Because when you think Wuthering Heights, you think Brat, obviously.
The first trailer for Emerald Fennell's Wuthering Heights was released in early September to instant internet virality and dismay towards the trailer's historical inaccuracies. Wuthering Heights is a beloved 1847 Gothic novel by Emily Brontë; it tells the destructive story of Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, lovers torn apart by class, obsession, revenge and desire. From the jump, it was obvious that if anyone were to make a book-accurate Wuthering Heights adaptation, it would not be Emerald Fennell. Following the massive success of her provocative film Saltburn, the writer-director was searching for her next project and felt very passionate about adapting Wuthering Heights. So much so, she made an appearance at the Brontë Women’s Writing Festival in October, defending the negative reception of the trailer and her qualifications to adapt the novel: “I’ve been obsessed. I’ve been driven mad by this book, I know that if somebody else made it, I’d be furious.” Controversy first surrounded the adaptation when casting for Catherine and Heathcliff was announced, particularly when the very white Jacob Elordi was cast as Heathcliff, a character originally described as having darker skin. Kharmel Cochrane, the film’s casting director, defended the casting choice, saying there is “no need to be accurate” as the source material is “just a book,” which contradicts Emerald Fennell’s previous statements. The film is set to be released next year on Valentine’s Day alongside Charli XCX’s soundtrack of the same name.
The first trailer for the movie shot Charli XCX’s Brat track “Everything is romantic” back into internet stardom. Reactions to the use of an XCX song for a Victorian novel adaptation were hilarious. The top comment on the TikTok version of the trailer amassing 158,000 likes reads: “margot robbie and jacob elordi with music by charli xcx like this is giving matcha labubu dubai chocolate.” Little did we know that this was merely a hint for what was to come, a full-fledged soundtrack of original music made by hyperpop’s darling.
I am a big fan of Charli XCX’s music; I loved Brat, and how i’m feeling now is one of my favorite albums of all time. However, I’m not as consistent of a fan of Emerald Fennell’s work. I thought her directorial debut, Promising Young Woman, was genius; her use of provocative and out-there storytelling was truly efficient in a story where the protagonist had clear motives for acting absurdly and violently as they did. Her second film, Saltburn, fell into a boring story lacking motive, drive and any sense of purpose beyond an in-your-face shock factor and pretty colors. I fear that Wuthering Heights will fall to a similar fate — the only saving grace this film has going for it are the aesthetics and, yes, Charli XCX’s soundtrack.
Promising Young Woman and Saltburn, although both are on completely different calibers of good writing, both have excellent soundtracks. Promising Young Woman singlehandedly introduced me to Paris Hilton’s “Stars Are Blind” due to its genius placement and purpose in the movie’s storytelling. Saltburn’s soundtrack, similarly to the phenomenon seen with “Everything is romantic” being used in Wuthering Heights’s trailer, was a big hit, catapulting Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dance Floor,” a song that was released in 2001, to the Billboard Top 10 following the movie’s success. That’s why, as much as Emerald Fennell’s work is hit-or-miss, her soundtracks will always deliver.
The first single for Charli’s Wuthering Heights album was released last Monday, titled “House” featuring John Cale of the Velvet Underground. “House” is an experimental track; opening with a poem read by John Cale, it features eerie sound effects and haunting violins, all climaxing at Charli XCX repeating “I think I’m gonna die in this house.” While “House” isn’t my favorite — in fact, it kind of scares me — it does encapsulate what daylight savings has been doing to my quality of life. Because sometimes, when I look out the window and it’s pitch black at 4:30 p.m., I do think, “I’m gonna die in this house.” But seriously, what a provocative and quintessentially “Emerald Fennell” way to open up this collaboration and era. In a Substack article detailing her decisions to take on this project, Charli XCX writes about how this album is something unlike any of her previous work: “When Emerald approached me with an open mind and a total willingness for me to explore I thought… ok I can do something cool here. ... This collection of songs is an album, and sure, my name’s on the credits, but is it a Charli xcx album? I don’t even know. Nor do I really care to find out. All I know is that it’s a celebration of my freedom as an artist right now and that I feel passionate about what I’ve created and how it’s been created.”
The second single, “Chains of Love,” was released on Friday, and is surprisingly one of my favorite songs to come out this year. It has everything I love about Charli XCX’s music tied to this new Ethel Cain-esque persona. It embraces its cinematic purpose with dramatic beat drops that make you feel like you’re in a rom-com break-up montage and lyrics full of desire, resonant with the themes of Wuthering Heights. With her upcoming Wuthering Heights album, Charli XCX aims to sow herself into a world that, to quote her Substack, “felt undeniably raw, wild, sexual, gothic, British, tortured and full of actual real sentences, punctuation and grammar, without a cigarette or a pair of sunglasses in sight,” launching the starlet into an exciting and experimental new era, set to the visuals of Emerald Fennell.
Paulina Delgado-Umpierre is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at pmd99@cornell.edu.
