Wuthering Heights might have a lot going for it, it's lavishly produced and gorgeously shot, but it's lacking in one key area: depth. Calling the writing here surface level almost feels too generous because the film almost feels like the cliff notes of a story rather than any kind of a narrative. For all the talent on display there's just nothing really here to latch on to and as someone who counts myself as an Emerald Fennell defender it's frustrating to see her give in to all of her worst tendencies as a director. Because apart from its more explicit images and scenes it's not really clear what this film is trying to do to set itself apart as an adaption. There's a real lack of rhythm in the editing in that the film just stumbles from one scene to the next in a very slapdash way. It's very poor at showing the passage of time which takes away from the toll the events are supposedly taking on the characters and I just wish the film let its scenes breathe more. I don't really know that the script ever got to the heart of the relationship either, other than the barest of sensual chemistry. The means in which they get separated is massively contrived I never really felt like Fennell go me to root for the success of this relationship. The characters for the most part are horrifically unlikeable and in no interesting way. I enjoy characters with questionable morals but the script never pushes thrm into any interesting territory. The film starts with the conceit of 2 characters who feel they can't be together and it never truly evolves beyond that just making it very uninteresting as a story. Margot Robbie gives a performance that to me is the prime example of the difference between bad and miscast. Because I can't call her acting bad here since she hits the right notes and conveys the right range of emotions but it never escaped the feeling that she just wasn't the right fit for this character. The character is someone who is childish and immature but being played by a fully grown woman makes her less redeemable in my eyes and in some ways underdeveloped. Jacob Elordi fares better because he has a bit more of a youthful energy but also a good amount of mysterious aura around him that suits this character so well. I just wish the script gave they more to work with because the more the script pits them against each other in increasingly diabolical ways the less I bought into their connection. The supporting cast doesn't fare much better because they're essentially boiled down to one or two core traits that make them feel more like plot devices than anything. The visual spectacle on display though truly is something to behold and it was truly what kept me somewhat engaged throughout. Despite the writing being so weak it's clear that Fennell has a true passion for this story because of how she portrays it on a visual level. It's feels like there's a real attempt to do something visually interesting with each new scene and the use of colour can be breathtaking at points. Every single production and costume elements feels like it's produced in the highest possible level and it's always nice to see a film where its budget comes across on screen. Wuthering Heights ends up as the first real disappointment of 2026 for me and something that just felt like a true waste of potential in every way. For as visually breathtaking as it is there's just nothing to latch onto on a writing level and as such nothing that's worth getting invested in. For as iconic as this story is nothing about the power it holds translates to screen in an impactful way. Emerald Fennell is still some I'll get excited about as a director but I just hope that she starts to evolve her storytelling technique more.

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