Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
The Merchant of Venice (2004)
Director: Michael Radford
Movie review
From Time Out London
Radford’s Shakespeare adaptation is his best film since ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ but doesn’t overcome the play’s inherent difficulties. The director prefaces the action with titles that explain the resentful tolerance that the Venice of 1596 showed to the usury practised by the city’s Jews. Radford then emphasises the virulent anti-Semitism of the time by showing Jeremy Irons’ merchant Antonio publically spitting on Shylock, proffering a crucial psychological explanation for the Jew’s tragic intransigence over his contracted pound of flesh.This is Al Pacino’s show and thankfully his Shylock is absorbing enough to carry the day. Adopting a guttural staccato, he assumes an intriguing figure driven as much by contempt and pride as he is by revenge; an orthodox authoritarian drawing on wells of controlled rage, he’s also vulnerable enough to be deeply slighted (and isolated) by the desertion of his beloved daughter (a poor Zuleikha Robinson). The rest of the transatlantic cast work surprisingly well as an ensemble, despite individual weaknesses: Joseph Fiennes’ shallow opportunist Bassanio (beloved by Irons’ tortured gay) is slightly underwhelming; Lynn Collins’ bubbly Portia is over-confident to the point of obtuseness; and Kris Marshall’s Gratiano, well, too ingratiating. That said, Radford keeps the drama streamlined and well-paced and cinematographer Benoît Delhomme lights the canals, piazzas and palazzos without resort to pictorialism or cliché, minimising the impact of some embarrassing visual effects (notably those generating Portia’s island castle). The conventional feelgood ending, however, played straight as here, is callous and triumphalist, condemning the play and leaving a very bad taste in the mouth.
Author: WH
Time Out London Issue 1789: December 01-08 2004
User reviews of this film
-
- luty said...
- Posted on Jan 16 2010 12:11 i watched this in my english lesson and thought it was an excellent adaptation of the play
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Michael Radford
Producer: Cary Brokaw, Barry Navidi, Michael Cowan, Jason Peitte
Cast: Al Pacino, Gregor Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Allan Corduner, MacKenzie Crook, Lynn Collins, Joseph Fiennes, Zuleika Robinson, Kris Marshall, Charlie Cox, Heather Goldenhersh, John Sessions, Anton Rodgers full cast
Rated: PG
Duration: 131 mins
UK Release: Dec 3 2004
Top Stories
Ridley Scott interview
Director Ridley Scott tells Cath Clarke why he's making a science fiction comeback
Cannes Film Festival 2012: half-time report
Dave Calhoun reports on the hits, misses and a shocking new masterpiece from Michael Haneke






What do you think?
Post your review now