William Shakespeare

  • Jirí Trnka – Sen noci svatojánské AKA Midsummer Night’s Dream (1959)

    1951-1960AnimationCzech RepublicFantasyJirí TrnkaWilliam Shakespeare

    The first puppet kinescope in the world. It is based on the famous poetic comedy by William Shakespeare. Three worlds meet in this story: the noble world of three Athens couples, a common popular world of tradesmen amateur theatre and a fairy-tale happiness of magic creatures as elves and nymphs. The film is considered the most remarkable Jirí Trnka work and a milestone in the history of the world animation.Read More »

  • Kenneth Branagh – Henry V (1989)

    1981-1990ClassicsDramaKenneth BranaghUnited KingdomWilliam Shakespeare

    A 1989 British drama film adapted for the screen and directed by Kenneth Branagh, based on William Shakespeare’s play of the same name about Henry V of England. The film stars Branagh in the title role with Paul Scofield, Derek Jacobi, Ian Holm, Emma Thompson, Alec McCowen, Judi Dench, Robbie Coltrane, Brian Blessed, and Christian Bale in supporting roles.

    The film received worldwide critical acclaim and has been widely considered one of the best Shakespeare film adaptations ever made. For her work on the film, Phyllis Dalton won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design and Kenneth Branagh, in his directorial debut, received Oscar nominations for Best Actor and Best Director.Read More »

  • Michael Almereyda – Hamlet (2000)

    1991-2000DramaMichael AlmereydaUSAWilliam Shakespeare

    William Shakespeare’s classic tale is brought to the screen for the third time in ten years in this modernized interpretation. Writer/director Michael Almereyda updates the story to the present day, where Hamlet (Ethan Hawke) is a struggling filmmaker whose personal and familial trials are set against the machinations of a huge production firm called the Denmark Corporation. Joining Hamlet as he seeks revenge for the death of his father and the wedding of his mother to an enemy are Kyle MacLachlan as Claudius, Julia Stiles as Ophelia, Bill Murray as Polonius, Sam Shepard as the ghost of Hamlet’s father, Diane Venora as Gertrude, Steve Zahn as Rosencrantz, and Dechen Thurman as Guildenstern. – allmovie.comRead More »

  • Jonathan Miller – Othello (1981)

    Drama1981-1990BBCJonathan MillerTVUnited KingdomWilliam Shakespeare

    As with most of Miller’s productions, the visual inspiration came from sixteenth-century Mediterranean painters, in this case Tintoretto, El Greco and Velasquez. At 205 minutes, this is one of the longest BBC Shakespeare productions, and the text is duly presented almost complete, with only minor trims to material rendered redundant by small-screen restaging.Read More »

  • Julie Taymor – The Tempest (2010)

    2001-2010ClassicsDramaJulie TaymorUSAWilliam Shakespeare

    Adaptation of Shakespeare’s play. Prospera, the female form of the male role in the original story, is banished from Milan by her brother. She finds herself stranded on an island with her four-year-old daughter and the beast Caliban. After 12 years of isolation, she gets the chance to take her revenge on her sibling, by causing a storm that wrecks his ship and strands those on board. Show lessRead More »

  • Roman Polanski – The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971)

    1971-1980DramaRoman PolanskiUnited KingdomWilliam Shakespeare

    A ruthlessly ambitious Scottish lord seizes the throne with the help of his scheming wife and a trio of witches.Read More »

  • Tony Richardson – Hamlet (1969)

    Tony Richardson1961-1970DramaUnited KingdomWilliam Shakespeare

    From IMDB
    The opening moments in any production of Hamlet are critical because the audience, assuming they know the play fairly well, will already be asking the ‘How are they going to do…’ question. It’s the ghost. Hamlet senior. What is he going to look like? In a film, it’s an even bigger challenge, because some people watching might expect a special effect. The approach here is a shot of bright light across the young Dane’s face and his voice echoing through the frame. The style of the film is already crystallised. It’s not about the surroundings or set dressing. It’s about the emotion of the piece, the words. In this key moment we are looking in his eyes as he hear’s his fathers words, and that’s a device used throughout the piece.Read More »

  • Joseph L. Mankiewicz – Julius Caesar (1953)

    Joseph L. Mankiewicz1951-1960ClassicsPoliticsUSAWilliam Shakespeare

    Synopsis:
    Brutus is convinced by a scheming band of Roman senators, led by Caius Cassius, that his dear friend Julius Caesar intends to dissolve the republic and install himself as monarch, and he joins a conspiracy to assassinate him. Brutus stirringly defends his actions, but when Mark Antony responds with a speech that plays upon the crowd’s love for their fallen leader, a battle between the two factions is assured.Read More »

  • Kenneth Branagh – Much Ado About Nothing (1993)

    1991-2000ComedyDramaKenneth BranaghUSAWilliam Shakespeare

    Young lovers Hero and Claudio, soon to wed, conspire to get verbal sparring partners and confirmed singles Benedick and Beatrice to wed as well.Read More »

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