Macbeth (2015)
Release Date: December 11, 2015
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Paddy Considine, Sean Harris, Jack Reynor, Elizabeth Debicki, David Thewlis
Director: Justin Kurzel
Studio: Anton Capital Entertainment, DMC Film, Creative Scotland, Film4, See-Saw Films
Distributor: Studio Canal, The Weinstein Company
Genre(s): War Drama
Based On The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Rating: ????½?
Review Spoilers: Low
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Predictably and unsurprisingly, few things make the English Literature major in me happier than Shakespeare, you should know that right off the bat.
Upon hearing that this version of Macbeth casted a lead like Michael Fassbender for the titular character and Marion Cotillard for Lady Macbeth, I was entirely too excited to watch it. I’ve long been a fan of Fassbender’s acting, from the one-man-show performances in Shame and Hunger to his historical dramatic role in 12 Years a Slave, hell, I even love him as Magneto in the X-Men prequels. He’s an actor who can perform a wide range of emotions that convince and captivate the audience from start to finish.
Popular culture often suggests that Lady Macbeth is the root of all sin, typically neglecting Macbeth’s own voracious ambition. While academics are happy to analyze every line, word, and punctuation to retort this claim, the public’s resounding notion remains the same. Cotillard downplays Lady Macbeth’s sinister side and gives her character a soft nuance that is not frequently highlighted. Her guilt in the latter part of the film is all-consuming while she witnesses her husband spiral deeper into the role of the villain.
There are certain things you just can’t do on stage, but Justin Kurzel does a fantastic job of painting a gruesome and colorful story that emphasizes all of the themes and motifs of this tale while retaining much of Shakespeare’s original dialogue. I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never seen a theater play performance of Macbeth, but in a play, the director is often forced to be creative in order to set the performance apart from banality. In films, this is also a common issue. Battle scenes and fight sequences are often drawn out for the sake of cinematic presence and are used as a form of heavy-handed emphasis, but they can also be used as a vehicle for originality and creativity.
Kurzel paints a somewhat traditional version of Macbeth, with no sudden twists or turns in narrative, but it is effective nonetheless. The use of Shakespeare’s script might deter the general audience, but also creates a new dimension to stand on. The use of color, specifically red, emphasizes blood and guilt and is used heavily without being overbearing.
Final Thoughts: Kurzel’s Macbeth delivers a familiar story in a more traditional setting, but still manages to bring forth a new, bolder version of Macbeth that Michael Fassbender does a brilliant job delivering. Beautifully done, this shouldn’t be missed on the big screen.