The highly anticipated new adaptation of Emily Brontë's classic novel Wuthering Heights, directed by Emerald Fennell and starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, has divided critics in a way that few films have. What this really means is that Fennell's bold, visually stunning, and undoubtedly polarizing take on the Gothic tale of doomed love has sparked intense debate - with some hailing it as a masterful reinvention, and others deriding it as a hollow misfire.
A Striking Departure from the Source Material
From the moment the film was announced, with its striking casting choices and controversial creative decisions, Fennell's Wuthering Heights was bound to be divisive. The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw summed it up as an "emotionally hollow, bodice-ripping misfire," while the Telegraph's Robbie Collin lauded it as "resplendently lurid, oozy and wild." The bigger picture here is that Fennell has taken a beloved classic and put her own distinct stamp on it, for better or worse.
A Polarizing Take on a Gothic Masterpiece
What's clear is that Fennell's Wuthering Heights is no mere adaptation - it's a bold, stylized reinterpretation that leans heavily into the story's more salacious, BDSM-tinged elements. As The Independent's review put it, the film "is so affronted by the notion that Heathcliff might be anything other than a dreamboat that it builds a world around him that's more suited to a fairytale than a Gothic masterwork." In other words, this is Fennell's vision, not necessarily a faithful adaptation of the novel.
A Clash of Old and New
Ultimately, the divisive reception to Fennell's Wuthering Heights speaks to a larger cultural clash. On one side, you have purists who want a reverent, traditional take on the Brontë classic. On the other, you have those who welcome a bold, contemporary reinterpretation that shakes up the source material. As FilmoGaz reported, the film has been the subject of "furious online discourse" since it was first announced. Whether you love it or hate it, Fennell's Wuthering Heights is sure to leave a lasting impression.