Macbeth: The Comedy

An extremely silly and smart film, "Macbeth: The Comedy" never takes itself too seriously. Allison LiCalsi's interpretation of the Scottish play points out the inherent goofiness of ambition. The acting is perfect -- subtle when it needs to be, over-the-top when nothing else will do (check out Lady Macbeth's writhing-on-the-bed scene). The leading roles are handled with aplomb, and some of the minor roles (the murderers, the witches) nearly steal the show. LiCalsi's screenplay bounces between Shakespeare's own words and the contemporary vernacular. Sounds like a strange fit, but it works -- pretty soon, your ear forgets which is which and just enjoys the whole twisted tale. This is not a movie for the pretentious -- allow yourself to giggle and get into it.

I'm glad I ventured forth on a wind-swept night (while the trains weren't running no less) to see this movie. I always found "Macbeth" to be one of Shakespeare's funniest plays and I'm glad that this filmmaker does as well. After adjusting to the American accents (which add to the humour, because the "Scottish Play" is never actually performed with the appropriate burr anyway), I settled in for an enjoyable 90 minutes of sight gags, over-the-top characters, and word-play that was reminiscent of some of our better television programmes. One wonders if the writer is a fan of Ben Elton or Tom Stoppard (or both?). What Monty Python did for Jesus in "Life of Brian" this film does for Macbeth. Is nothing sacred? Thankfully not.

Anyone who takes on Shakespeare and dares to make even one change or offer a different interpretation is asking for a sock in the mouth. So what made Ms. LiCalsi think she could "tamper" with one of the Bard's hallowed masterpieces? Two reasons: a)why not? Shakespeare "tampered" with works of others and probably would get a charge if he knew his tales were getting the same, and b) LiCalsi had a wild idea that the Scottish Play could actually be funny. She was right. "Macbeth: the Comedy" juxtaposes prose and verse, medieval past and 21st century present, intellectual comic references yet just the right dose of slapstick delicately and strategically delivered. Only someone who really loves and knows Shakespeare's works could have written this script. Only those who know and appreciate Shakespeare and recognize he wouldn't have taken himself too seriously can enjoy this film. I found it clever and sharp with plenty of literary and cultural references, but also downright nuts at times. It doesn't try to be funny at the expense of the plot or characters. For those of you who don't know the story of Macbeth (hello High School Students) you WON'T forget it after this. Oh, and the costumes are good too.

Macbeth the Comedy tries, it really does. You can tell that the script writer really did want to make it funny, and that the cast really did too. It just doesn't work though. Most of the jokes fall flat (apart from a few near the end, and a good joke on the "new fashion of rhyming" at the start).

One of the funniest films I've seen in a long time. It's rare treat to find erudite wit and slapstick humor coexisting. I found myself thinking about it at work the next day and laughing. The cast is terrific and I suspect we'll be hearing more from Erika Burke and Juliet Furness who did splendid jobs with Macbeth and Lady M respectively.