What I liked most about this film was the dialog, perhaps a bit too sugary much of the time, but entertaining as it reaches one's ear. It has almost a Shakespearean touch, and as such, I can't imagine that within any set group of characters, that everyone would be as accomplished in their speech as the person they were talking to. I have the same reaction to any of the plays turned into movies like "Much Ado About Nothing" or "Hamlet", because it weren't for the talent of the writer, there would be a wider variance in speech pattern. That's not meant to be a put down, but an observation I thought worth mentioning.
Anyway, this picture turned out to be somewhat better than I was expecting, not being part of a target audience that the film makers would have been trying to reach. In any other movie, Emma (Gwyneth Paltrow) would have struck me as the town busybody, and in fact she was here too, but the flow of the story masked a lot of her negative qualities, like gossiping incessantly and attempting to be the local matchmaker. I felt a bit sorry for her friend Harriet (Toni Collette), not because she couldn't find an adequate suitor, but because she felt compelled to follow Emma's advice in matters of romance rather than her own true feelings. Fortunately that was resolved by the time the picture was over, and most satisfactorily on her own behalf.
LIke many other reviewers on this board, I had a unique fascination for the character of the young Miss Bates (Sophie Thompson), who's attitude often fell just short of annoying, but with a goodhearted quality if you know what I mean. I did feel out of sorts when Emma insulted her most unkindly, and felt even better when Emma got her comeuppance from the opinionated Mr. Knightley (Jeremy Northam). It was just the right touch at just the right moment to put Miss Woodhouse in her place.
Anyway, this picture turned out to be somewhat better than I was expecting, not being part of a target audience that the film makers would have been trying to reach. In any other movie, Emma (Gwyneth Paltrow) would have struck me as the town busybody, and in fact she was here too, but the flow of the story masked a lot of her negative qualities, like gossiping incessantly and attempting to be the local matchmaker. I felt a bit sorry for her friend Harriet (Toni Collette), not because she couldn't find an adequate suitor, but because she felt compelled to follow Emma's advice in matters of romance rather than her own true feelings. Fortunately that was resolved by the time the picture was over, and most satisfactorily on her own behalf.
LIke many other reviewers on this board, I had a unique fascination for the character of the young Miss Bates (Sophie Thompson), who's attitude often fell just short of annoying, but with a goodhearted quality if you know what I mean. I did feel out of sorts when Emma insulted her most unkindly, and felt even better when Emma got her comeuppance from the opinionated Mr. Knightley (Jeremy Northam). It was just the right touch at just the right moment to put Miss Woodhouse in her place.