"Wuthering Heights" REVIEW

Published on 2/18/2026 

Written by: Braylon Mitchell 

Directed by: Emerald Fennell 

Cast: Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, Allison Oliver, Hong Chau, Shazard Latif, Owen Cooper, Charlotte Mellington, etc. 

Plot: A passionate and tumultuous love story set against the backdrop of the Yorkshire moors, exploring the intense and destructive relationship between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw. 

REVIEW 

Characterizing itself by its hot, steamy, and sweaty eroticism as this decade's adaptation of Emily Bronte's beloved piece of classic literature, I've found myself feeling quite conflicted over Emerald Fennell's third feature film. Within pop culture/online, Fennell has become a polarizing filmmaker when it comes to her bluntness in style, message, and sexuality- "Promising Young Woman" was one of my favorite films of 2020, flaws & all I loved "Saltburn", but it's with this film where I feel like I agree with a lot of criticisms others have about her direction. I haven't read the novel in which this film is based on nor even if I did would I claim to be an expert on it, but I have seen the 1939 adaptation starring Laurence Olivier- and off of seeing that alone, I'd say that most of the changes this film makes as an adaptation were poorly handled and often reckless. I'm not even mainly talking about the controversial casting of Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff, alongside that there are several additions and even more so subtractions to the story that I didn't like. Not all are bad, I liked the expansion of the character Nelly played very well by Hong Chau, but for the most part most changes fell flat. The film plays out in a convoluted way as well, pacing-wise. I will say, I can't deny that the film is very enjoyable. The performances from the whole cast are good, the visuals are beautiful, the production is impressive, and while more or less tamer than it's put out to be- it's fun to see a new release film be unabashedly sexy. Warner Bros. made a smart call releasing this film on Valentines Day weekend. 

THREE BEST ELEMENTS

• The cinematography. I'm a big fan of Linus Sandgren, I think that he's one of the finest cinematographers currently working- and his work in this film is pretty stunning especially when he utilizes classic cinema-esque imagery. 

• The production design & costumes. Beautifully colorful period art direction and costumes that are full of detail & creativity. 

• The child performances. Playing Cathy and Healthcliff for the first thirty or so minutes of the film, Charlotte Mellington and Owen Cooper (Breakout star of the Emmy winning "Adolescence") give standout performances. 

WORST ELEMENT 

• The screenplay. Featuring too many poorly conceived/controversial changes to the source material and lack of any subtlety at all, as an adaptation I wasn't a big fan of what Fennell was going for. 

RATING

6/10

Watch it, buddy if it looks like something you'd like!