Macbeth

I actually prefer Nicol Williamson's Macbeth to Sir Ian McKellen. He is far more believable in the role. I believe Williamson to be one of the better Shakespearean actors. Even Jane Lapotaire's Lady Macbeth is better than Dame Judi Dench's performance. Perhaps Dench and McKellen just lacked the physical chemistry Williamson and Lapotaire appear more likable to me. I believe them more as a couple. While I enjoy all the actors mentioned above, this version is more than just a stage version. There is no audience. The costumes and art direction could be better overall. Still the BBC kept true to William Shakespeare's words. This version could do well in high school classrooms since this play is part of the curriculum. I prefer this version overall to the recorded Stratford version. If I had to choose between this version and Roman Polanski's film for the classroom viewing experience, I would take this version because it is more faithful overall.

'Macbeth', known too as the Scottish play (have also heard Verdi's opera coined the Scottish opera), is one of my favourite Shakespeare plays, with some of Shakespeare's most deservedly famous characters and lines/solliloquies. It is one of his most quotable/oft-quoted plays and one of his most accessible to study in schools, from personal experience and studying it twice (no other Shakespeare play had me studying it more than once at school).

The BBC Television Shakespeare series is of great interest and a must see for anyone wanting mostly faithful productions with talented casts, even if the quality of the production values throughout the series is variable and some productions are better than others. This 'Macbeth' has garnered a mixed response and that is understandable, particularly in regard to Nicol Williamson's Macbeth. To me it is neither among the best or worst of the BBC Television Shakespeare series, and is solid enough while a long way from being perfect.

Can completely understand the mixed reactions to Williamson's performance. For me, it was an inconsistent one, with some disengaged interaction early on and some intense moments veer on blustering. Worst of all agreed is the "Tomorrow" solliloquy, delivered far too slowly and is so under-acted that he looks bored. There are though fine moments, especially later on. He looks and acts genuinely spooked in the Banquo's Ghost scene and it's thrilling and did feel a lot of tension in the chemistry between him and Jane Lapotaire. The standout though was the "is this the dagger I see before me" solliloquy, one of the most chilling renditions of that part of 'Macbeth'.

Did feel that the witches were over-acted and not frightening or mysterious enough. The production would have benefitted from a tighter pace, it can drag and more detailed and more engaged interaction would have helped it.

On the other hand, to me 'Macbeth' is one of the better-looking productions of the series. The costumes and atmospheric lighting (especially at the beginning for the latter) are particularly good and while some may not share this opinion the austerity of the sets were perfectly fitting and didn't look cheap. The direction is not always consistent, but the scene where Macduff learns of his family's murder is very moving and the final scene is intensely vivid. The Banquo's ghost scene is problematic, have seen some amateurish staging of that scene and with touches that don't make sense but this production did a decent job with it, the psychological element of that scene is important and that was brought out. In fact, that the production has more of the psychological element of the play more than some other productions works in its favour.

There are some nice little things too, like the genuine terror in Lady Macduff's eyes (hugely telling and adds so much to the terrifying and emotional impact of that scene and something that one can't see on stage), Lady Macbeth's hands covered in blood as she pushes Macbeth towards the bedroom and Macbeth clearly showing nervousness with his hands behind his back. The sleepwalking scene is also spooky and the often brought up touch, also garnering a mixed response from viewer, didn't feel too gratuitous to me, and gratuity is a pet peeve of mine.

Music score is suitably haunting and the camera work is professional. Shakespeare's text is iconic and has a lot of impact throughout, this 'Macbeth' is notable for being near complete in its treatment of the drama and text, more so than most 'Macbeths', and is one of the more faithful in adaptation productions of the BBC Television Shakespeare series. The little that is omitted doesn't harm the production at all, and are some of the weakest parts of the play itself anyway. Forget to mention the rest of the cast. Jane Lapotaire is a bloodcurdling bat-out-of-hell Lady Macbeth, on the other end of the spectrum we have a noble Ian Hogg and very moving Tony Doyle. James Bolam is amusing as the Porter, the only "bad" performance was Tom Bowles' Donalbain but that was not enough to bring the production down.

Summarising, a solid if patchy 'Macbeth'. 6.5/10

As with most of the BBC Shakespeare films, this Macbeth is a straightforward representation of Shakespeare's play, largely faithful to the text, but it is not without its flaws.

The acting style in this production is very subdued, often depriving the play of its energy.

The cast (with few exceptions) is singularly unattractive, including Lady Macbeth; she is, however, young, and her reading of the "unsex me now" scene is sexually charged.

Nicol Williamson's Macbeth is alternately dour, growling out his lines, and agitated, with the labored breathing of an asthmatic.

The Porter is not perceivably drunk and is certainly not funny.

The witches, however, are excellent; old crones in shabby, hooded cloaks, with gnarled hands, their lines are clearly articulated, not drowned by sound effects, as is often the case.

Though Nicol Williamson performs outstandingly in quite a few scenes, his overall performance is somewhat uneven. Much of the time he delivers his lines with brio or with subtle astuteness, but he occasionally comes across as disengaged and bored. Especially disappointing is his delivery of the great "Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow" soliloquy. It is indeed, the worst rendition that I have ever beheld. Perhaps Williamson was seeking to convey Macbeth's ennui through his lackluster recitation of the soliloquy, but it falls badly flat.

Jane Lapotaire is excellent in her opening scene and in her final scene, but somewhat less impressive in the intervening scenes (especially in the scene with Banquo's ghost). She pretty badly misjudges a few of her lines, and she is too highstrung. Still, her overall performance is at a high level.

Tony Doyle is generally excellent as Macduff, and James Hazeldine is quite good in the difficult role of Malcolm. James Bolam is considerably less entertaining as the porter in this production than as Touchstone in "As You Like It" (though the fault may lie with Shakespeare more than with the actor).

Most of the other performances are pretty good, though there are quite a few other instances of misjudged renderings of lines. The sets and lighting are fine, and the production is to be commended for including most of the text. (The spurious III.v and the spurious bits of IV.i are of course omitted, as is the paean to Edward the Confessor in V.iii. Only a handful of other lines are omitted -- though I should note that all of those remaining omissions are gratuitous.) There are some pointless rearrangements of the text, but they are not confusing.

There are several directorial oddities, of which I will mention two here. First, in the third scene -- where Macbeth and Banquo encounter the witches -- the witches simply amble away after they have delivered their prophecies to Macbeth and Banquo. Contrary to what Macbeth and Banquo declare, the witches do not suddenly vanish. Given that the sudden disappearance could have been effected easily in a production made for television, the directorial decision to have the witches simply walk away is strange indeed. Second, during the scene with Banquo's ghost, there are two empty chairs rather than only one. There is the empty chair across from Macbeth, where Banquo's ghost appears. Clumsily, however, there is another empty chair at the very part of the table where Macbeth is standing. Quite unclear is why the director included that second empty chair, especially given that its position makes rather ludicrous Macbeth's question about the location of a vacant seat.

In short, this production is well worth watching even though it is marred by some shortcomings.

Jane Lapotaire is a superb Lady Macbeth, as those who've seen her on stage would expect. Although the jury is often out on Nicol Williamson's acting in anything, I think he is brilliant in this - particularly in the banquet scene where Banquo's ghost returns. I'd probably bracket him with Ian McKellen when it comes to TV movie portrayals of what is essentially the portrait of a usurper gone mad.

It has to be said though that the towering presence of these two actors somewhat overshadow the others in the cast. Special mention must go to Ian Hogg as Banquo, and the late Tony Doyle as Macduff, however, as they are both excellent.

Jack Gold's production looks done either on the cheap, or in a minimalist way (or both!) but that would be my only quibble. This is my favourite of the BBC Shakespeares. Let's hope the whole series of them will be made available on video or DVD widely in the UK again soon.