Customer Reviews

Macbeth [VHS]

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The good news is that this feature is not the worst Macbeth production I've seen. As many of you may know, to date, the quintessential Macbeth has not been produced. But, in searching for a version that may be appropriate for my high school students either to be shown as a whole or in part, this one does pass some qualifications. Though some scenes are shortened and others left out, the basic heart of the play is intact. I believe the acting, cinematography, and pace of plot are sufficient to keep most students engaged, at least for the short term. Nevertheless, one negative is that the actor's soliloquies are most often done as voiced over thoughts rather than spoken words, much like the Orson Wells version. Unlike the Polanski version, this one doesn't strike me as being challengeable as inappropriate for students since there are no naked witches or gratuitously and over the top gory scenes. That's not to say, however, there are no scenes of war, sword play, and bloody death. True to the original, these scenes abound. But, they are no gorier than any version of CSI one may watch during prime-time network TV.
The bad news is that this feature is lacking in some of the quality standards we have come to expect in DVD format. Many times the picture appeared grainy and out of sharp focus. It was as if this DVD were a mere a copy of a VHS tape rather than what should be a copy of the original. The worst news is that towards the end of the movie, during Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking scene to be exact, the sound tract loses continuity with the video so that the actors' words do not match their lips. The flaw is slight at first but is much worse by the end, progressing to the point where there is at least a second between what you see and what you hear.
Some of the things on the disc case seem puzzling to me. The cover's front boasts the phrase, "Based on the novel by William Shakespeare." Uh, is novel really what they mean? The back cover produces even more puzzling chuckles. It contains several paragraphs of summary material about the plot and characters. It obviously is written by someone whose first language is not English. For example it says, "They did wrong thing again and again that resulted their nightmares. The struggle between conscience and wicked desire, the agitation and fear constructed the scenes which attract people to know detailed." They would have done well to have had it proof read before publication. According to the packaging, the disc is pressed in Taiwan. I would assume the company bought the rights to the film, but overall, it just has a real Bootleg feel to it.

This is Macbeth of the Scots, for the Scots. Purists will really like the authenticity of this interpretation as well as the refreshingly naturalistic style of acting. Jason Connery of Robin of Sherwood fame (and we won't mention a famous father) is pleasingly gritty and real while his Lady Macbeth is luscious and driven as LadyMac should be. They are supported by a cast of true scots- a good thing. Students seem to appreciate the understated style and real locations. There is a companion documentary which examines the themes and issues in a way that is not the least bit dry- a feat indeed. 'Screw your courage to the sticking place' and watch enthralled.

The film is set in the appropriate century and adheres pretty well to the Shakespearean text (although with considerable cuts from the play near the end of the film). I also believe that this film presents the best "Is this a dagger I see before me?" soliloquy I have seen on stage or in film. Macbeth goes into a chapel to pray silently (as he tormented with his intention to kill King Duncan), kneels before a cross, and then is presented with the inverted (perverted) shadow of the cross on the ground before him when the winds beat open the window and the moonlight comes cascading in behind the cross. Macbeth, seeking spiritual strength, instead sees the image of an inverted cross before him on the ground, and asks, "Is this a dagger I see before me?" This method of having Macbeth see a dagger is much better than the floating or imaginary daggers of other presentations in film and on stage that present Macbeth as a lunatic too early in the play. This scene alone draws me to the film.

However, the sound is very poor in some places-- at least on my VHS version. Also, the witches appear to Macbeth and Banquo during a beautiful, sunny day as they leave the battlefield. The "so foul and fair a day" remark that Macbeth makes seems out of place-- unless it is supposed to be some anti-war commentary about the battle itself. But traditionally, the reading of this line is that the foulness is the weather, and the fairness of the day is their great victory on the battlefield. The foul weather should be, of course, in anticipation of the arrival of the witches. But in this film, the witches greet Macbeth as if angels, floating away in bubbles instead of disappearing into fog and darkness. I don't like that.

I also don't like the number of lines that are cut, especially during the final battle at the end of the play. Much is lost.

In the end, I still appreciate this version of Macbeth as one the best on film. I have the film in VHS format and was hoping to purchase it in DVD format. Finally, it is out on amazon, but not for a standard US DVD player. I hope it becomes available in a playable format soon.