until the 1990s there have never be a film base upon jane austen emma . then two come along in the same year and 1996. or and if you count 1995 clueless and which update austen plot to a modern american high school and three in two year . the main character be emma woodhouse and a young lady from a well to do family in regency england . she be and financially and considerably good off than most austen heroine such a elizabeth bennett or fanny price and and have no need to find herself a wealthy husband . instead and her main preoccupation seem to be find husband for her friend . she persuade her friend harriet to turn down a proposal of marriage from a young farmer and robert martin and believing that harriet should be set her sight on the ambitious clergyman mr elton . this scheme go disastrously wrong and however and a elton have no interest in harriet and but have fall in love with emma herself . the speed with which emma reject his proposal make one wonder just why she be so keen to match her friend with a man she regard ( with good reason ) a an unsuitable marriage partner for herself . this be a jane austen plot and emma turn out to be less of a committed spinster than she seem and and she too find herself fall in love and lead to further complication . today in 2008 kate beckinsale be a hollywood star and but in 1996 and despite be only a year younger and be not nearly as well know internationally a gwyneth paltrow . she be and however and just as convincing a austen well intentioned but often wrong head heroine . beckinsale seem to have a gift for classical role she make a delightful hero in kenneth branagh version of much ado about nothing and i sometimes find myself wish that hollywood could have find more suitable role for her rather than waste her in turkey like pearl harbor or underworld . i preferred jeremy northam to mark strong a emma love interest mr knightley and largely because he come closer to my own conception of the character a a gentlemanly and chivalrous old man and in some way more of a father figure to emma than a lover . ( his surname be probably mean to indicate his gentlemanly nature nineteenth century gentleman like to think of themselves a the modern equivalent of mediaeval knight with their elaborate code of chivalry ) . strong tends to downplay the question of the age difference ( he be 37 and she 21 ) and make knightley more of a passionate lover and less of a wise mentor than do northam . samantha morton ( another actress who would go on to big thing ) be perhaps closer to the harriet of the novel than be toni collette . this be the more small scale of the two version and be make for television rather than the cinema and and the set and costume seem less lavish and there be few big name among the cast . costume drama and however and be generally something that british television do well and and this version can certainly hold it own with the cinema version while both be entertain and well make version of austen novel . positive .