It is not often that Shakespeare coming alive on the big screen makes it any better, but Justin Kurzel managed in Macbeth (2015) to both be true to the classic and contribute with his own modern twist, both technically and plotwise.
Shakespeare can be interpreted in many different ways. Justin Krezel has chosen a very modern interpretation, which tries to make Macbeth’s actions more clearly understood by the viewer, by introducing the idea of Macbeth having post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as a product of many wars and a lost child.
The story is about the tragic hero Macbeth who succumbs to his ambition and desire. The plot is initiated when he faces the “Weïrd sisters” prophesies that he will become king of Scotland. First, he is alarmed
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Most of these supernatural elements were omitted from the movie, even though they could have been executed well with today’s movie-techniques. The only hallucination that is actually shown is the dagger, brought to Macbeth by a fallen soldier, just before Macbeth kills Duncan. The other original supernatural elements, for example the witches disappearing as bubbles and Banquo’s ghost, have been deleted. Because of this, the modern viewer can relate to a higher degree, than if the supernatural elements were all …show more content…
The movie features beautiful depictions of the Scottish nature. Furthermore, the big contrasts in colour create a very artistic, scenic movie. This contrast of colours is very modern and sophisticated. This is most dramatically presented in the final scene, where Macbeth finds The Weïrd sisters in order to have his faith predicted once again. Here, since we are outside, the colours are cold and the weather is foggy. Later when Macduff’s soldiers walk in, the fog turns black and the colours red toned. In the end, the movie is solely monochromatic red, and the film ends with the whole screen gradually turning
Rupert Goold`s brilliance was on full display the way he was able to make this film Macbeth, a huge success the way he interchanged the play's initial renaissance theme taking place in the 1600s. He recreated the play into a more modern day version, appealing to the viewer's understanding of what's taking place. While the characters conversed with each other in the same old school english wordplay. What I really found fascinating was how Lady Macbeth, played by Kate Fleetwood and her husband Macbeth, played by Patrick Stewart, dramatized their plots to steal the throne. The lust for power portrayed by both creates suspense in the sense that most of their peers were oblivious to their true intentions, as they go on about to eliminate anyones
Macbeth’s insanity is resulted from the true supernatural things he encounters in the play. The three witches are supernatural characters that play an important role in Macbeth’s spiral to becoming insane. Right off the bat the readers or audience feel the creepiness and uneasiness that radiates off of the witches. The witches famous line “Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble” (cite), gives everyone a look at how dark this play is. Macbeth’s first time meeting the witches paved a way for his insanity. The three witches inform Macbeth that he will be Thane of Glamis and then one day become king. This causes Macbeth to over think things, and have contradicting thoughts on whether he believes in such prophecies, or if they are trying to trick him. Macbeth’s second visit from the witches included visions of different people. After the witches add ingredients to the cauldron, the visons start appearing. The first one was an armed head telling him to beware of Macduff. The second, was a bloody child that said he could not be hurt by anyone who was born of a woman. The third one is a child holding a tree and wearing a crown. This vision meant that Macbeth would not be defeated until Birnam Wood moved to Dunsinane. All of these visions allude to the fact that Macbeth is becoming insane. Slowly but surely as supernatural events occur he has trouble deciphering what is real and what is not. A
There are many differences between interpretations of William Shakespeare's MacBeth. This essay wall contrast Shakespeare's original version and a movie version by Roman Polanski produced in 1970. Three major differences will be discussed.
When Shakespeare wrote his play, Macbeth in 1606 a large majority of people were interested in witchcraft. This is why Shakespeare made the witches and the witches’ prophecies play a major part in the storyline of the play. In the time of Macbeth witches were not thought to be supernatural beings themselves, but supposedly gained their powers by selling their souls to Satan. There can be little doubt that most of Shakespeare’s audience would have believed in witches, and for the purpose of the play, at least, Shakespeare also accepted their reality.
The supernatural has always fascinated and continues to intrigue mankind. In many of Shakespeare’s plays, he uses the supernatural to strengthen a particular scene or to influence the impression the audience has about someone or something. This was not strange or uncommon in Shakespeare’s time. In fact, during the 1500s, many people still believed in witches and witchcraft. Even in today’s society, with such advanced science and technology, many people are still influenced, if not dictated by the supernatural. For example, religious people have the belief that their saviour, Jesus Christ was a man of many miracles; one of which was he turned water into wine. Despite the fact that it
The aura of darkness, deception, and horror present in William Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, envelopes the entire play and is created mainly by the sense of violence and foreboding that is evoked by the imagery. The dominant images of nature and the supernatural contribute to the atmosphere of this tragedy. The predictions of the weird sisters, along with natural forces and supernatural images, have lead to chaos in Scotland due to their impact on the characters of the play, which brings about many delusions and deaths.
Macbeth’s unfettered lust for power led to his biggest detriment, the transformation into a man living in fear who cannot possibly escape this continuous cycle of trepidation. Though Macbeth may hide these fears behind a strong exterior throughout the play, it remains a primary emotion and potent motivating force in his life.
Macbeth wrongly heeds the clues of the apparitions and becomes over confident. After Macbeth’s first encounter with the witches his ambitions became less than honorable and his morality and actions were soon to follow due to the ominous influence of the witches as well as Lady Macbeth. Macbeth was stopped not by his morality but by the fact of him being mortal. It is the death that he ironically used to obtain the goals that were injected in him by the witches, that terminates him. To say that the supernatural had a hand in the events portrayed within the play is an understatement.
Individuals continually deal with general events that affect their personalities. This can either strengthen an individual’s character or lead to one’s demise. William Shakespeare acknowledges these human experiences in The Tragedy of Macbeth with his focus on the protagonist, Macbeth. Fixating his focus on Macbeth, Shakespeare thoroughly portrays the protagonist as a frail human, easily influenced by his environment and personal relationships. Although Macbeth’s decisions determine his plight, he finds himself transgressing when he believes his prophesized throne is in danger. By eliminating what he perceives as threats, he sacrifices his honor, his friendship with Banquo, his wife, and his sanity, resulting in a personality change.
Thunder and lightning is used once again to open Act I Scene 3. As the
Scene iii. Line 58) is also an element of supernatural. Later on in the play, we found Macbeth constantly relying on the witches' supernatural powers and their ability to call out the three apparitions, yet another symbol of the supernatural. Over here, the calling out of the apparitions as supernatural elements in the play could be intended to increase the thrill and suspense of the audience. At the same time, bear in mind that Shakespeare had the play performed for King James I, perhaps, the supernatural scenes on the witches is intended to cater to King James I's personal interest.
One of the main factors that influenced Macbeth’s transformation was the impact the witches and the super natural world had on him. It is an important theme as in Shakespeare’s day, the audience strongly believed in the existence of witches, the power they contained, and the substantial evil intentions they had. “I’ll drain him dry as hay, Sleep shall neither night nor day”. The weird sisters were the creatures that created the concept of a supernatural world, and their absence in
‘Macbeth’ is a play by William Shakespeare that shows a protagonist going from bad to worse throughout the play. Shakespeare wrote this play, taking in mind current affairs at the time of 1603-1606. This is the time when a Scottish king, James I was given the English crown. This king was obsessed with witches, so Shakespeare brought this theme strongly into the play. It also brings the theme of treachery towards the King. This pleased King James and also pleased him about showing the line of Stuart Kings, James descendants, in Act 4, Scene 1.
William Shakespeare is considered an important figure due to his rich language that reflects on universal themes of human nature. Through the numerous plays and sonnets he composed, he has helped the ancient language to never cease and emulated these contemporary themes which are relatable to society. His sophisticated characters are significant to the modern era as they summarize and express different ranges of human emotions. Shakespeare, the mastermind behind the play Macbeth, creates a protagonist of great complexity. Like many of Shakespeare's other dramatic figures—Caesar, Hamlet, and Othello—Macbeth is an important protagonist in this play who presents many themes and character developments that are still conspicuous in today’s society.
According to the Oxford Advanced Learner dictionary, `supernatural' refers to things that cannot be explained by natural or physical laws. The presence of supernatural forces in "Macbeth," provides for much of the play's dramatic tension and the mounting suspense. In this paper we shall look at some of supernatural elements in the play.