Based on Jane Austen's novel, this mini-series focuses on Emma Woodhouse (Romola Garai), vain, spoiled, and the belle of her small town, as she tries her hand at matchmaking with disastrous results. As with the novel, this Emma is almost unlikable, and yet. . . there is still a goodness about her that Mr. Knightly(Jonny Lee Miller) and the reader/viewer are able to see.This is one of my favorite Austen novels for it's wit and perspicacity. I was delighted with how closely the series followed the book, deviating only in minor matters. The producers also kept a good feel of Regency times; I had issues, again, with only minor matters. Costumes, hairstyles, locations, and sets were all fantastic. The actors were well cast, and they all did a fine job. Tamsin Greig was particularly good as Miss Bates, as was Michael Gambon's portrayal of Mr. Woodhouse. I truly enjoyed this mini-series and would recommend it for both fans of the book, and those unfamiliar with the novel.

This is quite a pleasant version of a great classic story. I found myself comparing it to the Kate Beckinsale version, which had been my favorite up to that time. Here are a few observations I made:Romola Garai makes an outgoing and enthusiastic Emma, more impulsive than Kate Beckinsale's version of the title character (although not necessarily better). The one flaw I found was that her demeanor was sometimes distractingly modern. She was a little too inclined to show her feelings by her posture and facial expressions, which would have been strongly discouraged during that era in history. Other than that, her character was certainly believable.I was looking forward to Michael Gambone in the role of Emma's father, but his performance seemed subdued and humorless. I know he's capable of far better, but perhaps he was encouraged to play it down for this role. That's a shame, because it doesn't provide much motivation for Emma's affectionate behavior toward her father. He comes across as something of an albatross around her neck, rather than a lovable elderly man with a few human frailties. Mr. Knightley in the Kate Beckinsale version is attractive, but seems lacking in humor. Mr. Knightley in this version is less commanding in appearance, but seems to enjoy Emma, even as he rebukes her. I get the impression that she makes him laugh, and I can imagine them living happily ever after. He's less significant on the screen, but that actually makes it more effective, I think, because it's easy to understand why Emma would have taken him for granted.Harriet Smith is quite lovely in this version. She doesn't have Emma's strength of personality, but it's easy to imagine Emma visualizing the possibility of her marrying above her social station, with some careful coaching and matchmaking. Jane Fairfax seems sweet and emotionally vulnerable. It's easy to empathize with her from the onset, whereas Jane in the Kate Beckinsale version is somewhat intimidating in her seamless reserve and composure. I suspect that the latter version comes closer to what Jane Austen envisioned, but both versions are effective in their own way.To sum it up, I like them both in different ways. That's one great thing about Jane Austen's writings: we all have our own ideas about how they should be interpreted on the screen, and it's as much fun to compare the various versions as it is to watch them.

Overall this series got most things right. I do have some criticisms though, which is why I can't give it a 10. Firstly, let me just say the movie adaption, where Emma is played by Gwenyth Paltrow was not very good. This series is ten times better by far. However, if they take a few of the actors from the movie and put them into this series, it would have been perfect. Take for example Jeremy Northam. He played a brilliant Mr Knightly in the movie adaption and he would have been perfect in this series. I LOVE Jonny Lee Miller as an actor (his character as Edmund in Mansfield Park was wonderful) but I don't feel he played Mr Knightly well. Overall a great job and I love this series a lot but I wish the casting was a little better. Still, the story does not disappoint and overall the acting was good.

This is such a fun, refreshing mini-series. Wonderfully cast -- you can see the chemistry between Romola Garai and Jonny Lee Miller. The banter is very enjoyable! I found myself smiling all throughout the series and laughing at the wit of the characters.The first time I watched this, I found myself glued for four hours. I watched it a second time, and had a better appreciation of the story. I was still laughing at the lines and the wit! JLM is perfect as Mr. Knightley, he is funny in the sarcastic moments and yet can make ladies swoon during the moments when he shows such gentlemanly behaviors.I guess the only drawback I had here was that Isabella Knightly looked older than Anne Weston. I think Mrs Weston should have looked older since she was their governess. Also, George Knightly looked younger than John Knightly, but he is obviously the older brother because he was master of Donwell Abbey. Other than that, everything was just right.