To Thine Own Self Be True: Your Favorite Shakespeare Adaptions

September 2, 2021

To Thine Own Self Be True: Your Favorite Shakespeare Adaptions

Oliver Parker’s Othello.

As the summer comes to a close, one of the season’s annual recurring traditions (at least for many open-aired amphitheaters across the United States) concludes with it: Shakespeare in the Park. For many decades, the plays of William Shakespeare have been performed for audiences in outdoor venues, often free-of-charge, hoping to inspire the next generation of Bard-obsessed aficionados.

Not to be outdone, the silver screen has also produced a vast, memorable group of productions honoring the playwright’s work, with the latest being the Opening Night selection of the 59th New York Film Festival, Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, and one currently screening daily in our theaters.

To celebrate our current theatrical release, Isabella, the latest from Argentine filmmaker Matías Piñeiro that draws inspiration from one of the Bard’s celebrated “problem plays,” Measure for Measure, last week’s Community Corner question asked for your favorite film adaption of a Shakespearean text. The results included everything from a slew of faithful adaptations trafficking in strict Elizabethan language to more modernist, experimental takes that are, at least in spirit, indebted to the late playwright.

And while Franco Zeffirelli’s Oscar-winning Romeo & Juliet was often cited, several other takes on the famous tale of two star-crossed lovers were mentioned, including Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet  and, most recently, the 2021 Sundance selection, R#J, from director Carey Williams. Scroll down below to spot your favorite and a slew of other recommendations.

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– THRONE OF BLOOD (Akira Kurosawa, 1957)
– MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (Kenneth Branagh, 1993)
– ROMEO + JULIET (Baz Luhrmann, 1996)
– HAMLET (Grigori Kozintsev, 1964)
— Film at Lincoln Center (@FilmLinc) August 27, 2021

https://twitter.com/raqueldowd/status/1431416514868039680?s=20

Throne of Blood 1957, Hamlet 1996, Romeo and Juliet 1996, Macbeth 2015
— Rome (@JustAKingsKid) August 27, 2021

https://twitter.com/raqueldowd/status/1431416962488455173?s=20

https://twitter.com/nomoredramas/status/1431698474546909184?s=20

https://twitter.com/GeorgeDAllen/status/1431320801446400003?s=20

Big fan of West Wide Story. And Throne of Blood
— Zach MacLean (@macharyzachary) August 27, 2021

Not a film but I would imagine Welles' Voodoo Macbeth would have been pretty interesting. https://t.co/dqSm8vamoi
— tflatley (@tbflatley) August 28, 2021

Julius Caesar 1953
Romeo + Juliet 1996
Much Ado About Nothing 1993
are my top three pic.twitter.com/VLaDA6P9Fo
— Dominique Revue (@DominiqueRevue) August 27, 2021

https://twitter.com/therilesyouknow/status/1431316698934747139?s=20

I'll take Brook's Lear with King Scofield pic.twitter.com/pYeGowNiBD
— Merry-dio 😎 (@KidCreole3) August 28, 2021

Hamlet 70mm Branagh ?
— TV Verpasst (@DLS49776998) August 27, 2021

The Tempest with Helen Mirren https://t.co/t5HYozpRlt
— Paulette Reynolds🇺🇦 (@PG13Reynolds) August 27, 2021

https://twitter.com/E_Steven/status/1431340105256476674?s=20

https://t.co/h74Fu4wmFH pic.twitter.com/QZUoZAT51l
— Anne Margaret Daniel 🌻 (@venetianblonde) August 27, 2021

only one was thoughtful enough to include a sassy robot so this kinda wins by default https://t.co/uWbaGcorfK pic.twitter.com/Uu7DMY1JMH
— Jared Skolnick (@jaredskolnick) August 27, 2021

Do you have more suggestions to add to the list? Share with us on TwitterInstagram, and Facebook, and stay tuned for more conversations on cinema.

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