Posted this on my G+, felt like sharing with all y'all.
The following post is about Shakespeare and cinema, so if yousuck are not interested in those things, quit reading now.
I am a harsh critic of the modern takes on Romeo & Juliet and Hamlet, which both used actors without the talent or appreciation for Shakespeare, attaching Pretty Boy and rising star, a pre-Titanic Leonardo DiCaprio as Romeo in the former, and better-actor-but-out-of-his-depth-dies-in-most-of-
his-movies Ethan Hawke as Hamlet in the latter. The movies were both supported by one or two good actors, notably Peter Postlethwaite as Father Laurence and, surprisingly, Bill Murray takes a good turn as Polonius in Hamlet; but these few good roles could not stave off the numerous actors who weren't well cast, and were used to put a more attractive face on Shakespeare.
I guess this is what you'd argue was the goal: to broaden the appeal and get more young people interested in classic works, but I hated everything about these approaches. The substitutions of guns & drugs in lieu of swordplay and poisonings seemed awkward, especially in Romeo where I recall a special closeup on an assault rifle which was branded "LONGSWORD" down the barrel to account for the line "Pass me my longsword!" In Hamlet I was especially annoyed by Denmark and Norway being shown as competing corporations in establishing shots.
Aside from the bad acting, which is truly poisonous to Shakespearean plays which almost entirely revolve around the character dramas (Hamlet is often said to be too complicated to properly convey all the facets of; a prominent Shakespearean critic whose name momentarily eludes me often notes that King Lear is meant to be read and not performed for the King cannot be portrayed on stage), all this necessary movement to account for curious turns of phrase that no longer make sense in our modern world and lame awkwardly forced scenarios like the corporate competition soured me to them, although obviously I sat through them both (Hamlet twice!).
I bring all this up because they're making another one.
Coriolanus, the trailer for which I've included below, is being released at the end of this year, and based off of this trailer, I have to say... I'm intrigued.
Ralph Fiennes, an accomplished actor, will play the lead in this (in addition to directing) and was one of the Royal Shakespeare Company's top stars. Brian Cox, one of my absolute favourite actors, is also an accomplished Shakespearean actor (also spending years with RSC and played Burgundy to Laurence Olivier's Lear in the film adaptation), also stars. But!
There must always be a but. Gerard Butler, I am skeptical of. To my knowledge, and quick research, he hasn't a background in Shakespeare, although his first stage role was in a production of Coriolanus. Nonetheless, I am given to feel he has been brought in because of his increasing appeal in the United States, with his success in the God-awful Phantom of the Opera adaptation, This-Is-Sparta-kick-you-in-the-gut Leonidas and his turns in the romantic comedies PS I Love You and The Ugly Truth (a movie about which I could rant for an hour or so, but let's move on). I'm under the impression that Law Abiding Citizen was a failure, and thank goodness, though I'm sure starring alongside Jamie Foxx didn't hurt his career this side of the pond.
However, the quality of acting shown in the trailer is quite good from all parties, even Butler's delivery of the hate-filled 'If ever again I meet him, he is mine or I am his' is powerful.
I've never read Coriolanus, and though I know the plot, I can't tell you how many times they use the word 'sword', although I can tell you how many times they use the words 'assault rifle', 'TV', 'bad PR' and 'pundit'. I am hopeful that Fiennes has the directorial skill, not to mention faith in the audience, to avoid stupid tricks like emblazoning his weapons with nicknames like 'LONGSWORD' and panning the camera along them, Snatch style (which uses that particular close-up hilariously and well, I will note). I assume that as part of our suspension of disbelief, it will be accepted that Rome is still a powerful nation in this alternate modern reality, and thereby sidestep any need for corporate takeovers to replace bloody military battles.
I think that I shall remain hopeful that if anyone is going to ever pull this off, it's Ralph Fiennes, and now.
(Also this is a great excuse, being that I've never read Coriolanus, to put my recent acquisition of the Norton Shakespeare Anthology to good use.)
The following post is about Shakespeare and cinema, so if you
I am a harsh critic of the modern takes on Romeo & Juliet and Hamlet, which both used actors without the talent or appreciation for Shakespeare, attaching Pretty Boy and rising star, a pre-Titanic Leonardo DiCaprio as Romeo in the former, and better-actor-but-out-of-his-depth-dies-in-most-of-
his-movies Ethan Hawke as Hamlet in the latter. The movies were both supported by one or two good actors, notably Peter Postlethwaite as Father Laurence and, surprisingly, Bill Murray takes a good turn as Polonius in Hamlet; but these few good roles could not stave off the numerous actors who weren't well cast, and were used to put a more attractive face on Shakespeare.
I guess this is what you'd argue was the goal: to broaden the appeal and get more young people interested in classic works, but I hated everything about these approaches. The substitutions of guns & drugs in lieu of swordplay and poisonings seemed awkward, especially in Romeo where I recall a special closeup on an assault rifle which was branded "LONGSWORD" down the barrel to account for the line "Pass me my longsword!" In Hamlet I was especially annoyed by Denmark and Norway being shown as competing corporations in establishing shots.
Aside from the bad acting, which is truly poisonous to Shakespearean plays which almost entirely revolve around the character dramas (Hamlet is often said to be too complicated to properly convey all the facets of; a prominent Shakespearean critic whose name momentarily eludes me often notes that King Lear is meant to be read and not performed for the King cannot be portrayed on stage), all this necessary movement to account for curious turns of phrase that no longer make sense in our modern world and lame awkwardly forced scenarios like the corporate competition soured me to them, although obviously I sat through them both (Hamlet twice!).
I bring all this up because they're making another one.
Coriolanus, the trailer for which I've included below, is being released at the end of this year, and based off of this trailer, I have to say... I'm intrigued.
Ralph Fiennes, an accomplished actor, will play the lead in this (in addition to directing) and was one of the Royal Shakespeare Company's top stars. Brian Cox, one of my absolute favourite actors, is also an accomplished Shakespearean actor (also spending years with RSC and played Burgundy to Laurence Olivier's Lear in the film adaptation), also stars. But!
There must always be a but. Gerard Butler, I am skeptical of. To my knowledge, and quick research, he hasn't a background in Shakespeare, although his first stage role was in a production of Coriolanus. Nonetheless, I am given to feel he has been brought in because of his increasing appeal in the United States, with his success in the God-awful Phantom of the Opera adaptation, This-Is-Sparta-kick-you-in-the-gut Leonidas and his turns in the romantic comedies PS I Love You and The Ugly Truth (a movie about which I could rant for an hour or so, but let's move on). I'm under the impression that Law Abiding Citizen was a failure, and thank goodness, though I'm sure starring alongside Jamie Foxx didn't hurt his career this side of the pond.
However, the quality of acting shown in the trailer is quite good from all parties, even Butler's delivery of the hate-filled 'If ever again I meet him, he is mine or I am his' is powerful.
I've never read Coriolanus, and though I know the plot, I can't tell you how many times they use the word 'sword', although I can tell you how many times they use the words 'assault rifle', 'TV', 'bad PR' and 'pundit'. I am hopeful that Fiennes has the directorial skill, not to mention faith in the audience, to avoid stupid tricks like emblazoning his weapons with nicknames like 'LONGSWORD' and panning the camera along them, Snatch style (which uses that particular close-up hilariously and well, I will note). I assume that as part of our suspension of disbelief, it will be accepted that Rome is still a powerful nation in this alternate modern reality, and thereby sidestep any need for corporate takeovers to replace bloody military battles.
I think that I shall remain hopeful that if anyone is going to ever pull this off, it's Ralph Fiennes, and now.
(Also this is a great excuse, being that I've never read Coriolanus, to put my recent acquisition of the Norton Shakespeare Anthology to good use.)
I've yet to see his As You Like It from a few years back...
