Hacker Cinema
Macbeth
1971 · Film · 141 min
Directed by Roman Polanski
Scotland, 11th century. Driven by the twisted prophecy of three witches and the ruthless ambition of his wife, warlord Macbeth, bold and brave, but also weak and hesitant, betrays his good king and his brothers in arms and sinks into the bloody mud of a path with no return, sown with crime and suspicion.
2 positive1 mixedfrom 3 commenters
Where to watch
No streaming data for this title.
3 comments on Hacker News
A couple years after I graduated college, I came across the 1972 movie of Macbeth. The experience was so drastically different from reading it in high school that it seemed like a completely different play. Suddenly, it all made sense now that I had a visual context.
I remember one of the characters (Macduff?) covered in blood after a battle and grinning about how he had opened up his opponent "from the knave to the chop" with appropriate gestures. I remembered that specific phrase from high school and now, instead of being an abstract comment, it had actual meaning that I could relate to.
I'm of the opinion that most plays simply shouldn't be taught in high school English class. There just isn't enough context to really understand them.
Absolutely. Those are both extraordinary films.
The Polanski Macbeth is a bit dated for my tastes, but it's definitely a great film. Some day (perhaps even now) those Branagh films are going to feel dates as well, which kinda scares me. (None of the adaptations he made after that were extraordinary, either. His Hamlet is certainly important, but I wouldn't recommend it to a new Shakespeare fan.)
> Branagh's Henry V and Much Ado About Nothing were my gateway.
Branagh's Henry V and Polanski's Macbeth were my gateway.
Don't miss the 1995 Richard III adaptation with Sir Ian McKellen. The 2004 film version of The Merchant of Venice is also worth seeing, if only for Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons.