Almost There: Ian McKellen in "Richard III"

by Cláudio Alves

With its streaming release on Apple TV+, it seems like everyone is watching The Tragedy of Macbeth. As people discuss Joel Coen's adaptation of Shakespeare's Scottish play, talks of Oscar are nearly unavoidable - Denzel Washington is poised to earn his ninth acting nomination for the titular role. However, while his awards triumph feels obvious, one shouldn't think that playing the Bard's most famous roles is an easy ticket to the Oscars. Many major adaptations have been snubbed over the years, and even when the Academy embraces a Shakespearean flick, it rarely extends such love to its cast.

Look no further than Sir Ian McKellen's first major bid at big-screen stardom. In 1995, after starring in a famed stage production directed by Richard Eyre, the actor decided to take that Richard III to the movies…

Click to read more ...

"Sonnet 129" via Ralph Fiennes

It's 129 days until the Oscars. Please enjoy this interpretation of Shakespeare's "Sonnet 129" by Ralph Fiennes, released back in 2002 six years after Ralph Fiennes second Oscar nomination and seven years before his directorial debut, Coriolanus, which was also Shakespearean.

Remember when Fiennes directed Vanessa Redgrave in an Oscar worthy turn?

Ralph Fiennes hasn't been Oscar nominated for 25 years and that is dumb given his filmography since then.

NYFF: The visual wonder of "The Tragedy of Macbeth"

By Nathaniel R

“When” is the first word of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, uttered by one of three witches. Though the word precedes a question it sounds more like a definitive statement in Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth; the writer/director even grants the word its own solo title card. Later the word “Tomorrow” will also grace the screen alone. Time, we immediately understand, is at the heart of the latest big screen Shakespeare. And it’s running out. Coen’s adaptation casts two older-than-usual actors as the titular Lord (Denzel Washington) and Lady (Frances McDormand). As a result their infamous power grab plays like a violently desperate game of “last chance”…

Click to read more ...

Cannes at Home: Day 11

by Cláudio Alves

Spike Lee's illustrious jury will hand out its prizes Saturday night. Friday was still full of screenings, however, including the last two premieres in the Main Competition. Justin Kurzel's Nitram has generated some controversy, purporting, as it does, to tell the story of the man responsible for the deadliest mass shooting in Australian history. To extend cinematic empathy, or even a gesture of exploitation, towards such a figure is bound to cause a polemic. The other film to screen on this last competitive day of Cannes 2021 was Joachim Lafosse's The Restless, the story of a Belgian family dealing with the struggles brought upon by bipolar disorder. To celebrate the event, we'll take a look at two previous tales of killers from these filmmakers. One is a mythic warrior, haunted by the carnage he commits. The other, a real-life mother who did something unthinkable…

Click to read more ...

Welles beyond Kane

by Cláudio Alves

With David Fincher's Mank on Netflix, many have been talking about Citizen Kane. The writing of Orson Welles' putative first feature (technically, though unfinished, Too Much Johnson precedes it by three years) is central to the new movie, but the narrative is far more interested in the 1934 California gubernatorial election than in the shooting of Kane. We never see cameras rolling on that which has been, at one point, considered the best movie ever made. Whether you agree with that hyperbolic title or not, it's undeniable that it's one of the most written about works ever produced by Hollywood, with essays such as Pauline Kael's Raising Kane enshrining the picture in prestige and controversy.

While I admire Citizen Kane and find it a masterpiece, I must admit to being far more fascinated by Welles' later efforts. Through exiles and a myriad of unfinished experiments, Orson Welles' filmography extends well beyond Kane…

Click to read more ...