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Community comment are the opinions of contributing users. These comment do not represent the opinions of Skokie Public Library.
Mar 30, 2017dlh1 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I read the book about a month ago and then watched the 1939 movie. I thought that it really didn't do the book justice, so then I watched this 2009 Masterpiece Classic version. This followed the book more closely, but without the narrator. I'm happy that I re-read the book, because this theatrical version would have been hard to follow otherwise. I found that the younger versions of Heathcliff and Cathy looked nothing like their adult counterparts. The older Heathcliff, other than having dark hair, looked nothing like a gypsy (where was the dark skin?). The older Cathy had very dark hair, which would be unlikely with the fair-haired girl that played the younger version. Also, there was very little "ageing" done to the actors that played Heathcliff and Nelly. A little gray hair and some wrinkles would have helped the viewer to differentiate between these characters as older adults compared to their younger selves. Joseph's language was much easier to understand than in the book. I personally didn't find Tom Hardy very believable as Heathcliff, so couldn't see why Catherine would love him. All in all, this adaptation of the book was actually more enjoyable than the book itself. It was less gloomy and tormented. I found the book to be highly over-rated, and less of a love story than a demented view of a couple of star-crossed lunatics.