Macbeth

Starring:Jon Finch, Francesca Annis, Martin Shaw, Terence Bayler, John Stride, Nicholas Selby, Stephen Chase (II), Paul Shelley, Maisie MacFarquhar, Elsie Taylor, Noelle Rimmington, Noel Davis, Sydney Bromley, Richard Pearson (II), Patricia Mason, Michael Balfour, Andrew McCulloch, Keith Chegwin, Andrew Laurence, Bernard Archard
Director: Roman Polanski
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Two of England's greatest actors, Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Judi Dench, electrify in this lean, stripped-down production of Shakespeare's darkest tragedy. In the wake of a battle, the Scottish warrior Macbeth (McKellen, Gods and Monsters, Lord of the Rings) receives a prophecy from a trio of witches: He shall be king. When fate doesn't unfold quickly enough, Macbeth and his even more ambitious wife (Dench, Shakespeare in Love, Iris) decide to give it a push. McKellen sweats anxiously and oozes a creeping lust for power, while Dench is hypnotically vicious from her first moment. For audiences used to their film careers, this grand pair will seem young as pups (this TV movie is from 1979, adapted from an acclaimed Royal Shakespeare Company production)--but that only gives them an added edge of sex and vigor. Extras include the older McKellen thoughtfully commenting on the play and this classic production. --Bret Fetzer

Product Description

Murder, prophecy, and witches! MACBETH returns, starring Academy Award®-nominee Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) and Academy Award®-winner Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love), on DVD for the first time anywhere. First broadcast on Britain's Thames Television in 1978, this stark, compelling performance of Shakespeare's MACBETH retains the entire cast of the original 1976 Royal Shakespeare Company production, directed by three-time Tony Award®-winner Trevor Nunn (The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby, Cats, Les Mis rables). When a trio of witches prophesize Macbeth's (Ian McKellen) ascension to the throne, Lady Macbeth (Judi Dench) pushes her husband into a murderous spree. But once crowned king of Scotland, Macbeth sees ghastly visions, fueled by guilt and a new prophecy, that ensure his ultimate downfall. Also starring John Woodvine (Wuthering Heights) as "Banquo," Ian McDiarmid (Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi) as "the porter", and Bob Peck (Jurassic Park) as "Macduff."

System Requirements:

Running Time 1316 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Customer Reviews:

disappointed.......2007-05-09

I was disappointed that the description of this DVD stated that it was closed captioned, but it is not. Since the captioning was the main selling point for me, it was a useless purchase.

A test for great theatre.......2007-03-30

This version of Macbeth probes that for having the greatest theatrical experience all you need is a superb text, real actors and an IDEA. Trevor Nunn produced an unique experience, and the McKellen/Dench duo is simply perfect. Specially her... no one else can stand besides Dame Judi daring to be called "Lady Macbeth".
Yes, the quality is not as we could wish (it is 1978 and for TV!) but nevertheless the whole film blows up any big studio production of Shakespeare`s bloody text.
Again: master text, great actors and someone with an idea. That`s theatre!

Definitive Macbeth.......2007-01-22

I liked this DVD very much. I watched several versions of that play, but this one is my favourite now, I can't imagine a more brilliant and powerful Macbeth & Wife than sir Ian and dame Judi. Unforgettable.

Awesome Judi.......2007-01-16

If you are a Dame Judi Dench fan and you haven't seen Macbeth, you're missing a most ingenious performance. She never fails to entertain and this phenomenal award winning actress will really astound you with this rivetting performance. In the entertainment business there are good actors and great performers...Jude is "entertainment squared" in Macbeth.
In one part she emits the most eeriest primal scream I've ever heard. With Dame Judi she makes you believe she is the character in a way no one else can. Dench fans..this is a must.

A performance of historic importance........2007-01-07

Trevor Nunn's 1979 Thames Television production of "Macbeth," directed by Philip Casson, is a dark, stripped-down, claustrophobic version that emphasizes the furnace-fire terror of Shakespeare's play. As star Ian McKellen tells us in an introduction and reminiscence included in the DVD's special features, the broadcast documents a production of the play that had been running, with the same cast, for the previous three years in Stratford and London. The cast had become a family by then, he tells us, and its members were so in tune with each other that the film took less than a week to shoot, rather than the usual several weeks. The sheer fluidity of the performances attests to the teamwork the cast members had achieved. The camera, shooting mostly in close-up, offers the actors nowhere to hide; they must give us the whole, unvarnished truth of the story with their faces and voices, and that they do. McKellen makes a brilliantly Stalinesque Macbeth, spiraling unforgettably into murder, paranoia, and nihilism. Judi Dench is, if anything, even better than McKellen; the extended, ripped-flesh scream she rips from herself during Lady Macbeth's final soliloquy seems to emanate from the Ninth Circle of Hell. Also notable are Roger Rees as Malcolm, John Woodvine as Banquo, and Ian McDiarmid as Ross. Not all of the performances, alas, are on this level. Although McKellen pays loving tribute to the late Bob Peck in his reminiscence, I found Peck's performance as Macduff inexplicable at times. (When a man hears that his wife and children have been murdered, don't you think his reaction would be a little less, well, CLINICAL?) Nevertheless, this has to be counted as a Shakespearian performance of historic importance, with the two greatest Shakespearian actors of the late 20th century giving us their definitive versions of Lord and Lady Macbeth. This is a must-buy for anyone with even the slightest interest in Shakespeare.

Average customer rating:

Hamish Macbeth
Jumped the shark already?!? Woefully Uneven Series
Hamish Macbeth-Series One
Writers didn't trust their material
Hamish MacBeth =Series One

Hamish Macbeth - Series One
Starring: Stuart McGugan , and Rohan Berry Crickmar
Director: Nicholas Renton , Patrick Lau , and Sid Roberson
Manufacturer: BBC Warner
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Mystery | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

Hamish Macbeth - Series Two
The Last Detective - Series 1
Rosemary & Thyme - Series Two
Rosemary & Thyme - Series Three
Monarch of the Glen - Series Five

ASIN: B000AOEMVE
Release Date: 2005-10-25

Amazon.com

Before his breakout performances in Trainspotting and The Full Monty, the intense Robert Carlyle starred in the quirky mystery series Hamish Macbeth. As the constable of a small village in the Scottish highlands known as Lochdubh, Macbeth struggles to maintain the social balance of his tight-knit town, solving crimes along the way. In fact, the show as a whole leans more towards character drama than whodunnit; when a newcomer to Lochdubh (Phyllida Law, The Winter Guest) receives threatening notes, finding their source is little more than the hook for a web of characters' portraits and social observation. This may disappoint hard-core mystery fans (and fans of the books the series is based on), but the quality of the writing and the performances gives the show an emotional richness few mysteries can muster. Two episodes in particular--one in which Macbeth seeks revenge for his dead dog and one where he tries to keep a corporate team-building exercise from turning deadly--are unexpectedly wrenching. Other episodes are more comic; in one, lobsters are the key to a local bully's disappearance, and another hinges on tubs of raspberry ripple ice cream. But even when the show turns whimsical, Carlyle's live-wire presence keeps you glued to the screen, ably supported by a solid cast--especially impish Shirley Henderson (Yes, Topsy-Turvy), whose quiet yearning for Macbeth strikes a plaintive note and leads to a nerve-wracking series-ending cliffhanger. (Two caveats: The Scottish accents are occasionally impenetrable--though the stories are always clear enough--and the fourth episode of this six-episode first series could not be included on this dvd set.) --Bret Fetzer

Description

With the help of his right-hand man, TV John, police constable Hamish Macbeth (Robert Carlyle) keeps the peace in Lochdubh's mean streets in his own idiosyncratic way, with little regard for police regulations and every intention of avoiding promotion. Promotion would mean leaving his police home, the wild, beautiful Scottish countryside, and Wee Jock, his beloved West Highland terrier. So the less his superior officers in Inverness know of his policing activities, the better.

Customer Reviews:

Hamish Macbeth.......2007-05-31

A Brilliantly written series that combines comedy and drama with great acting. Quality not often seen and not easily forgotten in a t.v. series. Hamish does not fail to entertain! Not to mention the absolutely stunning beauty of the Scottish countryside.

Jumped the shark already?!? Woefully Uneven Series.......2007-05-17

We agree with other reviewers- folks who haven't already enjoyed M. C. Beaton's books are more likely to enjoy this series than those who are already experienced of the more nuanced charms of the literary version of Lochdubh. If you squint, you can see the similarities between the two, but the BBC's version is like the dim witted, amiable cousin of it's printed predecessor.
However it is possible to enjoy both the books & the DVDs if you allow enough time to elapse between the two. We've watched the first season via Netflix & really enjoyed the first three episodes on disc one. So we anxiously awaited the arrival of disc 2, and were very disappointed. About half way through episode 5, "Wee Jock's Lament" we looked at each other & wondered how a series with such promise could have "jumped the shark" already. Gone was the "Local Heroesque" languor & charm of spending time with the quirky denizens of Lochdubh, replaced instead with an overly dramatic, scenery chewing parody of a bad melodrama. It was if someone took a perfectly fine script & started piling on superfluous cliches in a desperate attempt to keep our attention. We were already hooked, it was a classic example of gilding the lily. The only saving grace of the last two episodes was the chase scene in episode 5. We might end up buying the series just to watch the kilted lads run about the glorious countryside but buyer beware, the charms of kilts & scenery are almost undone by the uneven tone of this series!

Hamish Macbeth-Series One.......2007-05-12

This CD is disappointing. I expected murder mysteries written by M.C. Beaton. They aren't. They're just stories written by others. There are characters in these episodes that were not created by Beaton and there are some of Beaton's characters that are not at all like the originals. Some of the Scottish accents are so thik I found dialogue difficult, sometimes impossible, to understand.

Richard

Writers didn't trust their material.......2007-05-12

Okay, I admit I watched the entire first and second series in just two days while at the shore in foggy, Scottish Highlands-inspired weather. I was hooked! The one thing that disappointed me, though, was the extreme to which the show's writers went in order to concoct their plots. It was as if they didn't trust that viewers can be hooked by the small dramas of life. In particular, they go over the top with psychic phenomena, religious fervor and grisly deaths. If it weren't for the endearing characters, I would have given up on the series. But I see that there might be a third series coming out... you can be sure I'll be watching!

Hamish MacBeth =Series One.......2007-03-09

Amazon was very easy to work with. The delivery was fast. I wanted the DVD because I have seen the series on BBC. A great ad for Scotland. The scenery is beautiful, the characters are very home spun, and sometimes quirky (in a good way).

The Thames Shakespeare Collection: MacBeth/King Lear/Romeo & Juliet/Twelfth Night

Average customer rating:

The Thames Shakespeare Collection: MacBeth/King Lear/Romeo & Juliet/Twelfth Night
Starring: Patrick Mower , Ann Lynn , Philip Brack , Beth Harris , and Patrick Magee
Director: Tony Davenall , Paul Kafno , and Philip Casson
Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

( T ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Olivier's Shakespeare - Criterion Collection (Hamlet / Henry V / Richard III)
The Shakespeare Collection (Romeo + Juliet / Titus / A Midsummer Night's Dream)
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ASIN: B000G1R3ZS
Release Date: 2006-08-29

Product Description

This collection of televised adaptations includes some of Shakespeare's finest works, all produced for British television. Among them are interpretations of MACBETH (with Ian McKellen and Judi Dench), KING LEAR, ROMEO & JULIET, and TWELFTH NIGHT (directed by Kenneth Branagh).

System Requirements:

Running Time 600 Mins.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Average customer rating:

and i do like monarch of the glen
Hamish Macbeth - Series Two
a wasted opportunity
Hamish goes dark
Simply Scottish and Wonderfully Delighting!

Hamish Macbeth - Series Two
Starring: Stuart McGugan , and Rohan Berry Crickmar
Director: Nicholas Renton , Patrick Lau , and Sid Roberson
Manufacturer: BBC Warner
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( H ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Hamish Macbeth - Series One
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Midsomer Murders - Set Seven (The Green Man / Bad Tidings / The Fisher King / Sins Of Commision)
The Last Detective - Series 2

ASIN: B000GH3PNG
Release Date: 2006-10-24

Amazon.com

Hamish Macbeth may technically be a British mystery series, but the quirky BBC show, set in Scotland, is more Local Hero meets Northern Exposure than Miss Marple, as series 2 shows. The residents of tiny Lochdubh, Scotland, are an eccentric bunch, and actor Robert Carlyle, for better or worse, is the town's sole lawman/sheriff. Carlyle is in prime deadpan form in the role of Hamish Macbeth, who presides over the crimes and just plain weird happenings of the burgh. The series, based on characters created by M.C. Beaton, doesn't always even seem to feature a mystery, until the final moments of an episode, as in "A Perfectly Simple Explanation." The episode features slightly manic members of a fundamentalist sect, the Church of the Stony Path, and Hamish comes under their fire-and-brimstone curses for living out of wedlock with his insecure girlfriend, Alex. Then there's the new age cult leader who conducts his conversations on a particularly sloshy waterbed. The oddball characters come and go, and somewhere, woven around their interactions, is a plot that becomes strangely satisfying by an episode's finale, but which is not at all the reason for watching. The steadfast but affectionate take on the residents' quirkiness is compulsively addictive, and Carlyle proves again what a talented, multifaceted actor he is. As the blustery minister shrieks at Macbeth about the sin and wantonness of his town, Carlyle never lets Macbeth show he's ruffled. "If the Lord thinks so much of you," he says, when the reverend pauses to catch his breath, "then why is He lettin' me dog wee on your leg?" Visit Lochdubh and you'll likely never want to leave. --A.T. Hurley

Description

One hotel, one general store, one doctor and one lawman -- PC Hamish Macbeth (Robert Carlyle). He is the sheriff -- with his own singular methods of dealing with crime and misdemeanors. Many a baffling mystery and outrageous scam lurk behind the closed doors of Lochdubh and Hamish needs all his skill to keep the big boys from Inverness off his patch. If only his love life were as easy to solve, but that is another story.

Customer Reviews:

and i do like monarch of the glen.......2007-05-26

I like Robert Carlyle since seeing him in Full Monty. I like the way he plays Hamish, and i really like Hamish's deputy, He really makes this show fun. the girl could be anyone, but the local oddballs make this show fun. I have read 3 or 4 of the books, but if you just watch the show without a preconcieved idea of how Hamish should look and act, you will enjoy the show for the fun of it. Just like alot of the british comedy. Sit back and get absorbed.

Hamish Macbeth - Series Two.......2007-03-09

If you have Hamish series one, then you this is a must have, if you don't get series one first then this. Great viewing!

a wasted opportunity.......2007-02-16

M.C. Beaton's 'Hamish Macbeth' murder mysteries could have made a good TV series, like 'Inspector Morse' or 'Midsomer Murders' . They have clever plots, interesting characters, stunning locations, and plenty of humorous touches. Unfortunately, for reasons best known to themselves, the BBC chose to dispense with the plots and most of the characters from the books, and instead serve us up a bland soap opera with a Scottish setting. Almost nothing is left of the books at all. If you enjoy programmes like 'Ballykissangel' and 'Monarch of the Glen' you will probably like this. If you were hoping for a good murder mystery series you will be very dissappointed. This series was a total waste of time.

Hamish goes dark.......2007-02-07

For us, the series really took off in set 2. The story lines are dark and far more complex than the original set. This was, for us, a much more involving show the darker it got.

Simply Scottish and Wonderfully Delighting!.......2007-01-28

Hamish Macbeth is a brilliant series... notably Scottish with a hint of Northern Exposure flavor. The interplay and depth of the characters is amazing... the storylines are humorous with a great perspective on human nature... there is constancy, mysticism, passion, trust, and mystery in every episode. Series two keeps building the story. Every episode has me wanting to move to LochDubh and joining the village folk at the pub for a pint!!

Contrary to previous posters lament on offensive material, this could be nothing further from the truth. Our family has learned to love this Scottish town and the people in it... We laugh and talk about the twists and always want to see more... We can't wait for the third season to come out!! Every now and then we pull out the discs and start watching!! Makes the bad weather outside all go away... and our hearts are warmed by the expereince!

Buy Series 1 and 2.. then start looking for the third!! I'm trying to collect the hardback books... just can't get enough!!

Average customer rating:

Solemn, powerful and brutal adaptation!

Macbeth (Fully Restored Version)

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video

Orson Welles' Othello
Falstaff Chimes At Midnight [Import]
Macbeth / McKellen, Dench (Thames Shakespeare Collection)
Macbeth
The Orson Welles Collection (The Stranger/ King Lear/ David and Goliath/ The Trial)

ASIN: B000B65ZGM

Product Description

PLOT SUMMARY: In fog-dripping, barren and sometimes macabre settings, 11th-century Scottish nobleman Macbeth is led by an evil prophecy and his ruthless yet desirable wife to the treasonous act that makes him king. But he does not enjoy his newfound, dearly-won kingship... Restructured, but all the dialogue is Shakespeare's. [IMDB - Rod Crawford] ++++ DVD FEATURES: This officially licensed release from South Korea is the ORIGINAL, fully restored version (which returns the 20 minutes previously cut by the studio), in black & white, 4:3 full screen, Dolby Digital Sound in ENGLISH with optional Korean subtitles. NOTE: According to the manufacturer, there is a a misprint on the package: Orson Welles' "Ghost Story: Return To Glennascaul" is listed on the back, but it is NOT included on the DVD.

Customer Reviews:

Solemn, powerful and brutal adaptation!.......2005-10-28

The scintillating and untiring genius of Orson Welles carved in relief again with this unforgettable classic of William Shakespeare, despite the fact not all the cast be outstanding. Take into account this version was made in just 27 days!, you may agree the sum compensates by far, the core of this tragedy.

Another personal and artistic feat of Wisconsin `s lavish son, whose departure was on October 10 1985.

Average customer rating:

A work of collaborative genius; but the darkest of adaptations
Macbeth
Fierce and Visionary
An authentic Macbeth
ROMAN POLANSKI AND WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Macbeth
Starring: Jon Finch , Francesca Annis , Martin Shaw , Terence Bayler , and John Stride
Director: Roman Polanski
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

Macbeth / McKellen, Dench (Thames Shakespeare Collection)
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ASIN: B000063JZQ
Release Date: 2002-05-07

Amazon.com essential video

Roman Polanski's adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy remains one of the most infamous for a number of reasons: the copious amounts of bloody gore, its expert use of location settings (filmed in North Wales), and Lady Macbeth's nude sleepwalking scene. Despite its notoriety, though, this does remain one of the more compelling film adaptations of the Scottish tragedy, if one of the more pessimistic takes on the story of Macbeth and his overreaching ambition. If you think the play is normally a bit of a downer, you haven't seen Polanski's bleak version of it, made in reaction to the murder of his wife, Sharon Tate, by the Manson "family." Jon Finch (Hitchcock's Frenzy) is an forceful Macbeth, bringing out the Scot's warrior instincts, and Francesca Annis is a memorable Lady Macbeth, but the main thrust of the film belongs to Polanski's and noted British playwright and critic Kenneth Tynan's take on the play: extremely violent, nihilistic, and visceral; this is down-in-the-dirt, no-holds-barred Shakespeare, not fussy costume drama. Pay close attention to the end, a silent coda that puts a chilling twist on all the action that has come beforehand and foreshadows more tragedy to come. --Mark Englehart

Customer Reviews:

A work of collaborative genius; but the darkest of adaptations.......2007-04-14

With the advent of DVDs, I've made it a minor hobby to compare various versions of Shakespeare's plays - especially Othello, Lear and Hamlet. I did not see Polanski's Macbeth until recently but have been aware of it for decades.

In my view this is the single most powerful film adaptation of any Shakespeare play. Though much too intense for children or even most teens, Polanski's artful direction captures the insanity, mysticism, jealousy, hate, and horror of the playwright's most brutal work perfectly. The settings are gloomy but realistic and the acting is uniformly excellent.

If Polanski never made another film, he would still be remembered for vividly capturing the complex intensity of this play. Even jaded modern audiences are emotionally exhausted at the film's end- which is not easy to do in this age of ubiquitous violence and sex.

This is no holds barred Shakespeare; definitely not for the faint of heart.

Macbeth.......2007-03-11

I have been teaching "Macbeth" for 30 years and have used this Roman Polanski/Hugh Hefner film to let my students "see" the play. In fact, my colleagues and I used the videocassette so often that just recently the tape broke. There is much about the production that I like: the authentic 11th century costumes, the acting, the professional delivery of Shakespeare's lines, and the sets. However, I wonder why those who produced this film chose to destroy two of the most famous scenes - Act IV, scene 1 and Act V, scene 1 - with nudity. There is absolutely no sound reason for nudity in either of these scenes. Because of the nudity, I cannot show these two scenes to my high school students. I also cannot show Act IV, scene 2, where Macduff's family is murdered, because of the frontal view of a nude young boy and because of the "murderers" raping some of the Maduff staff. (Wasn't murdering the whole family enough?) I am not aware of another movie version of the play; I would have purchased it instead so that my students could see the entire play.

Fierce and Visionary.......2006-12-15

This is a fierce and visionary interpretation of perhaps the most deceptively simple of Shakespeare's major plays. The elements of bloody ambition, weak kings with wills overborne by steely women, unjust slaughter and revenge are perhaps the most elemental ingrediants for classic tragedy going back to the Greeks. The atmosphere is haunted, half-waking and half-sleeping; the key dialogues brutally simple. The witches' songs linger in your mind from first reading and never go away over your lifetime, like perverse versions of nursery rhymes. Yet most directors who tackle the play, even some of the greatest, come at it like a car hitting ice and go into a careening skid. Bad or also-ran Macbeths just don't cut it, anymore than fakey Halloween costumes.

Truth is, the play is a garden for the imagination, on paper, but a minefield of hidden traps when someone has the audacity to attempt to film it -- something more than even that rare audacity is apparently needed to carry it off. It is possible Polanski's reaction to his wife's own horrific murder provided the extra here, who knows? Perhaps it gave him "eye of newt"? Then toss into the cauldron some $$$ from Hugh Hefner, trying to launder himself from soft core porn king into a major cultural figure ... toe of frog? Well, something exploded in this cauldron, for sure. Its scary as hell and hardly because of the blood.

On a more mundane level, a workmanlike and intelligent actor like Jon Finch, in his prime and with something to prove, delivered a damn lot to the title role. His middle of the road, quasi-Everyman interpretation of the murderous anti-hero adds the real potent element to the brew -- something that leaves you saying, "this could have been me." Francesca Annis, also in her prime, delivers splendidly too, and with all the keen reserve of a confident beauty -- sort of reminds us English speakers of what kind of face (and body) likely launched a thousand ships. Plus add Polanski's guts to show real old crones for the witches, naked as diseased old birds on a winter day. He hardly cared whether your English teacher would laugh. And don't forget the audience -- make the dagger real and palpable, to Lady Macbeth and to us. Just a figment of the imagination? Well, that's just another second rate professor's sorry excuse. This play was not constructed as closet drama, either, and every kid in the English speaking world needs be taught to understand the difference. Macbeth rather was and always shall be a body blow to the mass audience, when delivered properly. Your professor should have told you too that Shakespeare himself freely altered his texts from performance to performance -- one can only imagine what his molten genius would have done if he ever had a camera in his hands. Finally, the majestic use of scenery raises everything to the level of dreamscape worthy of Salvadore Dali, and better than anything any surrealist filmmaker (usually rather closet academic types, finally) ever accomplished. Here, the wedding of waking and sleeping is seamless --just as in Shakespeare's semi-mad, quickly dashed off accidental masterpiece -- perhaps an artistic response to personal tragedy of his own.

In sum, this film has well stood up to the test of time. The contoversies about nudity, Hefner, the Manson gang, and bad boy Polanski are very old news, by now, and ought finally be buried. They never should have mattered anyway, but unfortunately the film was launched in this climate wherein it provided an easy mark to the chattering classes. Nor does Polanski's genius require any excuse -- see his Tess and his Chinatown. The real news is that this is the best Macbeth on film to date.

An authentic Macbeth.......2006-10-26

This is a first-class FILM based on a Shakespeare play. As always, there's heavy pruning of the lines, but what we're left with is well served by the actors, the authentic medieval setting, and the medium of film itself. This MACBETH is gorgeously staged and performed. Is it violent? Sure -- but so are a lot of other films these days. Why should this be different just because it's Shakespeare?

Let's face it: Macbeth is a dark, bloody and -- at its heart -- nihilistic story. Can we really believe that Scotland will live happily ever after just because the usurper is dead? Shakespeare raises that question at the end, very subtly, and Polanski picks up on it. What I particularly liked here was the emphasis on how quickly ambition can poison the mortal mind, and how one's fate can turn in an instant. There's a thin line between good and evil, between the real and the unreal.

My Shakespeare professor back in college ridiculed certain details of the film, such as the mysterious dagger witnessed by Macbeth actually appearing on the screen for the audience to see. The idea, as he believed it, is that the dagger is a merely a product of Macbeth's fevered imagination, therefore WE shouldn't be able to see it. But I like how Polanski makes one wonder what the dagger really is. Is it a hallucination? Or the product of some darker force? Polanski's whole take on the story balances on a question -- what is the true nature of evil?

Finally, I want to address all those affronted viewers who have been shaken to their core by what seems to be the most horrific sight of all: the images of naked older women. Please. Get a grip. Those are just bodies. Maybe if Hugh Hefner had really been in charge we'd have had nubile Playboy bunnies standing in as the witches but, alas, he was just the money man, not the director.

Polanski's witches were actually another authentic detail -- even back in those days, the idea of old women going "skyclad" was a sure sign of evil. Nine hundred years later, people's perceptions haven't changed a bit.

ROMAN POLANSKI AND WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE.......2006-10-08

Bloody well good, and bloody! Roman Polanski's violent, location accurate version of Shakespeare's murderous Macbeth and his lady, seems a natural, insightful interpretation for the 20th Century. So true to Shakespeare's original work, and so indebted to fine cinema.

Average customer rating:

Hamish MacBeth: Series Three
Starring: Hamish Macbeth
Manufacturer: BBC Warner
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Jonathan Creek: Season Two
The Inspector Lynley Mysteries: Set 5
Foyle's War - Set 4
Monarch of the Glen: The Complete Series 7
Father Brown: Set 2

ASIN: B000SINSY4
Release Date: 2007-10-23

Average customer rating:

Robin Williams at his finest!
A Forgotten Gem of Robin Williams
a really good film .....
Would give it ten stars if I could
Freedom isn't free and other things to think about ..........

Moscow On The Hudson
Starring: Maria Conchita Alonso , Elya Baskin , Aleksandr Beniaminov , Eyde Byrde , and Stephanie Cotsirilos
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005QCTY
Release Date: 2001-11-27

Amazon.com

Robin Williams in his fuzzy, sensitive mode with bittersweet touches plays a musician in a Russian circus who gets talked into defecting by a pal and does so (though the pal bails on him at the last minute)--in the middle of Bloomingdale's. A great concept, to be sure, but writer-director Paul Mazursky doesn't seem to know where to go from there. Williams winds up living in the same kind of poverty that he did in Russia, casting about for a way to make a living while both wallowing and drowning in the sudden tidal wave of freedom. Mazursky wants to make a point about how little we appreciate what we have, but he fails to entertain in the process--or at least to engage in a consistent way. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

Robin Williams at his finest!.......2007-06-07

I don't always agree with Robin Williams' standup humor but IMAO, he is a consumate actor bordering on dramatic and comedic genius. In this film he convincingly potrays a Russian circus musician that follows thru the dreams of his close friend by defecting to America.

What strikes in my mind about this film is when his girlfriend and many immigrants are granted U.S. citizenship. With the current state of today's political correctness, the judge's words still ring true when she states "no longer will you be a hyphenated American". What a delightful statement for all Americans.

A Forgotten Gem of Robin Williams.......2006-02-23

One of Robin Williams Early works and Sadly a Forgotten Gem of him. Sometimes Sad, Sometimes Funny as can be it showed his range and abilities even then. He Plays a Russian Circus Musician Tasked to keep an Eye on his friend who has made "Noises" about defecting when the Circus Travels to NYC. Don't want to ruin the Story or Surprises (If you are surprised) but this is a wonderful Story that will take you from Sad to Happy to Laughing and back again.

If you liked Dead Poets Society you will LOVE this.

a really good film ............2005-11-24

It is a good American movie about a Russian emigrant in NYC. Most of the viewers praise Robin Williams. Indeed, he plays very well the character of the Russian musician and there is no doubt - he is a great actor. But in this film, you have got a very rare chance to see the greatest Russian comedian Savely Kramarov (staring as head KGB man ). He died from cancer ten years ago in California. But his art and his films are still alive. Every film in which he took a part was automatically a hit in Soviet times. The tickets were sold out at cinemas and streets were empty during TV-broadcasts of his films. In "Moscow on the Hudson" he created a funny and grotesque image of KGB man (as he did it again in the film "RED HEAT" directed by Walter Hill) and I was enjoying watching his work there. It reminds me his best Russian films. I am sure you will appreciate it too.
The film is not perfect of course. Some stereotypes about Russia are implemented (such as the refrigerator full of vodka instead of food) Robin Willams struggles to speak "bad English" and has it hard to pronounce Russian words properly. But despite these small problems in showing life in Russia, the film gives a very authentic picture of the "Big Apple" and it is really good one.

Would give it ten stars if I could.......2005-11-16

While I absolutely love this movie, it, like any work of art, has flaws. Now, that said, I didn't see this movie when it first came out. I didn't see it until literally 20 years later! It still holds up well, but I was amazed at the blatant sterotyping that occurred in the film. The thing is, it happens with everyone from African-Americans to Russians, and even to WASPS. So I guess that cancels the thing out in a way.

This is a very touching movie and Robin Williams is probably at his best--and this is hard to do as he never bombs. Here's one actor who should be given more awards and credits for his acting ability--and this in addition to him being the world's greatest comic, no less!

Strangely, aside for my aforementioned comments on sterotyping, the movie does not seem dated--aside from a few glimpses of the World Trade Centers in the background, and it is a wonderful portrait of NYC. Really, I'm amazed this isn't more watched than it is. I highly, highly recommend this charming and enlightening film.

Freedom isn't free and other things to think about .................2005-09-07

For many years, I counted Moscow on the Hudson as my favorite film and if you like to be mildy entertained while considering what it means to be free in the USA, you may also love this thoughtful comedy. This was the first film that broke whatever box folks might have been trying to put Robin Williams in (after Mork and Mindy) and added Actor with a capital A to the public perception of him (at least for those who had the chance to see Moscow).

Among my favorite lines in the film is the disenchanted emigree played by Robin in a blue moment saying "When I was in Russia, I loved my misery, because it was mine." I think of this when I meet people whose eyes are closed to how precious our freedom is and the cost we must pay to learn to respect and treasure it.

There are many great scenes worth the wait, such as the final statement scene in the diner where other Russians who have learned how to deal with freedom, set the little Russian straight.

This is not an action filled or laugh filled romp. It is a film that requires a little patience and reflection, but an illumination to those with an open mind. Bravo Mazursky and Williams!

Average customer rating:

Why change the ending?
Magnificent playing, singinging, acting and sound
A most remarkable achievement.

Shostakovich - Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk
Starring: Christopher Ventris , Eva-Maria Westbroek , Vladimir Vaneev , Carole Wilson , and Ludovit Ludha
Manufacturer: BBC / Opus Arte
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Wagner - Lohengrin
Shostakovich - Katerina Izmailova
Donizetti - L'Elisir d'Amore / Eschwe, Netrebko, Villazon, Wiener Staatsoper
Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri
R. Strauss - Die Frau Ohne Schatten

ASIN: B000JJRACI
Release Date: 2007-01-30

Amazon.com

Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, a lurid tale of sex, murder, and corruption, premiered in 1934 and was a success until Stalin saw it two years later, resulting in a Pravda review that viciously condemned it. It was later replaced by an expurgated version, now called Katerina Ismailova after the work's principal character. The original version has now reclaimed its place on international stages. The heroine is the daughter-in-law of Boris, a greedy, lecherous merchant, and the frustrated wife of his impotent son. Katerina poisons Boris and when her husband returns she and her lover, Sergei, kill him too, burying him in the cellar. The body is discovered during their wedding party. Haunted by guilt, Katerina confesses and the newlyweds are consigned to Siberia. When Sergei takes up with another woman, Katerina pushes her into the river and then jumps in herself.

Director Martin Kusej keeps the narrative moving inexorably to its fatal ending while indulging in broad satirical portraits of the symbols of society's power to crush the individual. Katerina is a tragic heroine trapped in a cage-like structure that serves as the merchant's house, her bedroom (bare but with a collection of shoes that would satisfy Imelda Marcos), and later the prison transport where she meets her end. Some of the satire is broad--the policemen are out of a Gilbert & Sullivan operetta. And there's abundant acreage of human flesh on display, along with a near-rape and enough consensual sex to warrant an "X" rating. But it all fits a tale where the orchestra is often in porno territory, as in the famous trombone glissandos so prominent in Katerina and Sergei's first coupling. Kusej's only serious flaw is at the end, where he has Katerina lynched by her fellow-prisoners though the text clearly has her committing suicide by drowning.

This production has the advantage of one of the world's great orchestras, the Royal Concertgebouw, and its conductor, Mariss Jansons. They do everything brilliantly, whether it's a yearning string passage or a coarse depiction of on-stage brutality. As Katerina, Eva-Marie Westbrook is compelling, singing well and acting with convincing authority. Christopher Ventris' Sergei looks, acts, and sings like a burly seducer should. Boris, the dirty old man, is Vladimir Vaneev, whose ample bass and acting present a fully-rounded figure that goes beyond the part's stage villain aspects. Video director Thomas Grimm makes it all lucid on disc, the cameras rarely venturing away from what must be seen. It all adds up to a powerful performance of a powerful opera. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Why change the ending?.......2007-03-11

One of my problems with this production is the revisionist ending.
Now that there are no longer satellite countries, I guess since this is updated to modern times, the treck to Siberia in the last scene would be unbelievable but the ending is jarring for all the wrong reasons.

The staging is effective but odd. The first half taking place within a glass enclosed box obviously representing Katerina's entrapment as the bride of a impotent man. Wooden walls line the back of the stage and the wings. The production is stark. A huge wow for Eva-Marie Westbroek as Katerina. She has a voice similar to the young Eva Marton, which is saying a lot. It's a huge sound and beautiful too. Ventris repeats his Sergei here. His voice is growing darker but he's looking bloated and fat. What is a sexy and dangerous looking performance in the other DVD version, becomes seedy here.

The orchestra and chorus dominate this performance. I wanted to love this, the opera is one of my favorites, but it's too odd and gimickey for my tastes.

There's also a tracking problem on the second DVD. It's not my player because this does not happen with the other DVDs that were apart of my order.

Magnificent playing, singinging, acting and sound.......2007-02-05

This is now my third DVD of Lady Macbeth, an opera which I would rank among the very best of all 20th century operas and of all Russian operas. Its strong points are very strong indeed. The musical performance as led by Mariss Jansons is outstanding and there are no disturbingly weak links among the singers/actors. All leading performers deserve the wild applause they receive at the opera's end. And the sound on this DVD is magnificent. There is only one possible fly in the ointment and that is one's ability (or inability) to go along with Martn Kusej's stage direction. Sex and murder were done well and only in the last act - set in some kind of asylum or jail - did what was going on stage (people wandering around in their underwear) seem at odds with what was going on in the opera itself (prisoners marching off to Siberia). Otherwise I do not think the production gets in the way of the drama. With repeated listening - and this production deserves repeated listening - I think its musical strengths will win out over any questions.

A most remarkable achievement........2007-01-21

Following Rostropovich's pioneering effort from the latter days of LP, Shostakovich's second (and last) opera seems to finally reach its deserved status amongst the 20th century's masterpieces in the genre. It is an outstanding work, perhaps among the composer's finest, along with the 1st violin concerto, the Michelangelo Sonnets, the 6th and 10th symphonies, the preludes and fugues for piano, the late quartets or that jewel of an opera, "The Nose". The contrast with his own watered-down version (Katerina Ismailova) which I own on Melodia LP's purchased long ago at Collett's in London's Charing Cross Rd. (they kind of specialised in selling records from the iron courtain countries) is revelatory and would explain Stalin's disgust with this original version (funny to notice how prudish dictators can be, no? no remorse from brutally having people killed or exiled to Siberia, but scandalised at Mme Ismailova's sexual frolics; it is said Hitler was quite prudish too, as is Castro, were said to be Saddam Hussein and Kim il Sung or others of their kind) and later satisfaction with the composer's 5th symphony.

Visually the production is stunning, a winner in all respects and I must congratulate Opus Arte for making it avaliable on DVD. I knew of producer Kusej's work only from reference, as not understanding german I have not attended any of his theatre productions. I haven't seen the work's EMI release on DVD of a Liceu staging, but found Gramophone's review of it rather demolishing (I don't know if they have turned their eyes yet to this Opus Arte Amsterdam version, but I should expect nothing short of a most favourable review from them).

Musically, there are two real "coups de foudre": one is of course the superlative playing of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the other the choosing of Mariss Jansons to conduct the work. Janson's key formative years at Leningrad under Mravinsky's wing assure us of a direct link not only to the composer via who was his most conspicuous and trusted collaborator, but also to the actual environment, politically and artistically, that hovered over the composer whilst composing this opera, which not only Mravinsky knew all too well but was a key player as he was able not only to survive it but also to excel within it. Singers-wise, top honours must go of course to Ms Westbroek, who sorts out an enormous task not only in vocal terms but also as an actress and stage presence (and she's also quite an attractive woman, if only she shedded a handful of kilos ...). She fully deserves every single bit of applause she gets in the courtain calls after the work's end. Ventris does not get an especially good comment in Gramophone's review of EMI's Liceu release, but as I haven't seen that one as I mentioned, I can't say if in the Amsterdam production he was better (or worse), I will only say that, from what I saw and heard in this Opus Arte video at least, he makes a powerful impersonation of what must be one of the most lustful characters in the history of opera, and he does so with unquestionable results; he not only does look the part, but sings it remarkably well as well. I did find the other important male singers rather low in volume, perhaps more than they should, the two Ismailovs as well as the drunken priest; they are in a league certainly different from Ms Westbroek's. And let's not leave aside the chorus's outstanding contribution.

So in all, a most remarkable result, with the utterly realistic sound one has come to expect from the house and the very apt and interesting supplementary material that has contributed to place Opus Arte above most other publishers of opera on DVD (and miles away from US publishers such as Image or Kultur, whose in this respect very mediocre products tend to reach our shelves this side of the Atlantic more often than Europe-based ones like Opus Arte, Bel Air Classiques or Arthaus Musik).

Average customer rating:

Verdi - Macbeth
Starring: Leo Nucci , Sylvie Valayre , Enrico Iori , Roberto Iuliano , and Nicola Pascoli
Director: Liliana Cavani
Manufacturer: TDK
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Janacek - Jenufa
Rossini - La Cenerentola
Donizetti - Don Pasquale
Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri
Rossini - Il Viaggio a Reims

ASIN: B000Q7ZKWA
Release Date: 2007-06-26

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