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Anya Taylor-Joy and Johnny Flynn in a still from Emma (category I), directed by Autumn de Wilde. Bill Nighy co-stars.

Review | Emma film review: Anya Taylor-Joy brings Jane Austen novel to life in beautiful adaptation

  • This new adaptation by rock photographer turned director Autumn de Wilde has a cast of colourful characters
  • Taylor-Joy and Mia Goth both shine in their roles, and the set and costume designs are the icing on the cake

3.5/5 stars

Jane Austen’s Regency-era novel Emma – published in 1815 – gets a sprightly new adaptation from debut director Autumn de Wilde. A former rock band photographer, de Wilde brings a subtle musicality to the film, which last made it to the big screen almost 25 years ago with Gwyneth Paltrow playing Austen’s heroine.

Here, Emma Woodhouse is played by Anya Taylor-Joy, the wide-eyed young star who made such a bright impression in The Witch and M. Night Shyamalan’s Split . Emma is a role that requires a diplomatic touch, but Taylor-Joy brings just the right amount of spikiness to this naive but well-to-do young lady with a penchant for matchmaking.

Set in a world of refined early 19th century English drawing rooms, Emma offers a colourful carousel of characters as brightly shaded as Alexandra Byrne’s radiant costumes. Living with her father (Bill Nighy), who frets comically about the health of others, Emma is frequently visited by Mr Knightley (Johnny Flynn), a reserved but respected gentleman who takes a rather dim view of her rash behaviour.

Other men that come into her orbit include the clergyman Mr Elton (Josh O’Connor) and the dashing Frank Churchill (Callum Turner), but Emma claims she has no interest in marriage. She’s more concerned with interfering in the love lives of others, notably her new friend Harriet (Mia Goth, perfect), who receives a marriage proposal from a kindly but lower-class farmer.

Scripted by novelist Eleanor Catton, the story appears as delicate as the iced cakes that adorn just about every table on show here. But then this is a Jane Austen story; underneath lurks her satirical broadsides at the landed gentry, and de Wilde ensures these don’t miss. Emma in particular is painted as the embodiment of youthful hubris.

Bill Nighy in a still from Emma.

The director also makes certain we don’t forget that for all the frivolity and folly of these wealthy Englanders, they’re also human beings capable of showing emotion and pain. A picnic scene is finely staged, as Emma lashes out against the overly talkative Miss Bates (Miranda Hart); the crushed look on her victim’s face speaks volumes.

Beautifully designed by Kave Quinn, whose primary colour interiors bring to life homes that too often have been painted in drab hues, Emma is a joyful experience, right up until the end credits, accompanied by a folksy tune sung by Flynn. Led by the charming Taylor-Joy, this gentle film deserves to introduce Austen to a whole new generation.

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