WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1970)

 

This film version of Emily Bronte's novel is covered in John Hamilton's book on the English productions of American International Pictures, WITCHES, BITCHES AND BANSHEES. The book inspired me to seek out the film and watch it. 

I have to say that I've never read Emily Bronte's novel, and I've never even been all that impressed by the famed 1939 film adaptation that was produced by Samuel Goldwyn and directed by William Wyler. WUTHERING HEIGHTS is the type of story I'm not all that interested in. The 1939 version is well done, but it also has too much of a "Hollywood English" type of feel to it. 

At first glance WUTHERING HEIGHTS seems a bizarre choice for a AIP project. The studio was much more familiar with Poe than the Bronte sisters, and the exploitative instincts of Samuel Arkoff & James Nicholson have little in common with classic English literature. AIP was hoping to appeal to the youth market by promoting WUTHERING HEIGHTS as a romance between two young rebels, and they were also hoping to expand into a more mainstream field. 

The choice of director for AIP's WUTHERING HEIGHTS, Robert Fuest, also now seems bizarre. Fuest is best known for the two DR. PHIBES films and for THE DEVIL'S RAIN. These movies had a decidedly off-kilter visual and storytelling style that matched Fuest's personality--he's now considered something like a 1970s Tim Burton. One must remember that Fuest made WUTHERING HEIGHTS before the Phibes films, and he handled a dark love story set in late 18th Century England very well. 

This version of WUTHERING HEIGHTS was filmed in Yorkshire, and Fuest and cinematographer John Coquillon take great advantage of the dreary, cloudy, windswept locations. The look of this production perfectly matches the grim characters--it feels more real, and more natural, than the 1939 version. 

AIP didn't cast big stars in the lead roles of Cathy and Heathcliffe (the company couldn't have afforded to cast big names anyway). Young (and at the time little-known) actors Anna Calder-Marshall and Timothy Dalton were cast. The two are certainly not Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier, but for this particular version perhaps that's a good thing. What hurts their performances as the complicated couple is that, at least from my perspective, they come off more as brother and sister than as passionate lovers. The script for this version even suggests that Cathy's father sired both of them (and I'm sure that influenced my outlook on the relationship between the characters). 

For me Anna Calder-Marshall's Cathy was just too low-key, and lacking in personality. You can understand why she's obsessed with Heathcliff, but you don't necessarily believe this Heathcliff would be obsessed with her. Dalton's Heathcliff is more sullen and jealous than lovelorn (he also spends almost the entire first half of the movie covered in dirt). Dalton makes a dashing figure, but he's also more of a rebellious bad boy. (Ironically Dalton would go on to portray a couple more legendary literary figures made famous by other actors: James Bond and Rhett Butler.) 

Hilary Dwyer, who played Cathy's upper-class sister-in-law Isabella, was already a AIP veteran, having already appeared in WITCHFINDER GENERAL, THE OBLONG BOX, and CRY OF THE BANSHEE. Dwyer, who looked absolutely exquisite in period costume, has far more screen presence than Calder-Marshall, and her scenes with Dalton's Heathcliff have far more passion. (Heathcliff marries Isabella mainly to spite Cathy.) I think Dwyer would have made a better Cathy than Calder-Marshall. 

WUTHERING HEIGHTS does have a very notable supporting cast, with Julian Glover, Hugh Griffith, Ian Ogilvy, Harry Andrews, and Peter Sallis. For my money, the most notable performance is given by Judy Cornwell as the loyal maid Nellie. Unfortunately most of the supporting players get very little screen time, and very little chance to make much out of their characters. 

One main reason for this is that, according to John Hamilton, Robert Fuest's original cut of the film ran over two hours, and AIP edited it down to 104 minutes. There are times in this film when the plot seems rushed, and various characters pop in and out briefly. Fuest's original cut might have given more depth to the story, and more understanding to the motivations of the people involved in it. 

AIP also came up with an ending that suggested Heathcliff and Cathy were reunited in the afterlife. I don't think this has much of an impact, simply because this Heathcliff and Cathy are not very appealing. AIP had high hopes for their WUTHERING HEIGHTS, and they were even considering a run of classic literary adaptations also starring Timothy Dalton. The movie's critical and box office reception was underwhelming, and AIP decided to stay away from any other similar tales. (Reading some of the critical responses to the film in John Hamilton's book, it seems as if the reviewers were more angry at the fact that it was made by AIP than how it actually came off.) 

Personally, I thought the 1970 WUTHERING HEIGHTS was better than I expected--once again it's not the type of story I would seek out on my own. The look and the settings of it impressed me the most, along with Michel Legrand's music score. I also gained a greater appreciation for the directorial talents of Robert Fuest. This WUTHERING HEIGHTS and THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES are as different as two movies could be--yet Fuest helmed both of them quite effectively.