I just caught the end of Wuthering Heights on TCM, and as usual, sobbed like a little girl who has scraped her knee. I read Wuthering Heights as a young girl, and it was one of the first books that I couldn't read straight through. It is just so brutal. The movie of course, is a completely different entity, and while Merle Oberon is okay, and David Niven is his charming self, the real jewel in the 1939 film is Olivier. First of all, I can't think of a single current "movie star" that can touch him in looks or raw (very trained, actually) talent. He moves through the film with such harsh beauty and fiery vengeance. He is just the epitome of a character actor. I could watch him light up the screen for hours, and he maintained that not just in his beautiful youth, but all throughout his career. Even as an old man, he posessed a presence that you could not tear your eyes from. Pair that with Charlotte Bronte's gut-wrenching lines ("How can I live without my life? How can I die without my soul?" Come on, does melodrama get any better than that? Uh, no.) and you have a film that rips you into pieces every single time. Love it. LOVE IT!!
I will definitely have to see this. Although I'm already in love with the current BBC adaptation staring Tom Hardy (who is very good looking and I like him in about EVERYTHING I've seen him in)...
ReplyDeletePS - Did you catch your girl Gaga at the Grammys?