Jane Austen’s “Emma” is given a charming, sprightly adaptation by Autumn de Wilde, a director of music videos making her feature debut with novelist-turned-screenwriter Eleanor Catton’s lively, faithful script.
The story of a young woman whom Austen — and the movie itself — introduces to us as “handsome, clever and rich,” and, at almost 21, with “very little to distress or vex her,” may not be as definitive as the all-caps rendering of the film’s title preferred by Focus Features: “EMMA.” (The period, like a petulant foot stomp, is said to be part of the title.) But it’s a more than serviceable pleasure, for fans of Austen’s 19th-century comedy of manners and romantic misunderstanding.
The description of Emma Woodhouse listed above is not the way that the character — played with effortless appeal by Anya Taylor-Joy — sees herself. Rather, Emma calls herself “improper, inconsiderate, indelicate, irrational, unfeeling, vain and arrogant.” Of course, it takes most of the whole movie before Emma, whose tendency for borderline meddlesome matchmaking is the engine that fuels this tale, comes to that realization.
The truth about our heroine lies somewhere in between. Yes, Emma may be handsome and rich, but it’s her cleverness that’s up for debate. And she may be all of those bad things too, but only momentarily. We forgive Emma, who is young, and her flaws. And, frankly, her heart is so in the right place — or close enough to it — that she deserves to be forgiven for them.
The film is bookended by two weddings. Encouraged by her success in fixing up her former governess (Gemma Whelan) with a neighbor (Rupert Graves), Emma sets about to engineer another love match for her friend Harriet (Mia Goth).
There are, at various points, four potential candidates in play: the handsome tenant farmer Robert Martin (Connor Swindells); the airhead local vicar Philip Elton (Josh O’Connor); the foppish ne’er-do-well Frank Churchill (Callum Turner); and the handsome, levelheaded, sigh-worthy George Knightley (Johnny Flynn). Each of these men becomes, in one way or another, entangled with the affections of either Harriet or Emma — and sometimes both — thanks in no small part to Harriet’s own naivete and in large part to Emma’s bad misreading of the all the romantic signs.
It’s pretty obvious to us who deserves whom, just not to anyone on-screen.
Of course, there is never really any doubt that all who are seeking love — or at least marriage — will find it here, in this slight but satisfying romantic roundelay, whose delights are not limited to empire-waist dresses, elaborate hats and scenes of the English countryside that appear to be straight out of an Adam Buck painting. “Everyone has their level,” says Mr. Elton, alluding to the subtleties of class, wealth, upbringing, intellect, taste, beauty and manners that go into picking a mate. An idiot deserves an idiot, in other words, and a heroine her hero.
Love may or may not make the world go round, but Austen’s trick — repeated here by de Wilde — is in making us believe, for a minute, that matters of the heart matter more than anything else on Earth.
MOVIE REVIEW
“Emma”
Grade: B
Starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Johnny Flynn and Bill Nighy. Directed by Autumn de Wilde.
Rated PG for brief partial nudity. Check listings for theaters. 2 hours, 2 minutes.
Bottom line: A slight but satisfying romantic roundelay
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