The 25 best Shakespeare-to-screen adaptations

To film, or not to film, that is the question. We rank the answers.

By David Cote, David Fear, Adam Feldman, Joshua Rothkopf and Keith Uhlich Thu Oct 20 2011

RECOMMENDED: All Shakespeare in the Park stories

It would seem a no-brainer: Combine the world's most revered dramatist with today's most popular medium. Alas, translating the Bard to the big screen has proved trickier than anyone ever thought. In ranking the 25 most successful attempts, TONY tapped its Film and Theater experts. Their only ground rule: No plots about the playwright himself—such as this week's thriller, —would be eligible. (Sorry, Shakespeare in Love fans). But any adaptations of the plays themselves, loose or faithful, were fair game.

So if top-25 lists be the food of love, read on. And if we've forgotten your favorite title, please flourish your poison pen in the comments section below.

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Comments & ratings

Rated as: 3/5 (2 ratings)

  • kozintesev should have been there in the list!

    pratik mitra Mon Mar 25
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  • Do some proofreading. Keanu Reeves is Don John, not Don Pedro.

    Travis Wed Oct 24 2012
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  • And what about Othello (1995) and As You Like It (2006)? You can't go wrong with Kenneth Branagh.

    Andrew Wed Oct 24 2012
    Rated as: 5/5
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  • Although it's controversial, Olivier's 1965 "Othello" should have been included, and I would never have put Baz Luhrmann's desecration of "Romeo and Juliet" on the list. And what about the Orson Welles "Macbeth"?

    Albert Sat Aug 18 2012
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  • get <a href="http://www.chanelstore-online.com/">chanel bags online</a> for gift

    Zitheeri Thu Aug 16 2012
    Rated as: 1/5
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  • Despite the negative reviews, I'm actually rather pleased with this list - so much so, in fact, that I've been using it as a reference as to which Shakespeare adaptations to watch. Yet I too am not without my reservations. That the 1996 Hamlet should below the 2000 version, and that the 1990 version should not be included, is inexcusable. Of all the films on this list, the one I think least worthy of being included is that adolescent schizophrenic cacophony of gaudy ostentation Romeo + Juliet (1996), although I understand why it is included (not why it ranks so highly, however). Still, there are some notable films that have been unduly neglected, some of which other users have previously mentioned: West Side Story (1961), 10 Things I Hate about You (1999), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999), and the grossly underrated The Tempest (2010). I have not seen Coriolanus (2011), though I'm sure it lives up to its hype.

    Andrew Thu Aug 16 2012
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  • A Shakespeare cinematic list that doesn't include Grigory Kozintsev's Hamlet (1964) and King Lear (1971) loses all validity.

    richard brooks Fri Jul 27 2012
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  • thnks

    praveen Mon Jul 9 2012
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  • The fact that Baz Luhrman's awful "Romeo and Juliet" and Ethan Hawke's dismal "Hamlet" are both on this list and Ralph Fiennes' superb Coriolanus, "West Side Story", and "10 Things I Hate About You" are not makes little to no sense. Also, Keanu Reeves was unwatchable in "Much Ado..."

    Rebecca E Mon Jun 18 2012
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  • I'm sorry, I can't trust a list that includes Forbidden Planet but not the BBC version of Macbeth starring Patrick Stewart. Or a list that ranks Baz Luhrman's Romeo + Juliet below the 1968 version.

    Pete Mon Jun 18 2012
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