Product Details

• Actors: Doran Godwin, John Carson, Donald Eccles, Constance Chapman, Ellen Dryden
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: Fox Home Entertainme
• VHS Release Date: August 10, 1999
• Run Time: 257 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304087969
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #310,220 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The key to any Jane Austen adaptation is finding the perfect balance of romantic yearning and savage, satirical wit. Austen's Emma has these two qualities at their most exquisite and tantalizing, and this BBC adaptation from 1972 serves the novel with complete satisfaction. Delightful Doran Godwin captures not only the title character's good nature and resilient will, but also her exasperating self-satisfaction and ungovernable manipulative impulses. Believing herself to be acting in everyone's best interests, Emma takes the lower-class Harriet Smith (Debbie Bowen) under her wing and sets out to find the girl a suitable husband, disregarding what havoc she wreaks along the way. Her foolish father (Donald Eccles) cannot temper Emma's fancies; only the stern Mr. Knightly (John Carson) offers any reason or restraint. This sprightly adaptation is far superior to the mediocre 1996 film (starring Gwyneth Paltrow) and on par with the ingenious Clueless, which cunningly translates the story to a Beverly Hills high school. The luxurious span of a six-part miniseries gives this version the opportunity to revel in Emma's every deliciously misguided moment. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth the wait., April 25, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Emma [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I've seen all three film productions of Jane Austen's "Emma," and while all of them have merit, I appreciate that this version is the one that's closest to the book. I'll have to reread my copy of "Emma," but it seems to me as if this movie is taken verbatim from the book. Unlike the Gyneth Paltrow and Kate Beckinsale Emmas, this movie takes a while to draw you in, but once you are drawn in--about the time Mrs. Elton (Ellen Dryden) appears--you're hooked. Dryden's portrayal of the hilariously vulgar Mrs. Elton is practically perfect. Doran Godwin, as Emma, sometimes seems a bit too prim, but she grows on you as the movie progresses. Debbie Bowen, as Harriet Smith, is certainly the best Harriet Smith of the three films. I also enjoyed Ellen Dryden's portrayal of Mrs. Weston, and the actor who plays Mr. Weston gives life to what is a very minor character in the other two movies. Also totally charming, and just as I imagined him is Donald Eccles' portrayal of Mr. Woodhouse. To sum up: you may feel impatient with this movie at first, but watching it to the end is worth the wait.

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely worth it!, May 5, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Emma [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I recently watched this series. I must admit that at first I wasn't sure whether I would like it -- it doesn't have the lush production values of some Austen adaptations - such as the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice or the Roger Michell film, Persuasion. However, the acting is superb and quite faithful to the book. I especially enjoyed Ms. Goodwin's portrayal of Emma - she manages to convey the complex nature of Emma's character. I also enjoyed the A&E version of Emma (even though it takes certain liberties with the story) - however, I really believe this version to be superior.

41 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful and True Adaptation of Jane's Book, January 1, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Emma [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is the one for you if you love Jane Austen as much as I do. It is very faithful to the book. The acting is superb all around. Espcially in Emma and her father, Mr. Woodhouse. Basil Dingham does a terrific job playing the anxious and worrying Woodhouse.

This Emma is not "flashy" like Paltrow's, but then that one took several major liberties. This one may take a little time to get into. But stick with it! It is definitely rewarding and fulfilling to watch Jane Austen's characters come to live as she intended. You feel like you have traveled back in time to the Regency Era.