ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, September 14, 1996 TAG: 9609170012
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: C-12 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: MOVIE REVIEW
SOURCE: KATHERINE REED STAFF WRITER
Once in a while, the Hollywood star machinery cranks up for the right reasons. And Gwyneth Paltrow embodies all of those reasons.
She's a smart actress, surprisingly unselfconscious for a great beauty, and seems a little bit shy of the camera, which only flatters her many attributes.
To make matters worse for her competition, she picks scripts wisely - from the excellent small role of Brad Pitt's wife in "Seven" to her most recent role, as the title character in "Emma."
Jane Austen herself would have approved of the casting.
Emma is an interesting character, equal parts sweet and spoiled. She knows her position better than she knows herself, and the novel charts the course of her awakening. "Clueless," the big teen hit loosely based on "Emma," was quite aptly titled. Because while the central character never seems even a half beat behind the news of her social circle, she really is nearly dense on her own behalf.
Director-screenwriter Douglas McGrath (he co-wrote ``Bullets Over Broadway'' with Woody Allen, but is mostly a journalist), has done a pretty good job of letting immediacy convey the almost claustrophobic closeness of the circle in which Emma moves.
But this movie is wonderful mostly because of Paltrow, and terrific supporting performances from Jeremy Northam as Mr. Knightley, Sophie Thompson as poor Miss Bates, Toni Collette (``Muriel's Wedding'') as Harriet Smith and Juliet Stevenson as the abominable Mrs. Elton.
In case you're unfamiliar with the story, Emma is a woman of 21 with a handsome income and a doting, alarmist father. She is recovering from the shock of her governess' departure for married life when she falls upon the idea of making a social success of Miss Smith, a young woman of uncertain lineage.
She gets into trouble when she imagines a match for Miss Smith in Mr. Elton (Alan Cumming), who is actually in love with Emma. Once she's cleared up that mess, she's off to make another - for herself with Mr. Frank Churchill or for Harriet with just about anybody else.
Meanwhile, her brother-in-law Mr. Knightley is gaining shape on her romantic horizon, but she has imagined herself into such a state of confusion, she snaps at people at picnics and gets her hair bows on crooked.
If you loved "Persuasion" and "Sense and Sensibility," you will find this movie lies somewhere between those two in depth. It has more levity than "Persuasion," but a great deal more of everything good than "Sense."
If you've had no interest at all in the Jane Austen thing, you may find "Emma" the most accessible yet of the adaptations. And Paltrow's understanding of the title character doesn't hurt one bit.
Emma ***1/2
(Not Rated, but it's quite tame)
A Miramax release showing at Tanglewood Mall, 112 minutes.
LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Gwyneth Paltrow (left) is ``Emma,'' and Toni Collette isby CNBher friend Harriet Smith. color.