Wuthering Heights review: Emerald Fennell's lustful, uneven adaptation

Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights leans into fantasy and tawdriness, turning Emily Brontë’s novel into a visually lush, sexually charged film. Margot Robbie plays Cathy opposite Jacob Elordi’s brooding Heathcliff, and their chemistry drives much of the movie’s raw, lustful energy.

The story follows the novel’s early arc: Cathy’s father brings the impoverished Heathcliff into the household, their bond grows elemental, and Cathy later marries Edgar Linton. Heathcliff leaves and returns years later, wealthy and vengeful, setting the stage for a romance that blends devotion with cruelty.

Linus Sandgren’s blue-toned cinematography and Suzie Davies’s stylized production design give the film an old-Hollywood sheen that’s punctured by modern anachronisms and Brechtian touches. Hong Chau’s Nelly is given a more wrenching centrality, Shazad Latif brings practicality to Edgar, and Alison Oliver stands out for her theatrical, often comic turn.

wuthering heights, emerald fennell, margot robbie, jacob elordi, heathcliff, cathy, edgar linton, linus sandgren, suzie davies, hong chau