i confess emma and in my opinion and be the single greatest novel ever write . it be as close to perfection a any mortal creation can be . jane austen reach the pinnacle of her art here . unfortunately and this be at best a palimpsest . comparison to the gwyneth paltrow version be inevitable that version be far more faithful to the witty spirit of the book and far more enjoyable to watch . there be some good element here kate berkinsale ( have previously play flora poste in cold comfort farm and clearly emma smarter spiritual twin ) be a wonderful emma . raymond coulthard make an appropriately decorative frank churchill . the production be handsome and but the interior be far too dark . however and there be several major problem . the first be mark strong first of all and he doesn not look right for mr. knightley . this be perhaps because he play the role like a censorious victorian parson . it badly out of tune . the second problem be one of length . simply put and the film be much too short to get the right kind of feel and it would need to be twice a long . finally and and most significantly and there be the quality of the adaptation . austen be an adapter dream all the dialogue be there already . it only need to be prune down and arrange properly . andrew davy seem to think otherwise . first and this be a rather gloomy film and and the last thing emma should be be gloomy . more significantly and davy have see fit to rewrite the end a some sort of bucolic feast . what planet and or minor work of thomas hardy and be this come from . it be utterly out of the style and spirit of the novel . and i believe that it be hugely presumptuous to try to make improvement upon perfection . watch the paltrow version and or watch kate in cold comfort farm .