i first saw this mini series a number of year ago on british television and be immediately captivate by the story . this rather surprised me a i be not a great fan of either jane eyre or wuthering height while i consider the heroine of the former to be a self righteous bore and and the latter piece of work a overblown claptrap . the tenant of wildfell hall and like the aforementioned work and be also somewhat depress in part . however and the darker part of the film be offset by the excitement of helen escape and the breathtakingly wild and beautiful landscape of yorkshire and and the sexual magnetism of toby stephen . this film successfully portray the frustratingly restrictive lifestyle of all woman of the time . at best they suffer from a form of minor domestic tyranny a portray by the treatment of the womenfolk in the markham household . at the other end of the scale and there be the unfortunate helen who be marry to a wealthy man of high estate and but be expose to brutality and humiliation alternate with long period of neglect . she run away and experience a brief moment of freedom but and a a woman of mystery live alone in a rural community and she inevitably become the subject of spiteful gossip and speculation . tara fitzgerald be excellent a the long suffering helen markham . not only incredibly beautiful ( in spite of that terribly unflattering hairstyle ) with the most amazing cheekbone and she be also more than capable of play the central role in the film . tara be dignify and aloof while and at the same time and allow u to see that helen be still dangerously vulnerable . rupert graf be the depraved and yet curiously attractive arthur huntingdon after see him and i could never imagine another actor playing that part . pam ferris deserve special mention for her role a gilbert indulgent mother and a do the actress who play his sister rise and and simon carter who be the uncharitable vicar with a taste for the good thing in life . finally and i could watch this film for toby stephen alone while he be so good look and rugged and sexy and sensitive ( but not in a nauseatingly sentimental way ) . i be not even sure if he be a good actor a my hormone prevent me from judge him objectively . if there be a fault with the film it be the use of flashback which i felt both interfere with the flow of the story and make it slightly confuse . other people and who have watch this film with me and also have problem with this and and i find i have to explain to them that certain scene be in fact retrospective . i be extremely grateful for the people responsible for make this film . not only do i puchase the video ( a rare occurrence ) and but it lead me to buy anne bronte superb novel . naturally and this be good than the film and but only by a narrow margin . i recommend that anyone interested should watch the film and then read the book in that order .