Wuthering Heights review: Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi fall painfully in love

Wuthering Heights opens with a condemned man being aroused as he suffocates to death at the gallows, while a nun watches on, licking her lips. Emerald Fennell loves to shock her audiences with provocative imagery across her films. Although, unlike her last feature, Saltburn, there are fewer bodily fluids here and more gooey egg yokes and snail slime. From the outset, it's clear exactly what her interpretation of Emily Brontë's classic novel is going to be about, and it imbues every character and much of the imagery throughout: BDSM via the "pleasurable" pain of the leads' unfulfilled romance.

It's a bold and original take on a complex book that is regularly butchered and rarely adapted faithfully for the screen. But Fennell never set out to do the latter. After all, her film is literally called "Wuthering Heights" in quotation marks. The Oscar-winner's version omits major characters entirely, and once again, the novel's second generation has been entirely cut. No doubt Brontë purists will be up in arms, but for this writer-director, the story is a mere vehicle for an exploration of the obsessive pain of doomed love and enjoying it.

For those unfamiliar with the source material, Wuthering Heights is a Gothic 18th century tragedy set on the Yorkshire moors. The story follows an orphan boy named Heathcliff, who is raised by the Earnshaw family and falls in love with their daughter, Cathy. For her anti-romantic leads, Fennell cast two previous collaborators: Margot Robbie, who produced her first two films and this one, and Jacob Elordi, who starred in Saltburn.

Robbie may be seven years older than Elordi and too old for her character, but is nonetheless very convincing as the chaotically immature and frivolous maiden. Meanwhile, the towering Heathcliffe star (who is rumoured to be in talks for the next James Bond) somewhat repeats the sullen, brooding outsider of the monster he's Oscar-nominated for in Frankenstein, but is never quite as menacing or wild as the novel's character. Nevertheless, he also gives a superb performance where you don't just believe his unrequited love, you feel it. Together, they naturally accentuate a sensual chemistry of deeply convincing, all-consuming passion, confirming Fennell didn't make a casting error despite initial concerns from fans.

As is the case across her films, there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments amid the misery, with some wonderfully eccentric characters, including Martin Clunes as Cathy's debt-ridden father. Additionally, the stylised sets and gorgeous, dreamy cinematography are a sight to behold. At 136 minutes, it does start to wane a bit in the third act, despite cutting half the story, and one big narrative change feels misjudged given the thematic focus. Nevertheless, it's another impressive feat from Fennell, but maybe not the best date night movie for Valentine's Day!

"Wuthering Heights" hits cinemas on February 13, 2026.