“Taming of the Shrew” is labeled as a comedy, guaranteed to make the viewer ache from laughter when presented with scenes of starvation, physical exhaustion, and mental abuse. Once many of the comedic elements of the play are examined one realizes that they are not so funny as much as disturbing, hence the play’s reputation as a “problem play.”

Franco Zeffirelli’s 1967 film version of “Taming of the Shrew” is classified as a drama/romance. In fact, the film has more outright comedic elements than the play. However, it does not stay true to the genre of the text, which is closer to a horror drama rather than a comedy.

A significant event that is omitted in the text but included in the movie is Petruchio and Kate’s wedding. In Shakespeare’s play, the last thing that Kate says before the wedding is “I’ll see thee hanged on Sunday first” in response to Petruchio’s assertion that their wedding was that Sunday. She is later shown to be humiliated and distraught when Petruchio is late claiming “No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced to give my hand, opposed against my heart.

It is clear that Kate did not give consent to the wedding. Her humiliation is worsened when she is said to have shown up to the wedding in “a new hat and an old jerkin, a pair of breeches thrice turned, a pair of boots that have been candle cases” and more among his ridiculous ensemble meant to shame Kate. The text shows an unwilling Kate and a cruel Petruchio, especially on a day that is supposed to be filled with happiness, showing the underlying frightfulness of the play.

On the other hand, the film plays up Petruchio and Kate’s romance and portrays Kate as going willingly to the wedding. It is obvious that she is attracted to Petruchio from the beginning because throughout their banter and chasing, she smiles and laughs because she realizes she has met her match. When she is saying their vows, she has a change of heart and instead of saying “I will” she tries to scream out “I WILL NOT.”

However, Petruchio muffles her mouth and the entire debacle is played off as a joke, adding to the comedic value of the film instead of showing Kate being trapped in an abusive marriage. All of the people attending the wedding seem to be in on the joke, giggling at Kate instead of helping her. The music during the wedding and throughout the film is cheerful and bucolic, adding to the overall comedic effect of the film. The movie seems more like a romantic comedy, laughing off the horrific undertones present in the text.

Zeffirelli cast Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor as the two leads for “Taming of the Shrew” to make sure romance eclipsed the story. Burton and Taylor’s passionate love/hate relationship was well known to the public and was sure to be carried into the film. Zeffirelli made sure that comedic elements were included in the film, but failed to include the horrific themes so present in the text. At its core “The Taming of the Shrew” is about the sadistic mistreatment of a young woman, whose divergence from social norms deem her worthy of having her very essence erased.