... not beneficial to the understanding of the drama. The reasons I wish to share include, the modern objects in the movie off-set the mood of the classic play, the modern version does not give the full effect of the original classic, and the movie strays from the original play which would cause confusion. In explaining how the modern ... work which should not need to be defended but it has come to that because new writers want to make things entertaining not original. In addition to the modern version not giving the full effect, it also strays from the original play which could cause confu...

• Word Count: 1130
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... . A recent BBC poll rated Hamlet the most important artwork of the millennium, and the play has been put to film at least 43 times (Behrens and Rosen 711). Franco Zeffirelli's version of the play accounts for one of these. Zeffirelli directed this film in 1990, and it's sets and costumes were Oscar-nominated. Mel Gibson played the part of Hamlet, a part ... escapes, I suppose, the charge of being a mere movie-star Hamlet. But his movieness still shows, not so much in his appearance as in his voice, which is growly and unstable, cracking too easily" (Denby 767). Gibson doesn't want the au...

• Word Count: 1208
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... , in 1996, another film director, Baz Lurhmann, portrayed Romeo and Juliet as a contemporary version, just as Shakespeare did in his day. Critics argue on if Baz Luhrmann's version was more of Shakespeare's intent than Franco Zeferelli's version. In my opinion, I believe that Luhrmann's version was more to Shakespeare's intent than Zeferelli's version because it had a contemporary setting. Shakespeare meant for almost all of the plays ... to the party. Mercutio, with his silly character, came to the party as a drag queen. Everyone was in costumes. The costumes added more color to the sce...

• Word Count: 704
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• Grade Level: High School

... "Macbeth". Some scenes were altered or removed, but they were only changed to make the transition from the book to a full-length movie successful. Polonskis, 1971 movie version of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" is a good adaptation of the text and is appropriate to be viewed in school because the ... setting. The audience can feel the evil that is present within the setting. The characters are displayed with precision in the 1971 movie version of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth". Polonski did an excellent job portraying the characters of the play accurately on the screen. The audience .....

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... 1968 Franco Zeffirelli's version of the classic Shakespearean tale of love, Romeo and Juliet was released. It has since been critically acclaimed and has become the standard by which all other productions are measured. In 1996 Baz Luhrman set out to create a different sort of story, one full of action and ... suspense moving at a terrific pace. This different aim has resulted in a film that is in sharp contrast to the "original" version. The two productions of Romeo and Juliet set out to achieve different results ... the wedding. Under the direction of Luhrman, the change from one sad e...

• Word Count: 533
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• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... plays Macbeth. Some scenes were altered or removed, but they were only changed to make the transition from the book to a full-length movie successful. Polanski movie version of William Shakespeare's Macbeth is a good adaptation of the text, the characters are displayed with precision and the supernatural activities ... through sounds and lighting. The audience can feel the evil that is present within the setting. The characters are displayed accurately in the movie version of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. A good depiction of a character helps make the story more interesting to the reade...

• Word Count: 577
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... than it would to attract an audience in the 1500's. Props have also advanced. I intend to briefly talk about the differences I observed in the text version of the play and the movie. When watching the film "Much Ado About Nothing" the first difference I noticed was the setting. The movie is set ... the men are wearing earthy tones. There is music playing that emphasizes the happy and carefree setting. It is impossible to get this from the text version of the play. Hileman 2 The next difference I observed was as Don Pedro and his men came into sight. Denzel Washington, an African American...

• Word Count: 785
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• Grade Level: High School

... both very interesting interpretations of the play written by William Shakespeare. It was fascinating because both were the same play but were clearly very different. In the Zeffirelli version, Mel Gibson played a very good Hamlet. The scene where he confronts Ophelia and tells her that he does not love her particularly moved me. I think ... out of the room, Ophelia crying and holding the pendant that Hamlet gave to her in the past. In the PBS movie version, we did not see the same scene of Hamlet and Ophelia, but the fishmonger scene with Hamlet and Polonius was very amusing. I think tha...

• Word Count: 405
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• Grade Level: High School

... a worldwide, best selling soundtrack. A film that will kick you in the heart. Although it will probably not be considered a classic at par with the Zeffirelli version, I liked this film a lot more than the stiff, Coles Notes version the Italian director served up. Baz Lugrmann's Romeo And Juliet is a very interesting and intriguing interpretation of Shakespeare's tale of two star-crossed lovers, and ... I heartily recommend it. **** 1/2 stars. = Lucas Brown ***** Excellent show, DO NOT miss it (pay the $ 15.00) **** Very good show, worth the full price but try seeing a matinee. *** Not ...

• Word Count: 380
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• Grade Level: High School

The production that I selected to critically review is Baz Luhrmann's William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet. Luhrmann's version of forbidden love and the eventual suicide deaths of young Juliet and Romeo is translated with a unique integration of modern setting and language without losing the original texture and meaning ... windows, locks fair daylight out, And makes himself an artificial night: Black and portentous must this humor prove Unless good counsel may the cause remove." (I,i 132 - 143) In this film version, Ted Montague splits this speech with his wife "Caroline", giving her a more...

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... what other plays of his had been turned into contemporary versions. I decided to look at my favorite Shakespearean play of all time, Othello. I know that there was at least one version made, O, which starred Josh Har Mekhi Phifer and Julia Stiles. The reason I"m writing is to find out if this adaptation of the classic play by Shakespeare worked better for the ... critics. Many critics do not like modernized versions of classics, so I was intrigued as to what they thought about the new version of Othello. Did they find the modernization successful? Were the critics happy or disappointed ...

• Word Count: 485
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• Grade Level: High School

The "old" Romeo and Juliet movie has many similarities and differences compared to the contemporary version. The first release of the movie and the modern adaptation both follow the original story line. The two films diverge in their portrayal ... when approaching the theory of fate and the conclusion of the play. The physical features of the two pictures are distinct. The weaponry used in the first version included swords and daggers while the recent edition used guns. This shows the difference in the time periods in which the films took place. This also ... This shows that the play was a ...

• Word Count: 396
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• Grade Level: High School

... to have power drove him to kill anyone that stood in his way. The consequence of Macbeth's action was eventually his downfall. In my opinion the play was a far better version of Macbeth. The play was more detailed and concise, the movie had a lot more blood and gore, and the added scenes made it hard to follow. The added scenes in ... Roman Polanski's version of Macbeth made it very hard to follow. The play was hard enough to understand as it is, but the added scenes made it more confusing. Like when the porter ... come later in the story. The play was very violent, especially when all...

• Word Count: 270
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... about his love for Olivia. Orsino speaks of his love for Olivia, so right in the beginning of the play, we know all about Orsino. However, when Orsino says, "So full of shapes is fancy that it alone is high fantastical" (I.i.14-15), we begin to wonder if Orsino is really in love with Olivia at all. This comment leads us ... that he needs to see her in her female clothes, and continues to call her Cesario, which may lead us to believe that Orsino is in love with the male version of Viola. I don't think Orsino really knows who he is love with, or what kind of woman, or man for that matter...

• Word Count: 840
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• Grade Level: High School

... are seen as Jupiter, the ruling planet. This goes along with the theory that a "positive three" can see himself as a King ruling over everyone. Even know we don't know the full name of Macbeth (which is how you determine what numerological number you are); it is assumed that he would also be a three, and if that were true, Shakespeare and Macbeth ... would share qualities of each other, which could have been what Shakespeare was aiming for, a distorted version of himself. In contrast, the number threes could have also been in the play for the sake of balancing the storyline out. In spir...

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... Juliet', a long, dense poem. This poem in turn was adapted from a French prose account written by Pierre Boiastuau, who had used an Italian version by Bandello proposed in 1554. Bandello's poem was further imitated from Luigi da Porto's version in 1525 of a story by Masuccio Salernitano. Though 'Romeo and Juliet' is displayed as a romantic love story, this play is classified as ... ...

• Word Count: 842
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... , the audience's confusion between which was the reflection and the actor himself further added to the personal struggle expressed in the soliloquy. Even more so effective, however, was Gregory Doran's version (GB, 2009) where a fourth wall has been created: it began by Hamlet looking away from the camera to begin with but then quickly zooms in on his face making it ... the burying of his sanity. To similar effect, although we found this a very weak and ineffective adaptation of Hamlet and the insanity and struggle of his character, was Laurence Olivier's version (GB, 1948). Again, Hamle...

• Word Count: 718
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... are visually emotional subtitles throughout the movie directing the audience to understand and engage in the most famous love story in an entirely new way. One can argue that this version of Romeo and Juliet would be understood even without spoken words. The camera-work tells the story as clearly as the text. There are very few moments in this movie ... interpretations of the film makers. Unlike other productions of Romeo and Juliet which I've seen, I believe the actual meanings and ideas of Shakespeare's story are more easily digested in this version. This movie knows it's audience wel...

• Word Count: 734
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

In this version of Othello, Odin James (Othello) is an all-star high school basketball player. Instead of a war against the Turks, Odin's basketball team has made it to the state playoffs. The ... explains to Othello/O what Iago has done. In retrospect, however, some scenes were direct translations of certain scenes in Othello that did not seem to fit well in this contemporary version. Iago/Hugo's unexpected "from this point on I speak no more" is random and arbitrary in the context of the movie's plot. The idea of giving a scarf (that looks like a handkerchief ... ...

• Word Count: 570
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... . "For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man" (King James Version.1ch.11.8-9). This idea gives way to the treatment of women by the men in Shakespeare's play. The idea that men are superior to women could have easily been taken ... Bible that informs The Taming of the Shrew. "So I brought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for a homer of barley, and a half homer of barley (King James Version.Ho.3.2). This is an example of women being treated as property, a woman is bought in the Bible and there...

• Word Count: 525
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• Grade Level: High School

... turned into a movie in 1999. Popular celebrities became Shakespearean actors using old English. The play which was once a romantic comedy was transformed by Hollywood into something, well different. The movie version of the book was interesting. The maker had a different point of view in how the film was shot and how the characters acted. The film and the book had some ... architecture and light colors made the room look majestic. The play performed by Bottom and the other workers was hilarious. It was a lot better than that part in the written version. Even though the movie was good, i...

• Word Count: 643
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• Grade Level: High School

... penis, explains his exclamation of 'I am maim'd forever' reinforces the fact of Iago's pleasure in the touching of male genitalia. When the aspects of homosexuality as presented in Shakespeare's version of Othello is contrasted to Oliver Parker's representation, a more distinct sense of Iago's relationship with men can be observed. Constant hugging and touching, especially around male genitals, towards Cassio and ... ...

• Word Count: 902
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• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... "A Comedy of Errors" and Omkara, an adaptation of Othello. One of his most most respected and beloved plays, "Romeo and Juliet," has inspired scores of movies such as Baz Luhrmann's version starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. To add to this, there have been countless stage productions of his plays. His works continue to captivate audiences to this day. His most ... ...

• Word Count: 1032
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• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... a victimizer. Malvolio is the only one in the story, in my opinion, to suffer, and I would like to see him seek revenge on the other characters for his suffering. My version of the play would include a sharp twist of the plot from a comic love story to a dark brutal tragedy of revenge. If I were directing the play I would have Malvolio say, "I will ... ...

• Word Count: 833
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... Shakespeare's to readers of today. Since the first time man and woman met, the human being has been aware of sexual jealousy. Solomon described jealousy in the New King James' Version of the Holy Bible, "For jealousy is a husband's fury; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance."" (Prov. 6:34). Jealousy is still and eminent, yet evil force in ... ...

• Word Count: 936
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School