Macbeth Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Okay... Did you know that there's another Macbeth movie in the works, one other than Terrence Howard's modernized version in the Caribbean? And that it is taking an even more surprising spin on William Shakespeare's classic? And it stars the most excellent Anthony Stewart Head of Buffy and Repo fame (as Duncan, not Macbeth)?

Apparently this project has been in the works for eons (here's news about it in 2006, with no mention of the futuristic angle). But as excellent as it sounds to have Head play Duncan as "a spitting, cigar-chomping criminal leader, with a soft Glaswegian accent that can turn in an instant from warm and affectionate to fatally menacing," the pic is in trouble. Sure, that's obvious from the fact that it's been three years and nothing, but that's not all.

SciFi Wire reports that reshoots are needed, and Head doesn't seem to keen to continue. See, he's filming the upcoming TV series Merlin, and says that when he learned about the extra shots needed, he thought: "Well, you kind of had me when you had me. I'm shooting in France. I can't really do it." The actor goes on to discuss the unique futuristic spin merged with a "fairly amateur film," so I'm betting Head won't be heading back to Macbeth unless he just so happens to have some time free.

But maybe it'll all work out, or at least I can hope -- it'd be nice to see more Head on the big screen, especially in an innovative Shakespearian format. Do you agree, or do you hope he just stays wrapped in the magic of Merlin?

Can you ever successfully modernize Shakespeare? I've been thinking back to all of the 're-imagined' Shakespeare films I have seen over the years, and as someone who has spent more time than she would have liked studying the Bard, I have to tell ya, most of them are pretty darn bad. I don't claim to be an expert, but for some reason watching Ethan Hawke deliver To Be or Not to Be in a Blockbuster really didn't add much to the experience. Well, that's what I thought anyway when I read the news over at Sci Fi Wire that Terrence Howard has announced the start date for his very own 'Modernized Macbeth' which will be replacing the misty moors of Scotland with the Caribbean sun.

For those of you who skipped high school English, Macbeth was the story of a Scottish warrior who is so affected by a 'witchy prophecy' that he is driven to usurp the Scottish throne through treachery and murder. It is by far one of Wilie's bloodiest plays, but there just must be something about it, because there have been Macbeth updates set in everything from rave culture to the fast food business.

So how to do you successfully transplant Shakespeare to modern day? Well, I happen to think that the films that work the best are the ones that are willing to throw the language right out the window -- sacrilege I know, but hear me out. I think for a lot of audiences the mismatch of modern settings with iambic pentameter just doesn't work as well as it should, and ends up distracting audiences from becoming truly involved in the story and instead spend their time trying to figure out what the hell people are saying. Granted there are some exceptions; Baz Luhrmann did a fair job with his Romeo and Juliet update (although he did a little trimming with the dialog), but I still think the best Shakespeare films are the ones who only look to the plays for inspiration, and not as the script.

So what do you think? Does modern-day Shakespeare ever work? Sound off on some your favorite Shakespeare adaptations below...

Cinematical just received a tasty poster and trailer for Geoffrey Wright's (Romper Stomper) Macbeth, starring Sam Worthington as you know who. Yet another retelling of William Shakespeare's classic play, this updated version of Macbeth looks to be a shoot-em-up thriller set in the seedy underground world of Melbourne, Australia. The poster definitely has this sort of Underworld vibe to it (although I don't believe any vampires show up to wreak poetic havoc), and the trailer comes packed with plenty of steamy romance followed by all sorts of gun play. Pic was already nominated for eight awards for which it won two; an AFI for best costume design and best production design. Union Station Media will distribute, with Macbeth arriving in theaters on June 15.

Back when the news came out about the cast for the Hitcher remake, I lamented the fact that Sean Bean has somehow turned into the foreign guy that Hollywood tends to cast as a heavy in pretty much anything (either that or he's a really boring, barely-written token male), a tendency that is very much at odds with both his early career and a lot of the TV work he does in England. Well, today comes news that he's been cast in a part that might actually allow him to, you know, act a little bit -- hooray!

Variety is reporting that Bean and fellow Brit Tilda Swinton will play the leads in Come Like Shadows, and independently-financed project being produced by the WB-based Milk & One Sugar. The film is a version of the Macbeth story that, while it will be set during an appropriate time, is expected to be (and this is where things get a little wonky) "user-friendly to a contemporary audience." God only knows what that means, but it makes me a little nervous, just because we can handle Shakespeare that isn't dumbed down, dammit! For Bean, the gig is a return to Macbeth -- he played the role on stage in London three years ago.

Both Steven Soderbergh and Luc Besson are involved in the film as well (the former will executive produce, and post-production will take place in Besson's EuropaCorp facilities), which makes it sound like it might be sort of big and shiny and, just maybe, good. Production begins this fall in Scotland; director will be John Maybury.