Tragedy strikes when Heathcliff falls in love with Catherine Earnshaw, a woman from a wealthy family in 18th-century England.
Director: Emerald Fennell
Cast: Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, Hong Chau, Shazad Latif, Alison Oliver, Martin Clunes, Ewan Mitchell
Release Date: February 13, 2026
Genre: Drama, Romance
Rated R for sexual content, some violent content and language.
Runtime: 2h 16m
Review:
Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights offers up an abbreviated, Cliff’s Notes version of the novel which echoes Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet with its garish visuals powered by strong turns from its leads. Fennell’s film plays like a fever dream for the majority of its runtime which works in its favor, particularly early on, before it ultimately runs out of steam. The stark visuals and simplified story telling makes it easy for anyone to jump into the story of obsession and emotional warfare at the center of the novel. Any sort of subtly or nuance is thrown by the wayside in favor of a far hornier take on the story that features enough heaving bosoms, chiseled sweaty bodies and flushed cheeks to make romance novels seem quaint. It borders on Skinamax territory at points before refocusing on the core “love” story at heart. Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi both use their natural screen magnetism to make you forget the fact that both characters are fairly terrible human beings. Robbie and Elordi share the sort of onscreen chemistry that makes it easy to overlook or at least forget some of the character’s moral failings. Robbie fluctuates between entitled to lovelorn fairly effortlessly throughout matched by Elordi’s imposing frame and simmering intensity helped by a dulling of Heathcliff’s cruelty. The focus is centered more on their unrequited love which is presented in a heavily romanticized, stylized form that visually enthralling but shallow at the same time. Fennell moves her film at such a rapid pace that she never lets any moment truly settle in before rushing to the next scene. As a result, despite their best efforts of Robbie and Elordi, Catherine and Heathcliff’s deep connection never match the level of the visuals splashed onscreen. Wuthering Heights finds Emerald Fennell on a path where her focus on visual seem to come at the cost of the story and character development both of which made her debut, Promising Young Woman, so potent.
B-
