william shakespeare

Notebook Reviews: SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE

John Madden – 1998. Shakespeare In Love is very enjoyable period romantic comedy-drama with an excellent cast. Both Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow deliver strong performances in the lead roles, but the stand-out turn is from Ben [...]

January 14, 2022

Uncovering Curiosities: Justin Kurzel’s MACBETH

Director Justin Kurzel’s 2015 screen adaptation of Macbeth is a luscious piece of cinematic grit. It’s a down-and-dirty version of Shakespeare’s tragedy but it’s a hollow film that unfortunately has had it’s heart ripped out through its [...]

September 30, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Roger Corman’s TOWER OF LONDON

Tower Of London is a Shakespeare mash-up woven through the horror genre. This 1962 Roger Corman film takes elements of Richard III, Hamlet and Macbeth and crafts the tale of Richard of Gloucester (Vincent Price), the brother of a dying king who will [...]

May 30, 2021

Review: Supernatural Comedy GHOST LIGHT Has Quirky Fun With Shakespeare’s Macbeth

A quirky supernatural comedy, John Stimpson’s Ghost Light pokes a lot of fun at the world of theatre and all its ticks and eccentricities. The film (named after the lone light always left burning on a stage) sees a theatre troupe arrive in a quiet [...]

June 17, 2019

Blu-ray Review: Vincent Price Just Can’t Wait To Be King In Roger Corman’s TOWER OF LONDON

February 18, 2017

DVD Review: William Shakespeare And Al Pacino Collide In LOOKING FOR RICHARD

The complexity of the language of William Shakespeare’s plays can be off-putting for many and often a barrier to enjoying his work. When we watch a production on the stage or screen it can be difficult to imagine that the actors performing his [...]

November 6, 2016

DVD Review: The Play’s The Thing With Tom Stoppard’s ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD

Tom Stoppard’s screen adaptation of his own play is an offbeat comedy starring Gary Oldman and Tim Roth as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two minor characters from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Stoppard puts the two men front-and-centre, riffing [...]

February 14, 2016

Blu-ray Review: Michael Fassbender’s MACBETH Fails To Achieve Greatness

Justin Kurzel’s screen adaptation of Macbeth is a luscious piece of cinematic grit. It’s a down-and-dirty version of Shakespeare’s tragedy but it’s a hollow film that unfortunately has had it’s heart ripped out through its translation. The [...]

January 30, 2016

Blu-ray Review: GAME OF THRONES Season One And Two Steelbook Collectors Sets

David Benioff and D.B. Weiss managed the near impossible when they brought George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series to the small screen. Stunning production values and epic locations gave Game of Thrones a look that was comparable [...]

October 25, 2015

Introducing The Main Trailer And New Posters For MACBETH

Most people will think we don’t need another screen adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Then you see this scorching trailer for the Michael Fassbender/Marion Cotillard drama – and you know that you need to see it. The below [...]

September 5, 2015

So Foul And Fair A Day I Have Not Seen: New MACBETH Posters Featuring Fassbender And Cotillard

It must be a Michael Fassbender portrait kind of week. Here are two new character posters featuring Fassbender and Marion Cotillard as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in the forthcoming adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The gritty look [...]

August 28, 2015

English Teachers Rejoice At The New Trailer For MACBETH With Michael Fassbender & Marion Cotillard

Justin Kurzel’s Macbeth went down a storm in Cannes – and it’s easy to see why. This looks to be a very earthy adaptation of William Shakespeare’s classic tragedy and Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard seem to make a wonderful pairing [...]

June 4, 2015

DVD Reviews: Orson Welles’ TOO MUCH JOHNSON, THE IMMORTAL STORY And FALSTAFF/CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT

Orson Welles was a true master of cinema. He was a larger than life character who lived for film. Welles was a cinematic savant, a man who organically knew the language of the medium. After a career on the stage and radio, he exploded onto the film [...]

May 23, 2015

All Hail: Check Out These MACBETH Clips And Michael Fassbender Shall Be King Hereafter

Birdman was giving Movies In Focus the cinematic wood back in 2014 – in 2015 it’s Macbeth. I’ll admit it’s weird that this has a 300 meets Braveheart vibe going on, but who doesn’t want to see Michael Fassbender swinging his [...]

May 23, 2015

New Images From MACBETH Starring Michael Fassbender And Marion Cotillard

Cineasts, culturalists and people with general good taste should be waiting with great anticipation for director Justin Kurzel’s screen adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Roman Polanski’s version is usually seen as the definitive [...]

April 29, 2015