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## LEFT COLUMN 1245N. JANE AUSTEN'S WORKS: JANE AUSTEN'S 'EMMA' (1996) JANE AUSTEN'S 'EMMA' The 1816 comic mas- terpiece is brought to life by producer Sue Birtwistle and screenwriter Andrew Davies, the team behind last year's acclaimed miniseries Pride and Prejudice. Though this 1996 BBC adaptation is vis- ually arresting and faithful to the novel, it lacks the charm of last year's theatrical release starring Gwyneth Paltrow. In this version, Kate Beckinsale displays little of Emma's will- ful likability; she plays her as a sometimes mean- spirited matchmaker determined to raise a friend's social station by finding her a husband. Her mis- guided efforts exasperate Mr. Knightley (Mark Strong), her lifelong friend and most severe critic, and trigger a series of humorous misunderstandings. Churchill: Raymond Coulthard. (2:30) Beckinsale, Coulthard PERSUASION. (1995) Persuasion ON: PBS, October 19 STARRING: Amanda Root (left) AS: A 27-year-old "spin- ster" who's a plain Jane with a brain IN LOVE WITH: The naval officer (Ciaran Hinds) she dumped eight years ago PROBLEMS: Bad advice, clueless family TALENT: Plays piano TURN-ONS: Men in uniform CREATED BY: Jane Austen (below) WHO WAS: Author of many sophisticated so- cial comedies, suddenly a hot property in the late 1990s (if 19th-century fe- male novelists were Spice Girls, Austen would be Posh Spice) ROMANCE: ♥♥♥♥ MORAL: Don't assume you've missed the boat—your ship may come in. E M M A . (1996) Gwyneth Paltrow lends charm and so- phistication to this 1996 version of Jane Austen's 1816 novel. Paltrow stars as Emma Woodhouse, an accomplished 20-year-old with a penchant for run- ning other people's lives. After her faithful gov- erness marries (a match for which Emma takes credit), she turns her attentions to the gawky Harriet Smith (Toni Collette), encouraging a hopeless union between Harriet and an oppor- tunistic minister. It's a turn of events that family friend Mr. Knightley, Emma's only critic, watch- es with disgust. "[It's] better to be without sense than to misapply it as you do," he tells her. The film is rated PG for strong language. (2:00) Paltrow, Collette GWYNETH PALTROW "Two Thumbs Up!" ★★★★! EMMA Baker & Michael Kedgrave. (Musical) GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS. 10/19/2003 w/Martin Clunes. ## RIGHT COLUMN 1245O. THE BRONTË'S WORKS: RALPH FIENNES JULIETTE BINOCHE Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights w/Janet McTeer, Sophi Ward & Simon Shepherd. (1992) REVIEW OF: WUTHERING HEIGHTS. JANE EYRE. By: Charlotte Brontë. (1996) w/William Hurt, Joan Plowright, Anna Paquin, and Charlotte Gainsbourg. (Semi-autobiographical) JANE EYRE. 10/19/97 CREATED BY: Charlotte Brontë (above) A.K.A.: Currer Bell (pen name) WHO WAS: The over- achieving Brontë sister (if the Brontës were the Brady Bunch, Charlotte would be Marcia) A handsome 1997 cable adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's oft-filmed Gothic classic. Samantha Morton, who appeared in A&E's February production of "Emma," plays Jane, who, as the film opens, is a Yorkshire orphan sent to a substandard boarding school. Eight years lat- er, Jane finds contentment as a governess to an orphaned French girl, whose guardian is the aloof Mr. Rochester (Ciaran Hinds). Despite his caustic manner, lonely Jane finds him attractive, and friendship between them blossoms. But her happiness is soon threat- ened—by a dark, bizarre secret from Rochester's past. Mrs. Fairfax: Germa Jones. Blanche Ingram: Abigail Cruttenden. (2:30) Samantha Morton 1245P. MORE BRONTË'S WORKS: THE TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL 10/26/97 By: Anne Brontë The Tenant of Wildfell Hall ON: PBS, October 26 STARRING: Tara Fitzgerald (below, with Jackson Leach) AS: A runaway wife IN LOVE WITH: A neighboring farmer (Toby Stephens) who saves her son PROBLEM: Dissolute hubby (Rupert Graves) teaches their tot to drink, cuss, and kill birds TALENT: Paints landscapes professionally TURN-ONS: Bad boys CREATED BY: Anne Brontë (above) A.K.A.: Acton Bell (pen name) WHO WAS: The obscure Brontë sister (if the Brontës were the Marx Brothers, Anne would be Zeppo) ROMANCE: ♥♥♥ MORAL: Bad boys make worse husbands.