The end of summer is always associated with Shakespeare in my mind. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been spending an evening or two each August taking in the latest pair of offerings from Montana Shakespeare in the Park, as well as numerous other nights watching a variety of film adaptations of the Bard’s plays. This year, MSIP is performing Richard III and The Comedy of Errors across Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho, and odds are they’ll be performing at least once or twice in your general area. Due to the advent of “Shakespeare season,” as I like to call it, I decided to highlight three modern Shakespeare films that are worth watching. I’ll highlight one tragedy, one history play, and one comedy, so as to give a broad view across Shakespeare’s oeuvre.
First up, since I watched it on Saturday night and it was the first to come to mind, is the 2015 Macbeth ... never mind that… The Scottish Play, starring Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs, Prometheus) and Marion Cotillard (Inception, La Vie en Rose). It features stunning cinematography and excellent performances, with both leads taking original approaches to their performances, putting a new spin on a story set in eleventh-century Scotland. It provides an even more visceral and grimy take than usual on an already dark play.
Another excellent adaptation of Shakespeare is Henry V (1989). It’s a bit older than the other two in this article, but still holds up well. It stars Kenneth Branagh (who also directed, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Valkyrie) in the title role, while also including a veritable who’s who of veteran British stage actors, including Dame Judi Dench (M from the Brosnan- and Craig-era James Bond films, Philomena), Derek Jacobi (Gladiator, The King’s Speech), and Ian Holm (Lord Of The Rings, The Fifth Element). Branagh takes a much more traditional approach towards direction and cinematography than Justin Kurzel, who directed Macbeth. That being said, both films play with similar themes, most notably how war affects those involved in it, on top of those that drive the original plays.
The third Shakespeare film adaptation I’m going to recommend is Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of As You Like It (2006). Shakespeare’s story of love, injustice, forgiveness, and mistaken identity is transported from the Forest of Arden in medieval Warwickshire, England, to a European colony in nineteenth-century Japan. It stars Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World, The Village) as Rosalind and Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda, Sophie’s Choice) as Jaques. It is understandably much lighter than either of the other two (since Henry IV is set in the midst of the Hundred Years’ War and Macbeth is, well, Macbeth).
I recommend all three films highly. Each takes a fresh approach to the original source material, and yet each stays true to the originals. Happy watching!
