I'm digging for material here, kids.Last night, I watched a good, innovative adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. I adore Shakespeare, despite not being as versed in the nuances of the Bard as some are--i.e. I didn't major in English Lit in college, but I had a helluva English teacher in high school who started my love affair with old William. In college, I had one class that was all Shakespeare and I thoroughly enjoyed it. But I'm straying yet again.
Last night's Macbeth. The series is called Shakespeare Retold and is a production of the BBC. I found it on Netflix one night and thought, "What the heck!" Turns out, it was a good choice. This modern version of Macbeth features Scottish actor James McAvoy and the woman who played Zoe in MI-5/Spooks, Keeley Hawes. The story line is McAvoy as a successful chef who murders his mentor and the restaurant's head chef/owner--Duncan Docherty--in order to gain the glory of achieving a Michelin three-star rating at Docherty's.
The best part of the adaptation are the Bin Men--a trio of trash collectors in the role of the hecates/clairvoyants from the traditional play.
It's rather well done (no pun intended) and if you like Shakespeare, this is certainly enjoyable and worth the time. It's also a decent way of introducing Shakespeare to someone without reading it or paying to see it at your local center for the performing arts.
That's all I've got for today. Shakespeare. Here's hoping for better content tomorrow.
5 comments:
Looks good! Getting a movie *I* want to see to the top of our queue, well, that's another project.
I not only was a lit major, but I'm friends with a geologist who began hosting popular Shakespeare readings/potlucks because he was worried he wasn't well-rounded. They've gone on for years and are also a great introduction to W. S. Mark insists we use Arden editions of the plays because the footnotes are better.
Of all the modern adaptations, I have to say I like Clueless the best. Not Shakespeare, but good fun.
ME: You could do what Bee and I do: have two separate Netflix accounts.
Shakespeare rocks!
Sounds good--now if I can find my application for Netflix . . . maybe I could send for it, as I'm sure no where near me would carry it.
Thanks for the review, I'm looking forward to finding it and seeing it for myself.
I've never been able to get into Shakespear, so maybe an adaptation like that would be a good intro. Thanks Tewkes.
Wholly Burble: Welcome to COT! This adaptation of Shakespeare is definitely worth it. Let me know what you think once you've seen it.
Cele: If you've had a hard time getting into Shakespeare prior to this, this is a great way to get into it. The same DVD includes one of Shakespeare's comedies--Much Ado About Nothing. Of the two, Macbeth was well done and MAAN was decent. Either way--I'd recommend this medium as a starting point.
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