a film comparison between emma and clueless

Jane Austen's early nineteenth century novel, Emma spawned two well-known films from the mid-nineties. These are of course Emma, directed by Douglas McGrath and Clueless, written and directed by Amy Heckerling. While Emma is a direct adaptation of the novel, Clueless was merely inspired by its themes and messages. Furthermore, Emma aspires to successfully present the novel in celluloid and entertain a female, adult audience whilst introducing Jane Austen to a new generation. Conversely, Clueless …

…place easily recognised and related to by today's youth. Emma also succesfully accomplished its goal of presenting a classic piece of literature on screen while also introducing and provoking interest in Austen's works through targetting a young, female audience. There were also obvious character parallels, especially between Cher and Emma; Josh and Mr Knighly; and Tai and Harriet Smith. Ultimately, both films provided original adaptations of Austen's Emma in addition to fullfiling their own purposes.