Well, and of course the conceit of 12th Night is that the protagonist is a girl who dresses as a boy and falls in love with her male coworker. (And also, there's the whole theme about the the responsibilities of nobles to their lesser kin/hangers-on, which resonates nicely with Judi Dench and her irritating court.) Except the play's Viola is actually happy to put the dress back on at the end.
(I read an article, when that movie originally came out, that described some of the more common "Shakespeare has an annus mirabilis right before writing R & J" speculations, and decried the film for not going a more complex or surprising route. The author suggested that Shakespeare and Marlowe should have fallen in love, and Marlowe's death to have been the kick in the butt Shakespeare needed to improve his writing. Anyway, it would explain some of the gender trouble of the plays.)
(I also read a short story where Shakespeare and Marlowe switched identities, and it was Will-as-Marlowe who was murdered, and Kit-as-Shakespeare stayed away from Stratford for the next 20 years so "his" wife wouldn't know of the switch. I don't think this would explain why everyone today seems to esteem Marlowe higher than even later Shakespeare, but it was a cute idea.)
I have yet to see an Ophelia I really like. Playing "crazy" is such a difficult thing to pull off -- the only actor (male or female) I can think of off the top of my head who does it well is Ben Browder.
a lover, not a fighter--a kind of overgrown teenager not quite knowing what to do with the pressure of violence
See, that's precisely how I've always seen him: a teenager with a really severe Oedipal thing going on, sulky, self-absorbed, not remotely heroic, and extremely physical because he's uncomfortable in his body.
The one version I will always regret that no one got on film for posterity was Daniel Day-Lewis at the Old Vic. MAN oh man. Because his father died when he was a teenager, and he still has father issues. And apparently, he brought some incredible pain and fire to the part.
See, that's precisely how I've always seen him: a teenager with a really severe Oedipal thing going on, sulky, self-absorbed, not remotely heroic, and extremely physical because he's uncomfortable in his body.
oh, i agree. I've always been slightly irritated at older actors in the role, but then I don't know that a younger actor could make it work.
I think that i saw the version of the Shrew that Julianna saw. I really liked it - really broadly done - so the things that make it so disturbing to the modern viewer , aren't a problem.
The author suggested that Shakespeare and Marlowe should have fallen in love, and Marlowe's death to have been the kick in the butt Shakespeare needed to improve his writing.
Nutty, have you read Martha Grimes' The Dirty Duck? She uses the Marlowe/Shakespeare connection as a sort of subtheme, a thread running through the mystery. And she sets it mostly in Stratford.
Rigg, McKern, Tuten at all. That's the one.
Oh! And John Hurt as the Fool, right? That was an AMAZING cast.
Oh! And John Hurt as the Fool, right? That was an AMAZING cast.
Yes, indeed. And let us not forget Jeremy Kemp as Cornwall. And lovely lovely David Threlfall as Edgar.
And Anna Calder Marshall taking the thankless task of interpreting Cordelia without making her saintly, and doing it beautifully.
And just looking now, I noticed Brian Cox was in it as well (can't remember who Burgandy is in the play, though).
Also, I'm unreasonably fond of Polanski's version of the Scottish play, despite some significant liberties with the text (although more in terms of the action than the speech).
Somehow, I think Shakespeare might be the last thing on our minds... IJS.
I should tell you that I find iambic pentameter very, very sexy. *ahem*
