestuous climate of the moors reflects the inner tumults. The core of the evil is not in the wildness of the elements but in the addictive behaviors of the Earnshaw family. Heathcliff is as addicted to his anger and hatred for all who have injured him as much as Hindley is addicted to his drink, and his inability to forgive, more than his thwarted love for Catherine, is what destroys most of the main characters. The film provides a searing study of the evil that is unleashed when people cling to the past. It also shows, in the final ethereal shot, how love can transcend time and space. May 19, 2007

Great Movie Absurd Overpricing.......................

I just bought the Import edition of this dvd on Amazon Trust me the picture quality is absolutely beautiful.Beware to those who say imports are inferior sometimes the are better than then the american releases.Anyhow this movie is absolutely a masterpiece I Highly Recommend any edition you could get your hands on but as always these movies will make it on Dvd again. February 7, 2006

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