I wonder what Emily Bronte would think if she could see Hollywood's rendering of her superb novel. She would not like the ending and although the film Ellen says to the spirit of Cathy, "Goodbye my wild sweet Cathy," Cathy was wild but not sweet and in the book both she and Heathcliff could be quite nasty. Nevertheless "Wuthering Heights" is a classic film with the moodiness and stark beauty of black and white. The young Olivier had the most beautiful man's face I have ever seen. His metamorphosis from stable boy to wealthy gentleman follows the book quite closely and the theme really of "Wuthering Heights" is not the hopeless love between Cathy and Heathcliff but class. Even when Heathcliff becomes rich and steps by adoption into the world of the upper class, Edgar Linton would never accept him as an equal. Once a stable boy always a stable boy.

The whole second part of Emily Bronte's novel is skipped in the movie. Cathy died giving birth to a daughter and for some seventeen years Heathcliff mourned Cathy in a world which for him was forever devoid of joy.

I have read that Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon actually detested each other and the two would get so enraged on the set they both would shed tears and stalk away to their dressing rooms. So the fact they were able to successfully pull off the intense feeling between them is quite an achievement as the movie embraces that love unforgettably. Of course I give "Heights" five stars even if Emily Bronte did get pushed aside a bit.

I read the book recently, after having seen the film many times since childhood. Although the film isn't faithful to the book, it is one of the great classics and does capture the intense love/hate relationship between Heathcliff and Catherine. I can't imagine the film having been in better hands that its primary stars, Sir Lawrence Olivier and Merle Oberon. I had the pleasure of showing it to my daughter when she was young and she's also seen it several times. My mother passed this on to me, I did to my daughter, and I've no doubt that she'll pass it on to her children. The sign of true virtuosity and an iconic classic.

I thought Laurence Olivier (Heathcliff) and Merle Obron (Cathy Earnshaw) did an excellent job. I enjoyed watching this dark love story. My younger sister and I watched this movie several times as kids and we used to quote certain things. As one example, Cathy's father brought home an orphan boy (Heathcliff) from a trip and presented the boy to his children. Cathy said "He's dirty" Her father responded "Oh, no, Cathy, don't make me ashamed of you." "You must learn to accept others less fortunate than yourself."
This version (1939) showed the characters in a more sophisticated and polished manner; whereas the 2009 version showed the characters in a more raw or realistic manner, in my opinion.

This is the greatest version of this story made as of 2017. If you like a good love story, watch this movie. They just don't make movie like this anymore.

This is probably the all time romantic black and white chick flick! Every decade or so I watch it again, and always cry at the end.They don't make movies like this anymore, and too bad for that. If you haven't seen this classic film yet, by all means watch it! If you are a true "by the book" film watcher, the screen writer took some serious liberties there, but as a film, it stands alone.

So many takes on this novel. I like to watch and compare them. This one sticks pretty clear to the book as I read it.

I really love all the versions of this story. However, this one was good, but not the best. The best one is the 1970 one with Timothy Dalton as Heathcliff.

One of my all time favorite movies along with THE GHOST AND MRS MUIR and the 1930s version of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE with Greer Garson.
Contains great scenes with Merle Oberon in fabulous gowns and tender scenes where Olivier melts your heart.