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Wuthering Heights

  • 1939
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 44m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
19K
YOUR RATING
Wuthering Heights (1939)
The story of unfortunate lovers Heathcliff and Cathy who, despite a deep affection for one another, are forced by circumstance and prejudice to live their apart...
Play trailer1:53
1 Video
41 Photos
DramaRomance

A servant in the house of Wuthering Heights tells a traveler the unfortunate tale of lovers Cathy and Heathcliff.A servant in the house of Wuthering Heights tells a traveler the unfortunate tale of lovers Cathy and Heathcliff.A servant in the house of Wuthering Heights tells a traveler the unfortunate tale of lovers Cathy and Heathcliff.

  • Director
    • William Wyler
  • Writers
    • Charles MacArthur
    • Ben Hecht
    • Emily Brontë
  • Stars
    • Merle Oberon
    • Laurence Olivier
    • David Niven
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.5/10
    19K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • William Wyler
    • Writers
      • Charles MacArthur
      • Ben Hecht
      • Emily Brontë
    • Stars
      • Merle Oberon
      • Laurence Olivier
      • David Niven
    • 161User reviews
    • 37Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Oscar
      • 8 wins & 8 nominations total

    Videos1

    Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Trailer 1:53
    Watch Wuthering Heights (1939)

    Photos41

    Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Rex Downing, Cecil Kellaway, Flora Robson, Douglas Scott, and Sarita Wooton in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Rex Downing, Cecil Kellaway, Flora Robson, and Sarita Wooton in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    David Niven, Merle Oberon, and Flora Robson in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Geraldine Fitzgerald in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    David Niven, Laurence Olivier, and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Laurence Olivier and Geraldine Fitzgerald in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Hugh Williams in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)
    Laurence Olivier and Geraldine Fitzgerald in Wuthering Heights (1939)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Merle Oberon
    Merle Oberon
    • Cathy
    Laurence Olivier
    Laurence Olivier
    • Heathcliff
    David Niven
    David Niven
    • Edgar
    Flora Robson
    Flora Robson
    • Ellen
    Donald Crisp
    Donald Crisp
    • Dr. Kenneth
    Geraldine Fitzgerald
    Geraldine Fitzgerald
    • Isabella
    Hugh Williams
    Hugh Williams
    • Hindley
    Leo G. Carroll
    Leo G. Carroll
    • Joseph
    Miles Mander
    Miles Mander
    • Lockwood
    Cecil Kellaway
    Cecil Kellaway
    • Earnshaw
    Cecil Humphreys
    • Judge Linton
    Sarita Wooton
    • Cathy (as a child)
    • (as Sarita Wooten)
    Rex Downing
    Rex Downing
    • Heathcliff (as a child)
    Douglas Scott
    Douglas Scott
    • Hindley (as a child)
    Frank Benson
    • Heathcliff Servant
    • (uncredited)
    Romaine Callender
    Romaine Callender
    • Robert
    • (uncredited)
    Richard Clucas
    • Little Boy
    • (uncredited)
    Vernon Downing
    • Giles
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • William Wyler
    • Writers
      • Charles MacArthur(screen play)
      • Ben Hecht(screen play)
      • Emily Brontë(from the novel by)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Laurence Olivier found himself becoming increasingly annoyed with director William Wyler's exhausting style of filmmaking. After yet another take, he is said to have exclaimed, "For God's sake, I did it sitting down. I did it with a smile. I did it with a smirk. I did it scratching my ear. I did it with my back to the camera. How do you want me to do it?" Wyler's retort was, "I want it better." However, Olivier later said these multiple takes helped him learn to succeed as a movie actor.
    • Goofs
      Though the social situations, and even the soundtrack, are consistent with the novel's timeframe of 1770-1801, the Colonial/Napoleonic era, the costumes are an odd mix of mid-Victorian and American Civil War.
    • Quotes

      Heathcliff: Catherine Earnshaw, may you not rest so long as I live on! I killed you. Haunt me, then! Haunt your murderer! I know that ghosts have wandered on the Earth. Be with me always. Take any form, drive me mad, only do not leave me in this dark alone where I cannot find you. I cannot live without my life! I cannot die without my soul.

    • Crazy credits
      Opening credits prologue: On the barren Yorkshire moors in England, a hundred years ago, stood a house as bleak and desolate as the wastes around it. Only a stranger lost in a storm would have dared to knock at the door of Wuthering Heights.
    • Connections
      Featured in AFI Life Achievement Award: AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to William Wyler (1976)
    • Soundtracks
      Piano Sonata in A major, K.331: Rondo alla Turca
      (1778) (uncredited)

      Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

      Played by Alice Ehlers on harpsichord

    User reviews161

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    A Goldwyn-Wyler-Bronte Masterpiece
    One of the finest romantic films ever filmed, this 1939 Samuel Goldwyn production rates with many - including myself - as being the most beloved version of Emily Bronte's haunting novel. Although it stops at chapter seventeen and the ending is seen as a bit trite by some, it's a brilliantly enacted, finely mounted production with beautiful photography and authentic period detail set-wise. Merle Oberon is well-cast as the selfish, vain and rather shallow Cathy. What makes her character so intriguing and interesting is that no matter what happens to her materially, she has an undying love for the gypsy-blooded heathen named Heathcliff. Laurence Olivier, never a great success in films prior to this, gives a brutally honest account of everything Bronte's Heathcliff should be: proud, bold, vengeful & darkly brooding -a tortured soul in general. Wyler's guiding hand is patent throughout: it was Olivier himself who gave credit to the meticulous director in teaching him the particular ropes of screen acting: it shows! Lady-like Isabella is well-played by the Irish Geraldine Page, while Ellen, the long-suffering servant is played sympathetically by the fine character actress Flora Robson. David Niven, ideally cast as the milquetoasty Edgar Linton, actually had a clause in his contract which freed him from having to do crying scenes! A timeless masterpiece of the "haunting" love story genre, this was Goldwyn's personal favourite of all his films.
    helpful•43
    8
    • willowgreen
    • Feb 27, 2003

    FAQ7

    • What is 'Wuthering Heights' about?
    • Is 'Wuthering Heights' based on a book?
    • What does 'wuthering' mean?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 7, 1939 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Stürmische Höhen
    • Filming locations
      • Janss Conejo Ranch, Thousand Oaks, California, USA
    • Production company
      • The Samuel Goldwyn Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $624,643
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $15,493
      • Apr 9, 1989
    • Gross worldwide
      • $624,643
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 44 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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