Featured Post

Before Matt Damon was The Talented Mr. Ripley, there was Alain Delon #book2movies

Emma based on the book by Jane Austen: There's a new girl in town


In what must certainly be a crazy confluence of something or other, Anya Taylor-Joy (Peaky Blinders, The Witch), the actress playing Emma in the latest adaptation of the Jane Austen classic—filming now— was born in 1996, the same year that two Emma films were released! 

About the book

‘Emma is a novel about youthful hubris and the perils of misconstrued romance. The novel was first published in December 1815. As in her other novels, Austen explores the concerns and difficulties of genteel women living in Georgian-Regency England; she also creates a lively comedy of manners among her characters. Before she began the novel, Austen wrote, "I am going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like." In the very first sentence, she introduces the title character as "Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich." Emma, however, is also rather spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied; she greatly overestimates her own matchmaking abilities; she is blind to the dangers of meddling in other people's lives, and her imagination and perceptions often lead her astray.’

Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma

Gwyneth Paltrow was the neighborhood matchmaker Emma in the splashy Hollywood film along with Ewan McGregor as Frank Churchill and Toni Collette as Harriet Smith, while the Kate Beckinsale iteration, starring Samantha Morton as Harriet was made for the telly by the BBC.

Kate Beckinsale as Emma


 This newest Emma, filming now, also stars Bill Nighy as Emma's dad, Mr. Wodehouse. Callum Turner is Frank Churchill (you may remember him as the incestuous Anatole Kuragin in War and Peace)

Anya Taylor-Joy (seen here in The Witch) is currently shooting Emma


 What it all tells me is that I need to re-read Emma which surely I read in my collegiate days, right? Or should I just watch the movies? If so, which one? Gwyneth's version is the more popular and available on all the streaming services including Netflix, while Kate's Emma is currently only on Prime and iTunes.  

 Have you seen either/both Emma's? Your favorite?

 Check out the trailers if you need a refresher.