BBC's Emma 1972

This miniseries took some getting used to. I am so accustomed to the more recent version of Emma played by Gwyneth Paltrow that I needed a little while to adjust to the characters. However, I really did enjoy this version. One of the first things that struck me was the natural easiness of the lines. It truly felt like they were thoughts of the moment not a script that was memorized. Many times characters interrupting each other, speaking over each other, in a way that felt unrehearsed.

My first impression of Mr. Knightly was unfavorable as he really did look like he was the age that he is portrayed to be. This is not his fault, it is just me, once again, struggling with the difference between this version and the more recent. But in the end I am glad of him. He plays the part very well and I ended up liking him in spite of myself.

One small thing that I enjoyed seeing in this rendition was the many different ways that the women employed their time. They didn't limit it to playing the pianoforte and needlework, the director had obviously researched and had the characters doing numerous different things during the normal dialog. I always enjoy seeing this as it is more realistic and gives us a better idea of the age which these stories were written.

Another aspect of this miniseries that I loved was how true it was to the book. You need not have read the book to follow the storyline, and nothing important is lost. They did a great job of keeping in many of the subtleties of characters and plot lines. I really enjoyed it.