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2004
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| Macbeth by Roman Polanski |
Macbeth is always a bloody play, but seen by Roman Polanski it is steeped so far in blood that it's almost surprising that the actors actually survived to make other films.
Right from the start, through the horrific fighting injuries to the execution of Cawdor - where chained by the neck he deliberately leaps off a platform - everyone suffers terribly. Even the witches seem to be hurting, their behaviour driven not by cruelty or a simple knowledge of what will be but by an all -encompassing horror of what is.
Shortened dramatically, yet dramatically improved by the shortenings, Polanski made this film whilst recovering from the horrors he had personally experienced by the Manson murders. His own wife NAME had been murdered and some a working out of this unnatural horror in the blood-lust and gore evident in this production of Macbeth.
Financed by the well-known fine art lover Hugh Hefner this is a production that works well whilst seemingly being patched together from disparate parts from which a classic artistic work should really never emerge.
For Scotland the unforgiving Welsh mountains give a great atmosphere of intent and helpless doom as Macbeth murders and murders, as the witches call down evil spirits and Lady Macbeth sleepwalks naked through the ancient castle. The horror of Shakespeare's most horrific play has never been brought more fearfully to the screen or stage.
Pity the real Macbeth's memory, who by all accounts was a charming Thane with a witty and urbane manner - for the time...
Further reading:
Macbeth:
Polanski:
Filmography: