The great deficiency in this early TV version of one of the great Gothic novels of all time isn't the lack of a budget, but the direction and a lot of the acting. The filming itself reminds the viewer that Wuthering Heights itself wasn't the most ideal place to live with an obvious lack of sunshine and a distant location, even from the sunnier Linton mansion. Once the elder Earnshaw dies, his home turns all the more colorless and dour, and that mood is expressed most realistically. The dull shading is a great contrast to the Linton's which is so much brighter.
In a very early role, Charlton Heston is absolutely wrong for the part of Heathcliff, bellowing all of his lines, and totally unappealing. Mary Sinclair is not the ideal Cathy either, but at least she tries to underplay. Richard Waring, as Hindley, is supposed to be an overwrought drunken fool, like a corpse crying from the grave that they shouldn't be there. June Dayton is one of the few bright lights as Isabelle, and Lloyd Bochner surprisingly superb as Edgar. It's a true surprise that Una O'Connor is a loveable Nelly (changed from Ellen in other versions) rather than the shrieking harpy she'd usually played. It's experimental early TV for sure, but the experiment in this case failed.
In a very early role, Charlton Heston is absolutely wrong for the part of Heathcliff, bellowing all of his lines, and totally unappealing. Mary Sinclair is not the ideal Cathy either, but at least she tries to underplay. Richard Waring, as Hindley, is supposed to be an overwrought drunken fool, like a corpse crying from the grave that they shouldn't be there. June Dayton is one of the few bright lights as Isabelle, and Lloyd Bochner surprisingly superb as Edgar. It's a true surprise that Una O'Connor is a loveable Nelly (changed from Ellen in other versions) rather than the shrieking harpy she'd usually played. It's experimental early TV for sure, but the experiment in this case failed.