Reviews, mysteries, muses and votes

There are several reviews today of Brontë-related things.

Reviews and More writes about the film version of Wuthering Heights (1992) starring Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes.

I have to say that I felt this movie to be a rather uninspired retelling of Wuthering Heights. I hardly ever think that movies are too short, but that was certainly the case for this film. It was as though the director cut out important scenes just to make sure that the movie came in at a decent running time or something. The whole thing felt rushed and disjointed.
Furthermore, I did not like the casting choices for the lead roles. Ralph Fiennes, while a talented actor, is not Heathcliff material. Heathcliff is supposed to be a complete brute who is barely in control of his passions. Fiennes played it way too calm, and that particular interpretation of the role left me scratching my head in wonder. Binoche wasn’t any better as Catherine, and the two of them just didn’t have any chemistry whatsoever on the screen.
The best thing that I can say about Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights is that it was watchable. For that, I give it 5.5 stars out of 19.

No, it does not fare very well in this review.

On a somewhat related note, Buhay/Pelicula reviews the recent Filipino retelling of Wuthering Heights: The Promise.

[T]here are a few things that are problematic right from the start. I never really felt the intensity between the two leads, except when they were exchanging bodily fluids, there was never an instance that stood up in my opinion that i can consider "life altering" between the two. The light house scenes where a bit too cheesy, and Locsin was irritating to say the least. She hasn't have the slightest clue that Guiterrez is having a hard time carrying her in his back. It had a bit of A Very Long Engagement mixed into the bag, in that film, I understand the circumstances, Audrey Totou being a crippled needs to be carried by Gaspard Ulliel, but in this film, Locsin is just being a sore, no wonder, Guiterrez left her in the film.

Aarti reviews The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (the novel, not the BBC production) and gives it 5/10

It was very difficult for me to find anyone in this novel to like. Which, I suppose, isn't that big of a deal as it appears fairly obvious that Bronte did not write this novel to create a story about interesting characters, but that she wrote it to hone the point (AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN) that alcoholism is bad and the way to happiness lies in finding God. None of the characters evolve during the story; they're the same at the end as they were at the beginning. And they are all so completely black and white that it isn't hard to guess their reactions to anything that happens.
So, admittedly, I didn't particularly like this book. I give it five stars because I think it is a very brave book, and an important book, and one that shook a great many foundations of Victorian England. However ... I wish that the characters were fleshed out a bit more, or at least a little bit more likable. I also wish that Victorians weren't so obsesed with the diary format- I didn't enjoy being in Lydia Gwilt's head in Armadale, and I didn't like the extended stay in Helen Graham's head here in Tenant, either.

That Helen, for instance, doesn't evolve as a character is up for debate, though.

That's all concerning reviews. Now for some news.

Actors' Playhouse is set to stage ‘The Mystery of Irma Vep’ according to the Coral Gables Gazette. This play, as we have reported in the past, borrows from Wuthering Heights, among others.

Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre ends its season with one of the most-produced comedies in U.S. history, “The Mystery of Irma Vep.” This outrageously hilarious spoof by Charles Ludlam, the late founder of New York City’s Ridiculous Theatrical Company, will run from Friday, July 14 through Sept. 3.
“The Mystery of Irma Vep” is a campy tribute to gothic horror films, liberally stealing from well-known film classics like “Wuthering Heights,” “The Mummy’s Curse” and Alfred Hitchcock’s Academy Award-winning “Rebecca.” Two of South Florida’s favorite actors play all of the play’s eight characters, racing through a literal quick-change marathon complete with werewolves, vampires and damsels in distress. Combine all that with crazy plot twists (two characters travel from England to Egypt to inspect a mummy), and “The Mystery of Irma Vep” guarantees fun for everyone. [...]
Tickets may be purchased through the box office at (305) 444-9293, Ticketmaster at (305) 358-5885, or on line at www.actorsplayhouse.org.

Meanwhile, The Scotsman looks at muses and their history.

A muse is used regularly by many well-known male artists. However, there are few instances where female artists have turned men into muses. The few examples include Charlotte Brontë's unrequited yearning for the married Monsieur Constantin Heger, her tutor, who became the model for Mr Rochester in Jane Eyre and for Paul Emmanuel in Villette, and Emily Dickinson's passion for her unidentified "Master" to whom she addressed some of her most fevered poems. (Alice Wyllie)

And finally thanks to s-c-littleton from the Jane Eyre 2006 IMDb boards, we have found out that Woman magazine is carrying out a survey trying to find out who is the most popular romantic hero: Mr Rochester (played by Toby Stephens) or Mr Darcy (played by Colin Firth). You can vote for your particular choice through this e-mail address: Jackie_TheEditor@ipcmedia.com

Categories: Charlotte Brontë, Movies-DVD-TV, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Theatre, Wuthering Heights