Home | Message in the Movies

MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

I remember years ago in high school when it was time to study something by William Shakespeare. Instead of Romeo and Juliet (which still seems to be the frontrunner in popularity) we read The Tragedy of Macbeth. I loved it! It had just about everything a teenage boy could want. It was short (about half the length of Hamlet), it had a lot of stabbing and killing (offstage), some cool scenes with a trio of witches (“double, double, toil and trouble”) and a sleepwalking Lady Macbeth who tried to wash blood off of her hands. What’s not to like?

What I failed to notice when I was a youth was that the main character of Macbeth was totally devoid of decency and morality. Centuries before Heath Ledger’s Joker in 2008’s The Dark Knight or Anton Chigurh in 2007’s No Country for Old Men (also directed by Joel and Ethan Coen), Macbeth was a villain who was unapologetically evil.

When the film begins, we hear others speak about Macbeth’s victories on the battlefield against rival clans. His heroics would place him in a good position to achieve great things. But then he meets up with the three “weird sisters” (all played by Katherine Hunter in Gollum-adjacent fashion) who offer him a dark and twisted path to success. Without questioning, Macbeth accepts their prophecy and begins his ruthless ascendancy to become King of Scotland. Lady Macbeth becomes a willing accomplice.

Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand share a natural give-and-take that underscores the banality of evil’s hold on their lives. They are supported by an outstanding cast, including Brenden Gleeson as Duncan, Corey Hawkins as McDuff, and Harry Melling as Malcolm.

Filmed in stunning black and white and shot on a soundstage, The Tragedy of Macbeth uses depth and shadow, special effects, stunning compositions, music and sound design to create one of the best-looking movies of 2021.

The play is whittled down and changed in small ways by writer-director Joel Coen. It moves very quickly; it is not always easy to follow along. I would suggest reading a plot synopsis (Wikipedia has a good one) beforehand. Turning on captions is also advised as an easy aid to comprehension.

The Tragedy of Macbeth is no longer in theaters, but available exclusively on Apple TV+. I am sure that soon it will be showing up on a classroom monitor near you.

Halo and Pitchfork Rating:

Two halos: A visually stunning rendition of Shakespeare’s most morally bankrupt play.
Four pitchforks: Cold-blooded murders; a minute of mild bawdy humor; surrender to the dark side.

Comment:

Do you have comments about this movie or movie review? E-mail your comments. (Your name and UM affiliation must be supplied in order for your comments to be posted.)