Emma.

Emma. (2020) is the most recent Jane Austen adaptation of this novel, and the full stop in the title is deliberate. The director is telling you this is a period comedy rather than a period drama. Emma Woodhouse is rich, clever and certain she understands everyone. She has no intention of marrying but cannot stop arranging marriages for other people. Every attempt is a disaster, and she is the last person to notice that her own vanity is the cause. Autumn de Wilde came from photography and it shows in every frame: pastel palettes, symmetrical compositions, rooms arranged like cake. Some viewers find it an empty window display. Others think it is exactly the right shape for Austen's cruelty. Anya Taylor-Joy does not try to make Emma likeable, which is correct. The character is irritating on the page too. Her correction is the plot. Bill Nighy steals every scene he is in. Good for: Austen adaptations, English period comedy, and anyone who enjoys films that look this good. Fine with family. Less good for: viewers expecting romance at pace. It runs 125 minutes and the rhythm is unhurried by design.