William
Shakespeare’s plays are known for the words, and how poetically this prose is
able to replace action that goes unseen onstage. There is a natural tendency to
lean heavily upon Shakespeare’s words when adapting his work to screen, and
only the strongest of visual directors have managed to avoid this pitfall.
Akira Kurosawa’s adaptation of “King Lear,” Ran,
is a perfect example of a successful film adaptation. Despite its failures in
the box office, Roman Polanski’s Macbeth is a truly visceral film experience
that captures the essence of Shakespeare’s play while utilizing the strength in
the medium of film.
Released as the
first project from Playboy Productions and produced by Hugh Hefner, this raw
1971 film version of Macbeth had all of the elements necessary to increase
appeal in pop culture. It didn’t matter how graphic the violence and nudity
was, or how that it was originally given an X-rating (this was prior to the
creation of NC-17 as a rating). Even the parallels many would find between
Polanski’s real-life tragedy (the horrific murder of wife Sharon Tate by
Charles Manson three years earlier) and the gruesome content in the film, was
not enough to increase the ticket sales for the erroneous January release.
Instead, Polanski’s Macbeth is an
adaptation which has only increased in prestige over the years, maturing like a
fine wine.
The famous
tragedy is about the psychological horrors of guilt, which occur after a king
is murdered for ruthless ambition in medieval Scotland
Despite
comparisons to Polanski’s real-life losses, it is in the willingness to show
the more violent moments of “Macbeth” which makes it so memorable, especially
in the killing of the king. Despite taking place off-stage in Shakespeare’s
play, Polanski gives us a raw and messy murder sequence that is deliberately
paced to emphasis the impact of Macbeth’s choice on his eventual moral decay
and physical demise. This is just one of the choices that Polanski makes to
increase the visual storytelling in Shakespeare’s play, along with strong
cinematography, editing, fight choreography, and sprinklings of graphic nudity
that was critically criticized as an added element meant to appease the Playboy
Enterprises. Decades later, however, Polanski’s Macbeth is remembered as one of
the most faithful film adaptations, soon to be in competition with a 2015
release starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard.
The Criterion
Collection Blu-ray release includes the usual foldout insert, which features an
essay by film critic Terrence Rafferty. The Blu-ray release also offers a new
4K digital restoration of the film, approved by Polanski and including a 3.0
surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. There are also some new special
features, including a making-of documentary with interviews from key cast/crew
members, as well as the vintage extras such as the 1971 making-of documentary
with rare behind-the-scenes footage. Also included in the vintage extras is an
episode of “The Dick Cavett Show” from 1971 featuring an interview with
co-screenwriter Kenneth Tynan, as well as a 1972 episode from the television
series, “Aquarius,” featuring Polanski and theater director Peter Coe. Trailers
are also included in the special features.
Entertainment Value:
7/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 9/10
Historical
Significance: 8.5/10
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