The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971)

Director:

Roman Polanski

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play) and
Roman Polanski (writer)

Release Date:

13 October 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A ruthlessly ambitious Scottish lord siezes the throne with the help of his scheming wife and a trio of witches.

Plot Keywords:

Wife | King | Throne | Shakespeare | Tragedy

Awards:

Won BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Jon Finch	...	Macbeth
Francesca Annis	...	Lady Macbeth
Martin Shaw	...	Banquo
Terence Bayler	...	Macduff
John Stride	...	Ross
Nicholas Selby	...	Duncan
Stephan Chase	...	Malcolm
Paul Shelley	...	Donalbain
Maisie MacFarquhar	...	First Witch
Elsie Taylor	...	Second Witch
Noelle Rimmington	...	Third Witch
Noel Davis	...	Seyton
Sydney Bromley	...	Porter
Richard Pearson	...	Doctor
Patricia Mason	...	Gentlewoman

Also Known As:

Macbeth (USA)

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Netherlands:16 | South Korea:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1985) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Canada:14A (Alberta) (re-rating) (1999) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (DVD rating) | Finland:K-15 (2002) (DVD rating) | Finland:K-16 (1972) (cut version) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bamburgh Castle, Bamburgh, Northumberland, England, UK

Company:

Caliban Films

Trivia:

Act Three, Scene Five of "Macbeth" is an interpolation, an addition to the Shakespeare play from another script. Generally it is not used in theatrical and movie adaptations for this reason.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The lyrics to the song that Fleance sings at Macbeth's banquet for Duncan at Inverness are taken from the poem "Merciles Beautè" by Geoffrey Chaucer. In the context of the film this extraneously inserted song is itself an anachronism, as Chaucer lived in the fourteenth century and Shakespeare's "Macbeth" historically takes place in the eleventh century.

Quotes:

Three Witches: Fair is foul and foul is fair, hover through the fog and filthy air.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Story of 'Frenzy' (2001) (V)

Watch and learn from Polanski

Roman Polanski's director career is probably one of the most flawless in movie history. He's standing in there with the masters like Tarkovsky, Bergman and Antonioni. He has made it almost in every genre. From horror to comedy. But when i come to think his best work, there is clearly two films over the rest of the bunch. They are Chinatown and Macbeth. Both made in 70's and both examples of the master filmmaking. Chinatown is best film-noir among Touch of Evil and Miller's Crossing and Macbeth is without any questions the best William Shakespeare film translation there has ever been. Macbeth is dark, heavy and stunningly photographed drama that has glimpses of pure horror and eerie dream sequences in it. It was first movie after Sharon Tate murder and you can say that Polanski is putting his grief into Macbeth. Murders are extremely bloody in the movie and atmosphere so thick that you can breath it. If you want to see real moviemaking then go and see Macbeth. As i said it has great photography in it and shows the real skills of Polanski as a film storyteller. But this one is not for the faint hearted and weak stomaches. A Masterpiece.

- Emil Kakko