Click to read the article
Emma (1996)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:41
Fresh:34
Rotten:7
Average Rating:7.1/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 1 min
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: This adaptation of the Jane Austen novel focuses on Emma, a meddling but well-meaning 21-year-old, who LOVES to play matchmaker. She's currently obsessed with finding the perfect man for her friend... This adaptation of the Jane Austen novel focuses on Emma, a meddling but well-meaning 21-year-old, who LOVES to play matchmaker. She's currently obsessed with finding the perfect man for her friend Harriet. But what appears to be a simple task becomes a nightmare, as Emma's machinations set off a chain reaction of misunderstandings between a number of people. Things only worsen when Emma attempts to set things straight. Emma may -- or may not -- succeed in finding a mate for her pal. But what's more important is that Emma will learn a few things about herself in the process. [More]
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Toni Collette, Alan Cumming, Jeremy Northam
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Toni Collette, Alan Cumming, Jeremy Northam, Ewan McGregor, Greta Scacchi, Juliet Stevenson, Sophie Thompson, Phyllida Law, James Cosmo, Denys Hawthorne, Kathleen Byron, Edward Woodall, Brett Miley, Brian Capron, Karen Westwood, Paul Williamson, Rebecca Craig, Angela Down, John Franklyn Robbins, Ruth Jones
Director: Douglas McGrath
Director: Douglas McGrath
Story: Jane Austen
Screenwriter: Douglas McGrath
Composer: Rachel Portman
Producer: Patrick Cassavetti, Steven M. Haft
Reviews for Emma
Despite my lack of Austen education, I found the film to be thoroughly engaging and surprisingly touching, so I can only imagine how pleased a true Austen-ite may be with Emma.
Douglas McGrath's new adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma has certainly captured its elegantly comic possibilities. nd much of the credit must go to McGrath's casting of the eminently luminous Gwyneth Paltrow as the title character.
Emma is delightful, a breezy romance comedy of complication and confusion, with Gwynneth Paltrow a winning delight as the titular Ms. Woodhouse, meddling in the romantic lives of her friends and associates.
Gwyneth Paltrow makes a resplendent Emma, gliding through the film with an elegance and patrician wit that bring the young Katharine Hepburn to mind.
While Sense and Sensibility loves subtlety, silence, and space, and Persuasion loves realism, repression, and understatement, Emma loves its star Gwyneth Paltrow and all the colorful scenes she inhabits.
It's not difficult to enjoy the genteel amusements Emma provides even while wishing its virtues were less wholly on the surface.
It's still fun, but we devotees of the novelist's dry, incisive social commentary will find the bright-hued farce a poor substitute...Nevertheless, Emma has much to recommend it, not the least of which is seeing a major actress in the making.
This Emma is light, airy and modern -- surely Austen's funniest work.
More DVDs
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 36% 36% | Angels & Demons |
| 25% 25% | Four Christmases |
| 68% 68% | Funny People |
| 95% 95% | Star Trek |
| 14% 14% | The Ugly Truth |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 32% 32% | Terminator Salvation |
| 44% 44% | Night at the Museum: B… |
| 86% 86% | A Christmas Tale |
| 60% 60% | Paper Heart |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- Emma at Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh Links
Featured

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.



Top Critic

