The goal of this piece of writing is to make a comparative study of the various works of Shakespeare, but not as they are presented in their written form. Rather, I am choosing to explore and compare his works as they have been presented and adapted for contemporary audiences through the medium of film. What is lost in adaptation? What is gained? Do contemporary accoutrements lend themselves to a deeper understanding of the original works; does the "magic" of editing and special effects lend itself to a similar deeper understanding, or does it instead make the work seem too "real?"
Rather than seek out various adaptations based upon their critical merits or demerits, I chose to instead focus only on the most recent adaptations of any given work. I feel that regardless of the quality, or lack thereof, of the films chosen in this manner, choosing them by this method best serves to illuminate how the perception and adaptation of Shakespeare's work has progressed for a contemporary audience. To serve this end, the focus of my work will be directed towards Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, O (the most recent adaptation of Othello) and Ten Things I Hate About You (the most recent adaptation of Taming of the Shrew).
While all of the films have been adapted so that their settings are in today's United States, what remains unchanged in adaptation from film-to-film is often quite varied, if not interesting and, perhaps overly, ambitious.
Two of the films, Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet, retain Shakespeare's original dialogue. While portrayed as 21st century college students, businessmen and gang-bangers, the characters spend the entirety of the films performing their lines as Shakespeare had originally written them (save for ...
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...Touchstone, 1999.
Hamlet. Dir. Michael Almereyda. Perf. Ethan Hawke, Julia
Styles, and Bill Murray. Miramax, 2000.
O. Dir. Tim Blake Nelson. Perf. Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles,
Josh Hartnett, and Rain Phoenix. Lions Gate, 2001.
Romeo & Juliet. Dir. Baz Luhrmann. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio,
Claire Danes, John Leguizamo. 20th Century Fox, 1996.
Shakespeare, William. "The Most Excellent and Lamentable
Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet." Norton Shakespeare. New
York: 1997. pp. 865-942.
--. "The Taming of the Shrew." The Norton Shakespeare. New
York: 1997. pp. 133-202.
--. "The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of
Denmark." The Norton Shakespeare. New York: 1997. pp.
1659-1756.
--. "The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of
Venice." The Norton Shakespeare. New York: 1997. pp.
2091-2174.
It seems that modern Hollywood filmmakers are as much in love with Shakespeare's plays as were the 16th century audiences who first enjoyed them. Recent updates of Hamlet (1996) and Romeo and Juliet (1996), both highly successful movies, bear this out, as well as the two best film versions of Richard III; Sir Laurence Olivier's 1954 "period piece", and Ian McKellan's more modern interpretation (1995).
The works of William Shakespeare have been one of the diligent hotspots for adaptation and appropriation. We see dramatic adaptation of Shakespearean playtexts began as early as Restoration period. Different fields like poetry, novels, advertisements, and movies have connected themselves with Shakespeare as well. The adaptation of Shakespeare makes him fit for new social settings and distinctive political philosophies.
“The most filmed of all plays, ‘Romeo and Juliet’, with its universal themes… remains uniquely adaptable for any time period,” (Botnick, 2002). Directors Franco Zeffirelli (1968) and Baz Luhrman (1996) provide examples of the plays adaption to suit the teenage generation of their time. Identifying the key elements of each version: the directors intentions, time/place, pace, symbols, language and human context is one way to clearly show how each director clearly reaches their target audience. Overall however Luhrman’s adaptation would be more effective for capturing the teenage audience.
When a play is presented on film, the director takes the script, and with poetic license, interprets it. A film not only contains the actual words of the author (in this case Shakespeare), but it includes action, acting, and cinematographic techniques; the three are used to better portray the author’s story. Using these elements, the director’s interpretation of the plot is reinforced. The film provides symbolic images and a visual interpretation, hence Shakespeare’s play “Macbeth” is better understood by the viewers.
Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet is a film that converts Shakespeare’s famous play into a present-day setting. The film transforms the original texts into modern notions, whilst still employing Shakespearean language. Compared to Franco Zeffirelli’s adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, Luhrmann’s picture is easier for a teenage audience to understand and relate to because of his modernisations. Despite the passing of four centuries Shakespeare’s themes of love, hate, violence, family and mortality remain the same regardless of the setting.
Baz Lurhmann’s creation of the film Romeo and Juliet has shown that today’s audience can still understand and appreciate William Shakespeare. Typically, when a modern audience think of Shakespeare, they immediately think it will be boring, yet Lurhmann successfully rejuvenates Romeo and Juliet. In his film production he uses a number of different cinematic techniques, costumes and a formidably enjoyable soundtrack; yet changes not one word from Shakespeare’s original play, thus making it appeal to a modern audience.
William Shakespeare has provided some of the most brilliant plays to ever be performed on the stage. He is also the author of numerous sonnets and poems, but he is best known for his plays such as Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Romeo and Juliet. In this essay I would like to discuss the play and movie, "Romeo and Juliet", and also the movie, Shakespeare in Love.
Shakespeare’s influence continues even in the world of film, not invented until several hundreds of years after his death in 1616. As well as the inevitable BBC remakes of most of his plays, newer adaptation such as Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ (starring Keanu Reeves and Denzel Washington) and Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ (featuring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio) have met critical acclaim and can be credited with bringing Shakespeare to a new generation not inclined to visiting theatres.
William Shakespeare has become landmark in English literature. One must be familiar with the early days of English literature in order to comprehend the foundation of much of more modern literature’s basis. Shakespeare’s modern influence is still seen clearly in many ways. The success of Shakespeare’s works helped to set the example for the development of modern dramas and plays. He is also acknowledged for being one of the first writers to use any modern prose in his writings.
Cohen, Walter, J.E. Howard, K. Eisaman Maus. The Norton Shakespeare. Vol. 2 Stephen Greenblatt, General Editor. New York, London. 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-92991-1
Shakespeare’s plays are a product of the Elizabethan theatrical context in which they were first performed. A lot of pressure was put on Shakespeare as he wrote his plays because he was not allowed to upset the royal family. His style would have been different than others in those times and a lot more thought has gone into his writing than people listening would think. Usually, the audience take for granted the cleverness and thought of Shakespeare’s writing, however, now we have studied and gone into great detail about Shakespeare’s writing, we can appreciate it more than they did:
William Shakespeare and the new millennium seem to be diametrically opposed, yet his works are having a renaissance of their own after 400 years in the public domain. Why have some major film producers revisited his works when their language and staging would seem to be hopelessly outdated in our society?Perhaps because unlike modern writers, who struggle with political correctness, Shakespeare speaks his mind with an uncompromising directness that has kept its relevance in this otherwise jaded world.
Scott, Mark W. Shakespearean Criticism: Volume 8, Excerpts from the Criticism of William Shakespeare's Plays and Poetry, from the First Published Appraisals to Current Evaluations. Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1987. Print.
Through the elements of technique portrayed in this essay, it is clear to see that Shakespeare is able to influence the reader through soliloquies, imagery, and dual understanding. This overall influence being both the communication of a deeper meaning, and a more complex understanding of the events and statements within Hamlet.
Although Luhrmann’s loyalty to the original story may be questioned, his film has proven to be entertaining and successful. The film has outpaced the other adaptations of Romeo and Juliet and other Shakespearean plays as can be seen from the approximately 30 million dollars that it made through tickets and box office sales. Just as there are avid followers of the original tale by Shakespeare, Luhrmann’s version has a big fan base which, since its release 1996, has seen the film reach cult status and it can be said that Luhrmann has modernized Romeo and Juliet just as it can be said that he has ruined a brilliant masterpiece that was fine the way it was.