‘Wuthering Heights’ is an interesting book with which to continue the Curzon Book Club, driving readers back to the one of the great gothic novels. The focus is on the recently released Andrea Arnold adaptation, which has received a mixed array of criticism and praise; the consistent sentiment is that this is a film of two parts, the first full of impact and well-exploited, the latter disappointing.
Emily Brontë’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ tells the tale of the passionate yet doomed relationship between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, destructive most to those around them and more importantly themselves. Like Arnold’s film, the book is split into two parts; that which retains the attention of the reader, the story that most are acquainted with, is that described above. However, the second part goes on to uncover the story of the next generation, the life of their children. This left most in the book group disinterested, giving up on the title, trailing onto the next, with the consensus that the story weakens with length.
Even the Curzon Cinema marketing staff, who co-ordinate and participate in the meetings, on this occasion did little more than that, ensuring that we had a space but there was a distinct apathy for this text. There were topics that the group, granted, were advised to discuss but there was a general lack of enthusiasm for this text, the same enthusiasm that was present throughout the last book discussions.
To date there have been three film adaptations of Brontë’s tome, only one of which includes the second part. This seems somewhat obtuse; if the reader retains little interest in the written story then it’s a struggle to comprehend Peter Kosminsky’s decision to adapt any of it for the big screen. Greater exposure, perhaps.
In her version Arnold has tried to juxtapose the old with the new, adding a subtext of racial tensions in a film set in the 19th century. She has also opted for a 4:3 aspect ratio, often rejected for the widescreen in this modern age.
The camera style is raw, particularly whilst depicting the rugged Yorkshire landscapes, Heathcliff and Cathy’s relationship blossoming. The close-ups of her wild hair, being pinned down and muddied by a ravenous Heathcliff, are certain to evoke sexual connotations.
Symbolism is rife, the most striking and vivid that of a black beetle struggling about its way about this cruel landscape, metaphorically depicting Heathcliff’s quandary. The sound design is mainly diegetic, adding to the realist, raw style; it’s only at the end of the film that we hear music needle-dropped in a stylised fashion, which advocates the point that it appears that Arnold loses focus with the latter part of the film, moving from the realist approach to one of a more stylised fashion.
The style that prevails at the beginning disperses and the acting changes, clearly consequential with the change in Heathcliff and Cathy’s ages, but also loses the quality that Solomon Glave and Shannon Beer ooze onscreen. The work of Kaya Scodelario and James Howson as the older Cathy and Heathcliff is not overtly in tune with the characters that Brontë describes in her novel, lacking the rugged traits these characters are distinctly known for.
Most in the book club have declined to finish Wuthering Heights in the same way that it seems feasible that some cinema-goers may opting out half-way through. As viewers perhaps we should not be as harsh on Arnold’s rendition of Brontë’s prose. Yet an injection of passion was missing from this book club meeting; a little ironic when you consider that passion is so central to this classic text.
For more info on the Curzon Book Club visit curzoncinemas.com
Wuthering Heights – Curzon Book Club (text) by Keira Brown is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
