A Titanic moment for Emily

The Spinoff (New Zealand) reviews Emily.

Strangeness is a compelling feature of Emily’s life, and of her novel, and is the foundation upon which the film builds her character. From the first track of Abel Korzeniowski’s score, Emily Brontë is nestled firmly in an atmosphere of the witchy otherworldly. An all female choir shrieks like an unsettling howl of wind as young Emily runs over the moors, her dark hair loose (in marked contrast with the prim, blonde do of her sister and competitor, Charlotte). There is a lot of running over the moors, especially in the rain: mirroring the crazed back and forth of her characters Cathy and Heathcliff, this fictionalised Emily is equally enamoured with being a girl, standing upon a moor, asking it to pour terrible weather all over her and respond to the unpredictable energy roiling within.

Emily is played by Emma Mackey, best known as the literature-loving Maeve from Sex Education. She is perfectly suited to reveal Emily’s secrets: pale and interesting with beguiling features. And she carries through into Emily Maeve’s air of punk-alternate rebellion. Her performance of shy-girl genius is restrained, almost tentative, which works against some of the clichés that she and her character are made to weather. For example, there is a scene where Emily and her lost and rampaging brother Branwell stand together and scream into the wind the words “freedom of thought!” until Emily reaches the level of reckless abandon that Branwell is urging her to find. They then sport matching inner-arm tattoos of the same phrase (cue: spate of freedom of thought tattoos for Christmas). Mackey’s sensitivity, as well as the ominous beauty of the moors around her, mean this scene misses, just, falling into the well-worn groove that the Leo and Kate “I’m flying Jack!” scene in Titanic created. [...]

When Emily sits at her writing desk it’s only when she opens the window that she can begin. The restless world of wind in trees meets her searching mind and there she starts to scrawl. There is an insinuation that there is something … other out there that feeds the creative spirit, as much as the landscape and wider capacity of the world itself. Ultimately though, in a touching scene that suggests that Emily’s fearlessness inspired Charlotte’s later novels, the act of opening the window symbolises the act of giving yourself the freedom to write. And that is the film Emily’s final reflection in the mirror on this elusive life: that Emily Brontë wrote brilliantly wild things because she let herself be wildly brilliant. (Claire Mabey)

The Boar discusses plot twists.

 If a work is good in its own right, then having a twist shouldn’t really impact the experience of reading it – and in the case of classic literature, some of those twists are common knowledge. I recently read Treasure Island, knowing that one of the characters was a bad guy, but it transpired that that revelation is meant to be a twist. There’s every chance that you’d read Jane Eyre or Rebecca with knowledge of the narrative and the turns it’ll take in the back of your mind. Some plot twists are so influential, we know them and we see them in the books that came down the line. (Reece Goodall)

Jane Eyre is also one of '5 Books to Spice Up Your Reading This Fall' according to Her Campus.

The Brontë sisters have all written excellent books, but this one is my favorite. It’s a coming-of-age tale about Jane Eyre, a girl who must deal with significant adversity until she creates her own happy ending. There were jaw-dropping twists, and a romance that I’m still unsure how to feel about. Assuming you haven’t read this novel yet, this fall is the perfect time to start. (Sydney Gray)

While Redbrick suggests Wuthering Heights for 'Rainy Autumn Evenings'.

Emily Brontë’s acclaimed novel ‘Wuthering Heights’ is a classic tale about dysfunctional family dynamics, infatuation and undeniably unlikeable individuals. But once you adjust to the confusing family tree and unsympathetic characters, this novel makes for a fascinating read on a stormy night. 

Brontë’s characters are complex and detailed; a reader might not particularly like them, but they will be interested to find out what makes them tick. Heathcliff is an outsider, surrounded by people who mistreat him. Perpetuating this hatred, Heathcliff then becomes the monster others expect him to be. There are so many angles and perspectives to view this novel from that a literature lover cannot help but be intrigued. (nicolehayness)

Efe Eme (Spain) reviews the Spanish translation of Sisters: A Novel by Daisy Johnson. And where there's a book and there are sisters, there are the Brontës.

La británica Daisy Johnson, con apenas treinta años, se ha ido asentando como un valor seguro de la literatura de las islas británicas. Con un estilo que se asienta en los parámetros clásicos de la novela de terror, destaca por aportar una voz personal, firme en un estilo. Ha sido comparada con Shirley Jackson y Stephen King y, más allá, con los ambientes brumosos y decrépitos de las hermanas Bronte. (César Prieto) (Translation)

November 26th marked the 125th anniversary of the death of Ellen Nussey and AnneBrontë.org has a post about her.