The second film adaptation of Daphne DuMaurier’s gothic classic Rebecca has none of the sophistication, steely nerve or immense presence of the classic 1940 Hitchcock film, and the metaphor of a pale imitation trying to take the place of its looming predecessor is not lost on this reviewer.

While there is nothing obviously wrong with the Netflix version, which was released this week and stars Lily James and Armie Hammer, Ben Wheatley’s direction fails to adequately establish the absolute dominance of the most important character in either book or movie, the titular Rebecca.

James (Downton Abbey, Cinderella) stars as the character so unimposing that DuMaurier never evens endows her with a given name. She is working as a lady’s traveling companion in Monte Carlo when she catches the eye of wealthy Maxim deWinter (Hammer: Call Me By Your Name.) After a whirlwind courtship, the two are married and deWinter takes his new bride home to his seaside estate, Manderley.

And that’s when all the trouble begins. For though the second Mrs deWinter knows her husband’s first wife died tragically, that is all she knows of a much, much bigger story. And no one, not her husband and certainly not the sinister housekeeper Mrs Danvers (Kristin Scott Thomas: Final Set, Fleabag) is going to enlighten her before the third act.

In the novel, the second Mrs deWinter is mousy, easily overridden and no match for Mrs Danvers, who terrorizes her whenever Mr deWinter is out of sight. Alfred Hitchcock cast Joan Fontaine in the role, where she was as meek as the novel version. Wheatley allows James to play the character with a bit more spunk, which should please audiences viewing in 2020, though the character is still easily outmatched by Mrs Danvers, falling into every trap she sets.

In Hitchcock’s movie, and in the book, Rebecca is more than a memory; she is a larger-than-life being who, though dead, is more alive in Manderley than her successor. Everything from the decor to the menu to the outbuildings remains just as she left it; as Mrs Danvers says, as if she could return at any moment. Hitchcock, filming in black and white, used his camera to put Rebecca in the house, as visible to the characters, and the audience, as if she was standing in front of us.

Anyone new to the story will find a lot to like in this iteration of Rebecca: while Lily James is no Joan Fontaine, and Hammer is certainly not the equal of Sir Laurence Olivier, the movie is rich in romance, suspense, and beautifully framed shots of Monte Carlo and the Cornish shore. And Thomas is masterful in her portrayal of Mrs Danvers; instead of the borderline psychotic and deeply obsessed character played by Judith Anderson in the 1940 version, we have a Danvers who has a more understandable motivation, even if she takes that to destructive extremes.

Wheatley, who directed Sightseers – a much better movie at showing female character development – takes many liberties with the ending. The changes he has the character of the second Mrs deWinter go through seem more reasonable in a 2020 context (her ‘ride or die’ attitude) than they would have been 80 years ago.

What did you think of the film? How does it compare to the novel or Hitchcock flick? Let us know in the comments.