“I’m A Film Writer & Here’s My Honest Review Of Wuthering Heights”

It’s one of the most talked-about films of the year, and now that Wuthering Heights has finally graced our screens, does it live up to the considerable hype? Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi star in Emerald Fennell’s updated and raunchier version of the classic novel by Emily Brontë, one that will set pulses racing during the runtime, and get social media debating afterwards. As the film basks in a big opening weekend at the box office, here’s one writer’s take on things…

What’s Wuthering Heights all about?

Any adaptation of Wuthering Heights will draw attention, given the novel’s stature amongst readers, literary scholars and everyone in between. The names of Cathy and Heathcliff are known even to people who’ve not even read it (not least due to the Kate Bush song, which we had to mention somewhere), and it’s one of many artistic works that capture the mystique of the Yorkshire Moors. Emerald Fennell takes that original story and puts her own spin on it, as childhood friends Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff fall for each other. It’s safe to say that it won’t be to everyone’s tastes, thanks to its bold choices of making things considerably steamier.

One of the most immediately apparent aspects of this 2026 version is that it looks very pretty, as shown first in Promising Young Woman and then in Saltburn. Fennell knows how to make films that look good and evoke feelings from the visuals. It does capture the allure of the moors, and the cinematography and colour are hard to fault. Margot Robbie as Cathy is a role that will likely inspire endless film Instagram accounts with her various dresses and hairstyles, though perhaps some early critics are a bit harsh to dub her a kind of Gothic Barbie. She’s still watchable and magnetic as ever, and while she might not be the best Cathy ever, it’s clear she’s not really meant to fit that established mould.

How does Jacob Elordi fare?

But it’s Elordi as Heathcliff who’s received the most attention since his casting was announced, and indeed, he’s the more interesting of the two leads. You’ve seen him already in the trailers: either with wild hair or his shirt off, or groomed, dressed to the nines and an expression of contemplative longing. The Yorkshire accent might not all be there as he delivers his dialogue, but the essence of Heathcliff is, and like the rest of the story, the character has been spun into its own thing. Other notable members of the cast include Alison Oliver (Conversations with Friends), who plays Isabella Linton, who becomes a rival to Cathy’s love of Heathcliff, and Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) who you may not immediately recognise from off the ‘telly, but is great as Cathy’s unpleasant father.

How sexy does it get?

This version of Wuthering Heights goes… not for the jugular, but, err, something… anyone who’s seen Saltburn can attest to the fact that Fennel is a director who isn’t afraid to be outlandish when it comes to sex. The film was pretty much billed as Wuthering Heights but with more nudity and naughty bits, and yes, it delivers on that. Cathy and Heathcliff enter into a BDSM relationship (though not before they both watch another BDSM couple), and there’s plenty of “the steamy stuff.” Interestingly, Wuthering Heights is released not long after another film depicting BDSM, Pillion, starring Alexander Skarsgård, and while the two films are going for very different things, I couldn’t help but think that Pillion handled the theme in a better and more meaningful way. Obviously, it’s part of the stylised ride, but occasionally it feels like all the moaning and the panting is in there for notoriety’s sake.

So, is it worth it?

The new film is, as said previously, very much an extravagant, eye-popping affair. We’ve not even mentioned the fact yet that Charli XCX provides much of the soundtrack, which is atmospheric and modern, a far cry from Von Dutch or Apple. The film doesn’t capture the same emotional layers and social commentary of the novel, and can feel a bit “surface.” However, it’s also worth cutting through all of the debates, controversy and complaints of deviations from Brontë’s work and giving it a watch to form your own opinion. The lavish visuals, the romantic plot (which can be genuinely moving toward the end), the sex sex sex- for an escapist romp in the doldrums of February, it’s not a bad shout.