Modernization of Shakespeare In Film
Modernization of Shakespeare In Film
The works of William Shakespeare have been wildly known to change many things in our modern world, including our literary stance, the English language, and of course film and television. The first film to ever feature Shakespeare’s work was a photographic record of a production of King John performed on the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree’s stage in 1899 (Brooke). It was directed by William Kennedy and it starred Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree as King John. The film itself was a brief excerpt from King John’s death scene (Brooke).
(BFI)
Since 1899, the flexibility of shaping Shakespeare’s work has been expressed through films in multiple ways. Some films portray the plays as much like their presumed performances in the Globe as best as the cast and crew can, or have been modernized into the time period of when the film was made.
An example of a film that portrays the time period that Shakespeare was going for is Franco Zeffirelli’s celebrated film Romeo and Juliet (1968). Despite the film not containing the entirety of the play Zeffirelli makes a point to make this film adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet as close to Shakespeare’s context as possible. From faithfulness to the play, to scenery and costume. Even the stars of the film Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting were close to the lovers’ ages (Olivia Hussey being 15 and Leonard Whiting 17 at the time) (Shakespeare in Action).
The noted scenery reflects Shakespeare’s profound interest in the country of Italy. The film itself was filmed in various places throughout Italy, including Tuscania, Gubbio, Pienza, Artenia, Costumes, and of course Verona (Nikolaeva and Vatteroni). These cities, containing ancient architecture and filmed with the most prestige of colors, provided the most ideal setting for the time period of the play. It is as if we are looking at a 16th century world, as opposed to 1968 (Juliano).
(Juliano)
But it’s not just the environment that gives the film its Italian Renaissance demeanor. The costumes in this film capture what people in Renaissance Italy would’ve worn.
While the Renaissance began in Italy, the clothing fashions were inspired by English monarchs (Westover). The Italian influence in art created authentic designs into these types of clothing, allowing them to show off their social status. The men normally wore clothing that would display their silhouette more. So they wore large puffs at the head, shoulders, thighs, as well as small puffs over their chests, arms, legs and feet (renaissancepoetry).
(renaissancepoetry)
Women were known to wear at least four layers of clothing, consisting of a skirt, bodice, vest, underskirt, and the occasional collar. Women also wore kirtles with gowns, which gave them a tight bodice and a flowing skirt (renaissancepoetry).
(renaissancepoetry)
These styles were captured magnificently in Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliei. The costumes were designed by Danilo Donati, who would later receive the Best Costume Oscar in 1969 (Bass).
(Ragozzino)
Like Zefferilli's Romeo and Julieit, Greg Doran's Hamlet remains mostly faithful to the original script, however it fasts forward in time. It starred David Tennant as Hamlet and Sir Patrick Stewart as King Claudius and the Ghost of the Late King Hamlet. It was filmed at St. Joseph's College in Mill Hill London, (Hingorani and Park) and had modern day costumes designed by Robert Jones (Mercado), the film itself creates a very contemporary version of Hamlet.
This film poses as a challenge for both the crew and the audience as well. We’re presented with a very modern and almost comedic version of Hamlet that still remains faithful to the original script and Shakespeare’s language. It’s noted that Tennant gave Hamlet a quirky and sarcastic attitude that can be found in the personalities of teenage boys. This made Hamlet become a comedic, even though troubled, character (Lossio).
According to Lossio, the modernized costumes gave attributes to the characters’ personalities that wouldn’t have been done if it were performed in the traditional way. Hamlet is first seen wearing a black suit to display mourning for his father, but he is later wearing a t-shirt displaying an ab design. Lossio feels that was a silly concept at first, until realizing that this shirt can act as a symbol to the quote “My father’s brother: but no more like my father than I to Hercules” (Lossio).
What’s interesting is that the skull that is used for this film, as well as several other on-stage productions of Hamlet performed at the Royal Shakespeare Company in both Stratford and London, is that the skull used is the skull of a man who was named André Tchaikowsky (The Telegraph). It was Tchaikowsky’s dying wish for his skull to be used for this purpose and therefore bequeathed his skull to the Royal Shakespeare Company. However, it did not happen until a quarter of a century after his death in 1982 (Khan).
One of most known of the modernized Shakespearean films is Gil Junger’s 10 Things I hate About You (1999) that stands as an adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. It takes place in a suburban Seattle neighborhood in the late 90s (Ashry). This being said does not stay true to the original script, nor the time period, fashions or speech of Shakespeare’s time, with the exception of Cameron first sight of Bianca;
It does however, keep the primary characters of the story, like Katarina (played by Julia Stiles), Patrick (Petruchio) (played by Heath Ledger) and Cameron James (Lucentio) (played by Joseph Gorden-Levitt) (IMDb). Because of this, Junger was able make a Shakespeare play relatable and likeable to a teenage audience, that is stereotypically known for turning down the concept of studying Shakespeare in school.
Many people who have seen this film and have not studied Shakespeare may not think that this film was even Shakespeare related (apart from the girl who dressed as an Elizabethan woman at her prom). The reason why this could be because of the struggles of feminism that is found in the film. The film portrays Katerina and Bianca being sisters of an overly controlling father. The father gives the same rule in the play that Bianca cannot be with a man until Katerina does. Katerina has the same “unreasonable” behavior as the Katerina from the play, but she is mocked and not taken seriously. When Patrick displays the very same behavior, he is feared but also admired for his masculinity and his ability to “tame the shrew” (Ashry).
Feminism may not be wildly thought of when it comes to studying Shakespeare, because of women in Shakespeare’s time having very limited freedom, including not being able to attend school, the expectation of brining a dowry into their marriages, and of course the expectation of eventually bearing multiple children (Alchin).
However, the concept of feminism can be found multiple times in The Taming of the Shrew, from the very beginning when we see how Christopher Sly treats the hostess (Pittman), to the very end where Katerina makes her final speech about wives being obedient to their husbands (which is still being debated today if she meant what she said if she is be completely sarcastic).
The ending of the film takes a turn when Katerina gives her ending speech/poem. While in the play, the ending speech on the obedience of wives is written on the page, it can be performed and read as sarcastic or genuine. The film does not give the audience that choice. The film itself portrays Kat as a genuine person at the very end. Throughout the movie, Katerina is seen as a very feminist figure, but at the very end, she heavily expresses her frustration and lists everything she hates about Patrick through her poem and then admits that she doesn’t hate him at all, despite what he did to her (Tomaselli). The feminist symbolism can mean that the poem demonstrates the feminist view that she’s frustrated for being degraded, but does not hate the men in her life.
It is films like these that give the example why Shakespeare should continue to be taught in schools around the world. His works were not only a contribution almost 3,000 words into the English language (Shakespeare Resource Center), but his lasting impression on theatre production and film making as well.
There are hundreds of films produced around the world that are traditional or modernized editions of Shakespeare’s work, there are also the films like Ten Things I Hate About You that don’t carry Shakespeare’s name or speech, but still effectively tell his stories while appealing and introducing Shakespeare to the modern day young audiences. Some of these films include Andy Fickman’s She’s the Man (2006) based on Twelfth Night, Roger Allers’s and Rob Minkoff’s The Lion King (1994) based on Hamlet, Jerome Robbins’s and Robert Wise’s West Side Story (1961) based on Romeo and Juliet, George Sidney’s Kiss Me Kate (1953) based on The Taming of the Shrew, Fred M. Wilcox’s Forbidden Planet (1956) based on The Tempest, and Akira Kurosawa’s Ran (1985) based on King Lear (Dyce). These films brought Shakespeare’s works outside of the stage and told them through song, dance, modern day drama, and even animated lions.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. Romeo And Juliet. 1st ed. London: N.p., 1595. Print.
Zeffirelli, Franco. Romeo And Juliet. United States and Italy: BHE Films and Verona Produzione, 1968. film.
Doran, Gregory. Hamlet. United Kingdom, United States, and Japan: BBC 2, 2009. film.
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. 1st ed. London: N.p., 1603. Print.
Junger, Gil. Ten Things I Hate About You. United States: Touchstone Pictures, 1999. film.
Shakespeare, William. The Taming Of The Shrew. 1st ed. London: N.p., 1594. Print.
Brooke, Michael. "BFI Screenonline: Shakespeare On Screen". Screenonline.org.uk. N.p., 2014. Web. 7 May 2017.
Brooke, Michael. "BFI Screenonline: King John (1899)". Screenonline.org.uk. N.p., 2014. Web. 7 May 2017.
BFI. Silent King John. 1899. Web. 10 May 2017.
Shakespeare in Action. "Shakespeare At The Movies: Romeo And Juliet Through The Ages". Shakespeare In Action. N.p., 2017. Web. 8 May 2017.
Nikolaeva, Olga, and Romano Vatteroni. "Zeffirelli's ROMEO And JULIET, 1968 - MOVIE LOCATION Initaly | Romeo And Juliet Theme Site". Romeo-juliet-club.ru. N.p., 2000. Web. 9 May 2017.
Juliano, Sam. "15. Romeo And Juliet (1968)". Wonders in the Dark. N.p., 2014. Web. 10 May 2017.
Juliano, Sam. Romeo_Juliet_Fight_Tybalt.Jpg. 2014. Web. 10 May 2017.
Westover, Abigail. "Renaissance 1450-1650 | History Of Costume". Historyofeuropeanfashion.wordpress.com. N.p., 2012. Web. 10 May 2017.
renaissancepoetry. "Renaissance Fashion". Renaissance. N.p., 2017. Web. 10 May 2017.
renaissancepoetry. Renaissance Men. Web. 10 May 2017.
renaissancepoetry. Renaissance Women. Web. 10 May 2017.
Bass, Trystan. "TBT: Romeo And Juliet (1968) | Frock Flicks". Frock Flicks. N.p., 2015. Web. 10 May 2017.
Ragozzino, Valentina. Romeo E Giulietta. Web. 10 May 2017.
Hingorani, Jitin, and Gloria Park. "DAVID TENNANT REPRISES HIS ROLE AS HAMLET FOR ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY PRODUCTION TO AIR ON GREAT PERFORMANCES ON PBS | PBS About". pbs.org. N.p., 2009. Web. 10 May 2017.
Mercado, Jasmine. "Hamlet: 2009 Royal Shakespeare Company". Hamlet: Costume Designer. N.p., 2015. Web. 10 May 2017.
Lossio, Jenna. "Film Review: BBC Production Of Hamlet". The Mantra. N.p., 2013. Web. 10 May 2017.
Kurttz, Ellie. David Tennant As Hamet In Gregory Doran's 2008 Production Of Hamlet. 2008. Web. 10 May 2017.
The Telegraph. "David Tennant's Hamlet Featured Real Human Skull All Along, Admits RSC". Telegraph.co.uk. N.p., 2009. Web. 10 May 2017.
Khan, Urmee. "Royal Shakespeare Company To Stop Using 'Distracting' Real Skull In Hamlet". Telegraph.co.uk. N.p., 2008. Web. 10 May 2017.
IMDb. "10 Things I Hate About You (1999)". IMDb. N.p., 2017. Web. 10 May 2017.
Ashry, Rabha. "10 Things I Hate About You, Shakespeare And Feminism In The 1990S By Rabha Ashry". 10 Things I Hate About You. Web. 10 May 2017.
Pittman, L Monique. Taming 10 Things I Hate About You: Shakespeare And The Teenage Film
Audience. 1st ed. Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University, 2004. Web. 10 May 2017.
Ashry, Rabha. I Burn, I Pine, I Perish. Web. 10 May 2017.
Alchin, Linda. "Elizabethan Women". Elizabethan-era.org.uk. N.p., 2017. Web. 10 May 2017.
Tomaselli, Sara Cristina. "Taming Of The Shrew And 10 Things I Hate About You – Comparison-Contrast Essay". One Girl. One Journey.. N.p., 2015. Web. 10 May 2017.
Shakespeare Resource Center. "Shakespeare Resource Center - The Language Of Shakespeare". Bardweb.net. N.p., 2017. Web. 24 Apr. 2017.
Dyce, Andrew. "10 Movies Surprisingly Based On Shakespeare". Screen Rant. N.p., 2013. Web. 10 May 2017.
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