Every so often, one comes across a film in which a performance gives the impression that the role might have been written for the performer, or that the performer was born for the role. Of course, the nearly 200 years between Jane Austen's penning of her novel and actress Gwyneth Paltrow playing the role of Emma in this 1996 movie, makes the former impossible. The latter, too, is impossible, except as we use it in hyperbole. For it does indeed seem to this reviewer that Gwyneth Paltrow was made to play the role of Emma Woodhouse.This 1996 film of Austen's fine novel is a delight, and Paltrow gives it a warm and endearing glow in her humorous quest as cupid. To be sure, this story is a wonderful comedy of manners by Austen about the customs and mores of pastoral England during the Georgian era. The irony here is less biting than in her works where the topics are bared in the titles for all to see, as in "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sense and Sensibility." It also is tempered somewhat here by the good aspects of the landed gentry in their care for the social welfare of those around them. But the vanity of Emma in imagining that she is a gifted matchmaker, with her outward semblance of humility in such matters, is what Austen explores to the hilt in this novel. And, Paltrow plays it to perfection – as I said, even endearingly so. This is just a wonderful story that doesn't grow old. It has been a few decades since I read Austen, but I now enjoy occasionally sitting down to a fine film of one of her stories. Austen does something that many modern writers of fiction seem to ignore, or otherwise fail to do. She explores most of her characters in detail. Not all at once, but bit by bit. And so, we get a good picture of what each one is about. The modern penchant of so many writers is to focus on the main character or two or three, and let the others fall by the wayside. They are out of sight and out of mind by the end of the story. Not so with Austen. In this story, for instance, there are no fewer than a dozen significant characters, most of whom pop in and out as the story goes along. But we never forget them, because they count for something in the story. We remember Miss Bates when she isn't in a scene for some time. Likewise, the vicar, Mr. Elton. Mr. and Mrs. Weston have wonderful pasts and appear here and there in the story. And so on. All of the cast are superb in this rendition of Austen's "Emma," and many are the best portrayals of their respective roles among all the films made of this novel. Besides Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma, the other best performances are Jeremy Northam as Mr. Knightley, Toni Collette as Harriet Smith, Sophie Thompson as Miss Bates, Alan Cumming as Mr. Elton, Polly Walker as Jane Fairfax, and Juliet Stevenson as Mrs. Elton. Aside from the overall wonderful casting and performances, this film, better than any other, captures the beauty of the pastoral setting. No other film comes close to the splendid scenario of the picnic on Box Hill. The film was shot at a dozen locations in England. This is a wonderful movie fit for the whole family, though the restless, the impatient and modernists may not be able or want to sit still for it. Now, something must be said about the various renditions of this fine Austen comedy of manners. Six versions have been made for theater or television release. The two earliest BBC productions apparently are not available anywhere (a 1948 movie of 105 minutes, and a 1960 miniseries of 180 minutes in six episodes). The four available renditions all tell Austen's story with most of the main scenarios of her novel. The miniseries give more time to certain characters as well as extended dialog in some scenarios. The 1972 miniseries, starring Dorin Godwin, is far better than the most recent production, the 2009 miniseries starring Romola Garai. The latter's characters are changed significantly, and the modernistic adaptation belies the culture of Austen's time. At the same time that this 1996 independent film of "Emma" was being made, another was being made for TV by ITV/A&E. It starred Kate Beckinsale. While her performance was very good, her character didn't have the hubris that Austen wrote into her. That 107-minute film was a little dark and more serious, with the humor somewhat muted. That is most evident in scenes with Mark Strong's Mr. Knightley. His character seemed lacking in the warmth and magnanimity that Jeremy Northam captures and displays in this film. Were she alive to rate the various renditions of her work today, Jane Austen may find shortcomings in all of them. But in ranking them for portraying her comedy of manners, she would surely find this two-hour film with Paltrow and Northam to be the best.My subject line title above is taken from the story. Knightly says the line, halfway to himself as he goes off perturbed at Emma's meddling in the romance of others. The film has many humorous scenarios and fine lines of witty dialog, courtesy of Jane Austen. See the Quotes section on this film's IMDb Web page for more fun dialog. Here's one more sample.Emma has given the cook the menu for that night's dinner, and she has been preoccupied with thoughts of Mr. Knightly. The cook, "Oh, is Mr. Knightly coming? Emma, "Why do you say that?" The Cook, "Lamb stew is his favorite."

With so many screen versions of Emma knocking about I decided to give the sumptuous light hearted romp starring Gwyneth Paltrow with her cut glass English accent.Emma Woodhouse is a confident woman from a wealthy background who spends her days playing cupid by matchmaking. She is a bright know it all who also likes to engage in gossip. Emma's problems arise when she tries to set up a match between her friend, Harriet Smith (Toni Collette) and the Reverend Elton (Alan Cumming) and fails. Emma tries other matches but they also backfire.Emma realises her limitations when she is admonished by Mr Knightly (Jeremy Northam) who is the voice of reason. Emma is well meaning but like everyone else is firmly rooted to the class system of the day.The film is rather light and airy, nice to look at, well acted but also rather boring. It felt just too superficial.

An adaptation of a Jane Austen novel of the same name, Douglas McGrath's "Emma" stars Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma, a young woman living in 19th century England. Believing herself to be a gifted matchmaker, Emma sets about meddling in the affairs of various young men and women, all of whom she hopes to steer toward love.Today, Jane Austen's a bit of a feminist icon. Unlike many novelists of her time, she wrote about women's daily lives and concerns, her conception of female morality wasn't limited to chastity or prudishness, she acknowledged female sexual desire and considered women the intellectual equals of men. On the flip-side, Austen's novels at times demonstrate a class bias and are essentially always about man-obsessed socialites, privileged white girls and members of the landed gentry – the Paris Hiltons and Kim Kardashians of 19th century England.Funnier and brisker than most Jane Austen adaptation's, "Emma" is buoyed by a fine cast. Toni Collette and Alan Cumming are very good in particular, the former playing an "unsophisticated" but lovable young woman, the latter playing a church minister who finds himself wedded to an overbearing wife. Jeremy Northan plays Mister George Knightley, a dashing suitor of the type Austen loved to conjure up. A man of "good judgement", "character" and "high moral calibre", he's essentially 19th century eye-candy. Take a hike Mr Darcy.7.9/10 – See "Gosford Park", "Bright Star", Ang Lee's "Sense and Sensibility" and "The Remains of the Day".

Seeing this recently for the first time in 15 years, I was disappointed by its mediocrity. A talented cast is largely wasted, and among their number I do not include Paltrow, who hardly qualifies as talented on this evidence. Her stilted, mannered, plodding approach to her lines suggests that her energy was sapped by the effort of achieving an appropriate accent. However, this was clearly not a problem a few years later in Shakespeare in Love, and the faults of her performance here merely exemplify those of the production as a whole -- faults for which, one imagines, McGrath is largely to blame, though his Nicholas Nickleby a few years later shows that he too was capable of better. The movie is to be cherished for Juliet Stevenson's marvellous (though sadly truncated) turn as Mrs. Elton, but on the whole the film falls far short of the lively, sensitive, and above all natural, TV version of 2009, in which Christina Cole's Mrs Elton is only one of several outstanding performances.