Macbeth
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Movie Reviews of Macbeth
Movie Review: an absolutely first rate film adaptation
Summary: 5 Stars
In his inimitable style, Polanski has turned a classic play into a great film, brilliantly creating an atmosphere, adding action, and rendering the characters vividly alive.
All too often, Shakespeare comes off as staid and too high brow, like you have to read and then hear the play to really get it. Of course, when you make the effort, it is as beautiful as opera, which requires a similar preparation to fully appreciate. What Polanski accomplishes is simply astonishing: without dumbing it down in the slightest, he makes a very complex play completely understandable in a single viewing. It is one of the best such adaptations I have ever seen.
What Polanski emphasizes is the horror of what Macbeth does, a witness to his corruption and psychological deterioration from the inside, making it into a psychological drama. That is one layer that is there in the original play, but it is harder to feel - at least in my viewing experience - than when Polanski does it. The work really becomes in part that of Polanski, while respecting the language and forms of the original.
The backdrop, as shot in Wales I believe, is fabulously vivid. You really feel as if you are there, from the gate guard urinating in the courtyard to the fires that heat the rooms. Though the actors were not well known, they are perfectly cast, especially the phenomenal Francesca Annis and Jon Finch.
Warmly recommended. Just be prepared to dream about it once you turn off your DVD player. Note: I got the British version of this new for $5, though without commentary.
Movie Review: Some "adult" content, but an excellent classroom tool!
Summary: 5 Stars
As a high school English teacher, I have shown many different versions of Shakespeare's outstanding play to my classes. Of all the versions I've used, this one seems to capture my kids' interest the most. I love the fact that all of the dialogue is almost word-for-word from the play, and the acting is first-rate by everyone in the film. (I do wish someone could tell me, though, why all the "Scottish" characters speak with a British accent? :))
While the other reviews point out some obvious areas for concern, such as brief nudity and some blood and gore, I believe this adds some realism to the film, and 17-18 year old students (this is usually included in the senior-level curriculum) should be able to view it objectively if warned of the adult content. (However, I fully understand and respect any students' wishes not to view these scenes, and only show them if there are no objections.) That being said, it is a fine adaptation of the classic play, and a very good enrichment activity if used after, or even during, the reading of the play.
BTW, I also recommend the Unabridged Audio CD version of "Macbeth" by the Arkangel Company-- I found that here on Amazon as well, and it really helps the kids understand the dialogue if they hear it as they read. The actors even use a Scottish accent, which adds more realism to the reading.
Overall, Polanski's sweeping film is a very useful and interesting accompaniment to the play itself. (One last thing-- that's Banquo on the cover, not Macbeth. Just an observation....)
Movie Review: "Will great Neptune's seas wash clean this blood on my hands?"
Summary: 5 Stars
Here we have an example of film enhancing the quality of the written word rather than degrading it; which is, unfortunately, all too often the case with popularizations. This version of MacBeth, the product of the vision of Roman Polanski and the late but outstanding writer Kenneth Tynan, does justice to a play that is perhaps the finest in the English language. The movie accomplishes a great many things such as giving viewers newfound respect for Hugh Hefner who was its executive producer. This is literature that speaks and bounds with the edge of man and the blood of centuries.
Macbeth captures the mood of the middle ages and the blackness present, at some level, within us all. In its gore and violence, it is a distinctly Mansonesque take on the classic. This should not be surprising given the unhappy recent events which befell Polanski and his wife Sharon Tate. We are given a concrete reminder of that hellacious crime with the visual revelation of MacDuff being hacked out of his mother's stomach before she could give birth to him. If you ask me, Jon Finch is the perfect Thane of Cawdor and Francesca Annis makes a maniacal and breathtaking Lady MacBeth. This is a study of madness, guilt, and the true results of man's lust for power. Yet, unlike real life, here, the wicked end wickedly which is why it is great art. This is a production worthy of Shakespeare. Polanski's talents are appropriately rated.
Movie Review: Martin Brody likes it dark and violent
Summary: 5 Stars
Please ignore the poorly thought out review on this page. Anyone with either a passing interest in Shakespeare or an appreciation of film should seek this out now. Polanski, avoiding the trap so many other filmmakers fall into, makes a film based on Macbeth, not merely recording a performance of the play. He has crafted a breathlessly paced film, making very reasonable cuts in the text in order to bring the film in under 2½ hours. I have seen much longer versions that had no grasp of the play at all.Polanski also wisely chose not to use well-known stars for the major roles; instead utilizing some of the best (and youngest) British stage actors of the time. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis perfectly capture the most emotionally wrenched marriage ever, without the moustache twirling that finds its way into Shakespeare film adaptations too often. This film is dark, muddy, and violent; it is not intended for children. I have to assume that the people who complain about the violence in the film have never actually read the play. And I hope, for the sake of their own sanity, they steer clear of Titus Andronicus, Richard III, Julius Caesar, Othello, and if beheadings put a bee in your bonnet, beware Cymbeline!
... This is a raw, passionate telling of one of the great fictional works in the English language, by one of the great filmmakers of our time. But wait for the wide-screen DVD.
Movie Review: Pretty darn good...
Summary: 5 Stars
Very true to the play, clever interpretation of "desert heath."Several rubuttles: Violence: yes, much violence that occured onscreen was never meant to, but why did Shakespeare write it such in the first place? Realistic onstage death/dismemberment was difficult (if not impossible) in the 16oos. In fact, live violence in modern theatres is still either badly done or heavily stylized. Youy also must remember, this was the first movie Polanski made after the Manson "family" raped and mudured his.
Gratuitous nudity: See above. Also, witches in Victorian times were thought to spend coven meeting naked, so if anything, polanski's version is even more correct than most productions. Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking scene was also acurate: sleeping au natural has never been rare. And remember: the parts of all naked characters that are taboo to film are almost always conveniently covered (such as by the arm of a closer witch, or Lady macbeth's long hair). The one exception is Lady Macbeth's posterior, but that was only fora few seconds and really isn't all that risque. The fact that the sleapwalking scene was in at all was surprising: most directors delete it.
Dissapointment: No Scottish accents. I know Shakespeare was English, and probably so were the original actors, but the play IS set in Scotland, and a few Scotish accents would have been nice (a minor detail, however).