EMMA (1996) [DVD]


This is the last Emma version I’ll be reviewing for a long, long time. Kate Beckinsale plays a childish Emma in this Andrew Davies costume drama. Mark Strong (who usually plays Bad Guys) manages to animate the character of George Knightly. Olivia Williams captures the reticence of Jane Fairfax perfectly (and she sings very well, too!). While the four-hour Emma starring Romola Garai and Jonny Lee Miller is the Gold Standard for me (you can read my review here), this adaptation presents Jane Austen’s Emma in an entertaining compact version. Kate Beckinsale portrays a rich socialite and beautiful young woman who tries her hand at matchmaking. Of course, Emma’s efforts produce unforeseen consequences. Kate Beckinsale moved on to more exciting roles as a vampire in the Underworld series. Are you a fan of Kate Beckinsale…or Mark Strong? GRADE: B+

16 thoughts on “EMMA (1996) [DVD]

  1. Jeff Meyerson

    I’ve liked Strong in some things, like the first season of DEEP STATE (on Epix here). The second season really suffered from his absence. Kate Beckinsale, not so much.

    Reply
  2. maggie mason

    I’ve enjoyed what I remember Mark Strong being in. IIRC, wasn’t he in either Sherlock, the tv series or the Robt. Downey Jr. movies?? I’ve liked some of what Kate B. has been in. I liked the underworld series, but the last one was my least favorite. I’ll watch anything with Bill Nighy, ever since Lucky Break (I hope that’s the real title). It was a movie about a prisoner who uses a naïve social director to put on a play with the convicts as actors, etc. and uses it to make a break. Nighy had a small role, and one of the best lines I remember (something like ” so long term incarceration is not your goal”)

    Reply
    1. Jeff Meyerson

      Saw that, Maggie, when it came out in 2001. James Nesbitt, Olivia Williams, Timothy Spall, Bill Nighy, Lennie James. The show they put on to cover their escape was NELSON: The Musical, about Lord Horatio Nelson. It was very entertaining.

      Reply
      1. Jeff Meyerson

        Also, we saw Nighy in his first starring role in the West End, in David Hare’s SKYLIGHT, which he reprised on Broadway nearly 20 years later.

  3. Rick Robinson

    and so naming all the actors in your review turns the comments into who likes which actor, not responses to the film in question…

    Yesterday you said that Emma was the prettiest, but I think this one os prettier. As for Emma, I haven’t seen any of them, and probably won’t, in spite of sometimes liking historical costume dramas.

    Reply
    1. george Post author

      Rick, you’re missing out on some great historical costume dramas by ignoring these EMMAs. I’m not sure how many commentators have seen this version, but I know many are familiar with Kate Beckinsale and Mark Strong.

      Reply
    1. george Post author

      Rick, same here. Although SANDITON is an unfinished Jane Austen novel, I expect top-notch BBC treatment for the TV version.

      Reply

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