Macbeth (2010 film)

Last updated

Macbeth
Macbeth (2010 film).jpg
DVD cover
Written by William Shakespeare (original play)
Directed by Rupert Goold
Starring Patrick Stewart
Kate Fleetwood
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producersMark Bell
David Horn
Producers Sebastian Grant
John Wyver
Cinematography Sam McCurdy
Editor Trevor Waite
Running time160 minutes
Original release
Network BBC Four
Release12 December 2010 (2010-12-12)

Macbeth is a 2010 television film based on William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name. It was broadcast on BBC Four on 12 December 2010. In the United States, it aired on PBS' Great Performances . It was directed by Rupert Goold from his stage adaptation for the Chichester Festival Theatre in 2007. Patrick Stewart is featured in the title role, with Kate Fleetwood as Lady Macbeth.

Contents

Premise

The film is a more modern re-imagining of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. It evokes the atmosphere of Romania in the 1960s, with parallels between Ceaușescu and Macbeth in their equally brutal quests for power. The Three Witches likewise receive an update in keeping with the 20th century aesthetics, appearing as hospital nurses. Their presence is pervasive throughout the film, punctuating the horror of Macbeth's murderous reign.

Cast

Principal cast: [1]

Production

The film was shot entirely on location at Welbeck Abbey.

Awards

Patrick Stewart at the 71st Annual Peabody Awards Patrick Stewart at the 71st Annual Peabody Awards.jpg
Patrick Stewart at the 71st Annual Peabody Awards

Macbeth won a Peabody Award in 2010. [2] In addition, Patrick Stewart was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries.

Related Research Articles

<i>Macbeth</i> Play by William Shakespeare

The Tragedy of Macbeth, often shortened to Macbeth, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power. Of all the plays that Shakespeare wrote during the reign of James I, Macbeth most clearly reflects his relationship with King James, patron of Shakespeare's acting company. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book, and is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Stewart</span> English actor (born 1940)

Sir Patrick Stewart is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of stage and screen, he has received various accolades, including two Laurence Olivier Awards and a Grammy Award, as well as nominations for a Tony Award, three Golden Globe Awards, four Emmy Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1996 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to drama in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth Branagh</span> British actor and filmmaker (born 1960)

Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. His accolades include an Academy Award, four BAFTAs, two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and an Olivier Award. He was appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2012 Birthday Honours, and was given Freedom of the City in his native Belfast in 2018. In 2020, he was ranked in 20th place on The Irish Times' list of Ireland's greatest film actors.

<i>Macbeth</i> (1971 film) 1971 film by Roman Polanski

Macbeth is a 1971 historical drama film directed by Roman Polanski, and co-written by Polanski and Kenneth Tynan. A film adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name, it tells the story of the Highland lord who becomes King of Scotland through treachery and murder. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis star as the title character and his wife, noted for their relative youth as actors. Themes of historic recurrence, greater pessimism and internal ugliness in physically beautiful characters are added to Shakespeare's story of moral decline, which is presented in a more realistic style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samantha Bond</span> British actress (born 1961)

Samantha Jane Bond is an English actress. She played Miss Moneypenny in four James Bond films during the Pierce Brosnan era, and appeared in Downton Abbey as the wealthy widow Lady Rosamund Painswick, sister of Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham. On television, she played "Auntie Angela" in the sitcom Outnumbered and the villain Mrs Wormwood in the CBBC Doctor Who spin-off, The Sarah Jane Adventures. She also originated the role of "Miz Liz" Probert in the Rumpole of the Bailey series. She is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Ehle</span> American-British actress (born 1969)

Jennifer Anne Ehle is an American actress. She gained recognition and acclaim for her role as Elizabeth Bennet in the BBC miniseries Pride and Prejudice (1995), for which she received the British Academy Television Award for Best Actress. Known for her roles on Broadway and the West End, she has won two Tony Awards as well as a nomination for a Laurence Olivier Award.

<i>Macbeth</i> (1948 film) 1948 film by Orson Welles

Macbeth is a 1948 American historical drama directed by Orson Welles. A film adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name, it tells the story of the Scottish general who becomes the King of Scotland through treachery and murder. The film stars Welles in the lead role and Jeanette Nolan as Lady Macbeth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macduff's son</span> Fictional character

Macduff's son is a character in William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth (1606). His name and age are not established in the text; however, he is estimated to be 7–10 years of age. He is Shakespeare's typical child character—cute and clever. While Lady Macduff and her children are mentioned in Holinshed's Chronicles as the innocent victims of Macbeth's cruelty, Shakespeare is completely responsible for developing Macduff's son as a character. The boy appears in only one scene (4.2).

<i>Shakespeare: The Animated Tales</i> BBC television series, 1992 to 1994

Shakespeare: The Animated Tales is a series of twelve half-hour animated television adaptations of the plays of William Shakespeare, originally broadcast on BBC2 and S4C between 1992 and 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ty Burrell</span> American actor (born 1967)

Tyler Gerald Burrell is an American actor. Burrell is best known for his role as Phil Dunphy on the ABC sitcom Modern Family (2009–2020) earning two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

<i>Macbeth</i> (2006 film) 2006 film by Geoffrey Wright

Macbeth is a 2006 Australian adaptation of the play by William Shakespeare of the same name. It was directed by Geoffrey Wright and features an ensemble cast led by Sam Worthington in the title role. Macbeth, filmed in Melbourne and Victoria, was released in Australia on 21 September 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macbeth (character)</span> Character in Macbeth

Lord Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis and quickly the Thane of Cawdor, is the title character and main protagonist in William Shakespeare's Macbeth. The character is loosely based on the historical king Macbeth of Scotland and is derived largely from the account in Holinshed's Chronicles (1577), a compilation of British history.

William Shakespeare's Macbeth has been screened numerous times, featuring many of the biggest names from stage, film, and television.

<i>Macbeth</i> (1960 American film) 1960 television film by George Schaefer

Macbeth is a 1960 television film adaptation of the William Shakespeare play presented as the November 20, 1960 episode of the American anthology series Hallmark Hall of Fame. The series' second production of the play was, like the 1954 live telecast, also directed by George Schaefer, and again starred English-born American actor Maurice Evans and Australian actress Judith Anderson. The supporting cast, however, was different, consisting entirely of British actors, and was filmed on location in Scotland; the 1954 version had used a mostly American cast.

<i>The Real Thing at Last</i> 1916 British film

The Real Thing at Last is a "lost" satirical silent movie based on the play Macbeth. It was written in 1916 by Peter Pan creator and playwright J. M. Barrie as a parody of the American entertainment industry. The film was made by the newly created British Actors Film Company in response to news that American filmmaker D. W. Griffith intended to honor the 300th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death by producing of a film version of the play. It was subtitled A Suggestion for the Artists of the Future. It was screened at a charity benefit attended by the royal family, but was not widely distributed, and no copies are known to survive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Fleetwood</span> English actress (b. 1972)

Kate Fleetwood is an English actress. She was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, at Chichester Festival Theatre and the West End and Broadway and an Olivier Award nomination in 2012 for her performance as Julie in London Road at the National Theatre. Her film and television credits include Vanity Fair (2004), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010), Macbeth (2010), Philomena (2013), London Road (2015), Harlots (2017–2019), and The Wheel of Time (2021).

<i>Macbeth</i> (2015 film) Film directed by Justin Kurzel

Macbeth is a 2015 epic historical drama film directed by Justin Kurzel and written for the screen by Todd Louiso, Jacob Koskoff, and Michael Lesslie, based on the Shakespeare play. The film stars Michael Fassbender in the title role and Marion Cotillard as Lady Macbeth, with Paddy Considine, Sean Harris, Jack Reynor, Elizabeth Debicki and David Thewlis in supporting roles. The story follows the Scottish lord's rise to power after receiving a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Like the play it was adapted from, the film dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake.

Cultural references to <i>Macbeth</i>

The tragic play Macbeth by William Shakespeare has appeared and been reinterpreted in many forms of art and culture since it was written in the early 17th century.

<i>The Tragedy of Macbeth</i> (2021 film) Film by Joel Coen

The Tragedy of Macbeth is a 2021 American historical thriller film written, directed and produced by Joel Coen, based on the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare. It is the first film directed by one of the Coen brothers without the other's involvement. The film stars Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Bertie Carvel, Alex Hassell, Corey Hawkins, Harry Melling, Kathryn Hunter, and Brendan Gleeson.

References