Directed by and starring Ralph Fiennes, this one alienated me at first and I hated it for about 45 minutes. Set in modern Rome (although it doesn’t look like Rome), but with Shakespearean language, it really seemed to jar. I also didn’t like the brutal, bloody violence or the visuals in general, and I found Vanessa Redgrave hammy and overwrought. I don’t have an issue with modernising Shakespeare (machine guns, mobile phones), but it seemed to lack context: the where, when and why of the action.
The film improved as it went on. Fiennes is always watchable. And the ongoing thread of depicting action through TV news footage was a nice touch. There was even the neat joke of Jon Snow presenting news reports in Shakespearean English.
The themes of war, loyalty, pride and politics and so on are as relevant as they ever were, but I still wish it had been set in Ancient Rome. Even better would have been to see Fiennes performing it on stage.
The film improved as it went on. Fiennes is always watchable. And the ongoing thread of depicting action through TV news footage was a nice touch. There was even the neat joke of Jon Snow presenting news reports in Shakespearean English.
The themes of war, loyalty, pride and politics and so on are as relevant as they ever were, but I still wish it had been set in Ancient Rome. Even better would have been to see Fiennes performing it on stage.
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