Amy Heckerling on confidence, Clueless and Emma

When Paula was living in America in the 1990s, her husband suggested they go to the cinema to watch a movie about teenagers in Beverly Hills. Its name: Clueless. Paula wasn't keen. But within a few minutes the movie grew on her. It was funny, quick, and most importantly, it was inspired by one of Paula's favourite books - Jane Austen's Emma. The film's writer and director Amy Heckerling first encountered Austen's iconic heroine when she was studying at art school in New York and was attracted by her confidence and optimism. Years later, living in Beverly Hills, she thought of Emma again. Together, Paula and Amy discuss what makes Austen's manipulative main character likeable and how Amy's film cleverly transposes the book's innovative use of free indirect speech into voiceover. For Amy, it's a novel she returns to again and again and for Paula, Amy's movie is one of the best Austen adaptations she's seen.
Credit: Clueless, dir. Amy Heckerling, Paramount Pictures, 1995
Cher - Alicia Silverstone; Dionne - Stacey Dash

Presenter: Dr Paula Byrne
Reader: Gemma Whelan
Producer: Camellia Sinclair