Product Details

• Region: All Regions
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000EWFBTO
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,522 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

One of the most compelling tragic romances ever captured on film, Wuthering Heights is an exquisite tale of doomed love and miscalculated intentions. Though only half of Emily Bronte's classic tale of Heathcliff and Catherine was filmed by director William Wyler, it lacks for nothing. The story begins when a Yorkshire gentleman farmer brings home a raggedy gypsy boy, Heathcliff, and raises him as his son. The boy grows to love his stepsister Catherine, with catastrophic results. Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon were perfectly cast as the mismatched lovers, with Olivier brooding and despairing, Oberon ethereal and enchanting. This won cinematographer Gregg Toland a much-deserved Oscar for his haunting and evocative depiction of mid-19th century English moors. (Quite a trick, as this was shot in California!) Though nominated for seven other Oscars, it won none of them, as it was released in 1939, one of the best years in Hollywood history and the same year as Gone with the Wind. Imported from South Korea, English Language with removable Korean and English subtitles. NTSC ALL Regions

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who cares about the book?, October 27, 2006

By 

Richard F. Grantges "truth maven" (MN North Woods) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Wuthering Heights [So. KOREAN Import / NTSC - ALL REGION Play] (DVD)

Who cares about the book? This is a film masterpiece we are discussing, and this is surely one of the greatest. Across over half a century it still resonates in the hearts of men and women as it will continue IF it can be kept available. And THAT is MY peeve: you can't obtain a copy of the original at any reasonable price on DVD. Shame. The same is beginning to apply to other great films from the 30's. Hollywood would rather remake a film a dozen times than keep the original available. Of course if the original is not available, the new versions don't have to compete with it - which they seldom can. Again I say shame on the industry.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless..., January 31, 2007

By 

RKA (NEW YORK) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Wuthering Heights [So. KOREAN Import / NTSC - ALL REGION Play] (DVD)

This is a classic masterpiece of (b/w) film-making that sadly isn't done anymore. Yes, it doesn't correspond word for word with the book, get over it, re-read the book. Still, the mood of the book is ever present and Laurence Olivier, Merle Oberon and David Niven are all wonderful in their roles. Regretably, Wyler and studio didn't tackle the entire book. This was released the year of Gone With the Wind and won only one academy award (for best B/W cinematography). It was nominated for 8 including Best Picture, and for flics released in 1939, that says a lot.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A widely romantic film with a first-rate cast!, January 16, 2007

By 

Roberto Frangie "Robert" (Leon, Gto. Mexico) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Wuthering Heights [So. KOREAN Import / NTSC - ALL REGION Play] (DVD)

With his distinctive visual style and a taste for solemn material, William Wyler gained a reputation as a meticulous, serious artist...

Earning eight Academy Award Nominations, 'Wuthering Heights' won its sole Academy Award for Gregg Toland's expressionistic, moody black-and-white cinematography... Also, the film's powerful musical score by Alfred Newman is unforgettable... But what about those star-crossed lovers, one of whom always dies, leaving the other with a few words and a lifetime of mourning? What more ill-fated love than that between Cathy (Merle Oberon) and Heathcliff (Laurence Olivier).

Heathcliff, a half-gypsy orphan, is adopted by Cathy's father, and the two grow up together, roaming across the moors... A deep and everlasting love grows between them, but Cathy obstinately and foolishly marries someone else (David Niven).

Heathcliff disappears - a penniless vagabond - but many years later returns with a fortune to torment her again... Their subsequent meetings are loaded with obsession and denial... She will not leave the gentle security of her husband for the fiery passion of Heathcliff...

Despite American script and settings, this widely romantic film makes a pretty fair stab at capturing the power of at least the first half of a classic Victorian novel, and in all respects it's superb Hollywood production of its day and a typical one, complete with ghostly finale and a first-rate cast...