Othello

I am a great Shakespeare aficionado, and I am usually very skeptical about versions that don't use the original text. Yes, adaptation is a valid genre in itself, but a modern-language adaptation is usually only meaningful because it refers back to the original work that we acknowledge the immense value of. People (film-makers and audience alike) must understand that, if you leave behind Shakespeare's language, you invariably leave behind 90% of the art and subtext. You leave behind almost everything that makes the audience think, retaining only the part that is easily digestible as immediate entertainment. In most cases, this is acceptable only to those who do not distinguish significantly between high art and immediate entertainment.

Then there are the exceptions, like this absolutely excellent modern version of Othello. It is very professionally produced in every way; the language, though mostly modern, is just that little bit prettier than everyday language, containing some nice similes and alliterations here and there, as if inclining ever so slightly towards Shakespearean language. Very nice! The plot has been significantly altered, and with it is also altered a good deal of the original statements of the play, but it is done respectfully, as if understanding that it is impossible to retain all the philosophical substance of the original. And the alterations supply their own new patterns to make the internal logic of this production a wholesome and consistent thing. Beautiful! The actors don't miss a beat. Their performances are flawless.

As an ardent Shakespeare reader, I must confess that Othello is one of the plays that can sometimes become a bit boring to me. As a person, I am not really that interested in stories that use jealousy as the central plot point, because, frankly, I find it rather unexciting and, for me at least, irrelevant. The original Othello is of course a play pregnant with a myriad thoughts and ideas, justifying repeated rereadings, whereas a modern version will tend to strip away all the circumstantial pondering and leave us with a bare-bones jealousy plot. This can get simplistic and is why adapters as a general rule should be wary of over-simplification, as it tends to get *so* simple that the Shakespeareness of it is entirely lost. And then what was the point of the exercise? However, this particular production has enough connections to the Bardic original, and enough topical connections to the current-day world, that it is more than a jealousy story. It is also a character study, a challenging exercise in plot structure, and a study in near-Shakespearean method acting, and it manages to effectively hold the attention and maintain a level of meaningful entertainment throughout. This is a DVD well worth its price.

9 out of 10. An impressive production.

Modernizing Shakespeare is a tough business. People who hate the Bard's archaic language and subject matter are unlikely to be lured into watching one of his plays, even if the dialog has been brought up-to-date. And Shakespeare purists usually resent seeing his beautiful poetry translated into contemporary blather. I belong to the latter camp, so sadly, I was annoyed that this version of "Othello" not only modernizes the setting, but also the language, of Shakespeare's classic play. My (perhaps elitist) attitude is, if it ain't broke, don't fix it...

That said, there is much to recommend here. Staging the drama during Rodney King-like race riots was an inspired idea. It's also good to see Othello and Iago (here called Jago) interact as friends before Othello is promoted; we get proof of their friendship and mutual trust before things turn sour. Sadly, two nice touches do not a great adaptation make; the other changes are not so effective.

"Othello" may be particularly tough to modernize because the hero is so fatally flawed, and in ways which make modern viewers uncomfortable. He's suspicious, jealous, easily duped, and very possessive of his wife. The last of these qualities seems particularly reactionary today. Of course, there are still controlling and abusive men around - lots of them - but such behavior is becoming more and more unacceptable. Othello is, by today's standards, a sexist. And he's a sexist who's constantly tricked by a much cleverer man! So I have some problems admiring Othello; he's less of a tragic hero than an utter mess. Somehow, his flaws seem less overwhelming in Venice of the past than in London of today. I wish screen writer Andrew Davies had done something to make him less passive and ingenuous.

Despite these problems, Walker gives a forceful performance as Othello. His charisma carries the day when the script fails to give him anything interesting or proactive to do. Eccleston runs wild as Iago/Jago, really relishing his rants and asides; I enjoyed watching him. Hawes is slightly dull as Desdemona (you may find yourself wondering "what's all the fuss about?"), and I couldn't believe that Cassio is played by Jeff from "Coupling!" Normally, I like to see sitcom actors in serious roles, but I just couldn't stop associating him with his silly "Coupling" character, so ultimately his presence was distracting.

Geoffrey Sax's always-stylish direction held my interest, but was not quite up to his usual standard. Like the other aspects of the production, he came up just a little short this time. Despite the wealth of talent on display here, the end result is a so-so adaptation of a problematic masterpiece.

If there is one thing that this movie proves, than it must be the fact that Shakespeare is of all times and doesn't necessarily need to be situated in 16th century England. All you need is a good writer who is able to convert the story into modern times and that's exactly what Andrew Davies has done.

In this version of "Othello" we see how Ben Jago, destined to become the new commissioner of the London Police Department, is passed by his friend John Othello. Othello got the job because he proved to be a good link between the poor and rebellious parts of the community, who are sick of all the police brutality and the racism, and the police department. But Jago isn't all too happy with the fact that his best friend has 'stolen' his job from him and he decides to make Othello's life a living hell from now on, driving him to despair and horrible acts of jealousy...

I know that there are many people who love Shakespeare the way it was once written and find it a mortal sin to adapt it. Personally I don't have any problem with it. I liked the more or less classical adaptation in the movie "Shakespeare in Love" a lot, but I find this version of Othello at least as good as that other movie. I guess it is just a matter of taste... What makes this movie so good for me, next to the interesting story, is the acting. Eamonn Walker is really very good as the charismatic John Othello, but it is Christopher Eccleston as the excellently evil and backstabbing Ben Jago that I admire most. Perhaps it has more to do with his role in the movie than I might think at first, but I find his performance wonderful and hope to see more of him soon.

Anyway, despite the fact that so many people seem to hate it for many different reasons, I really liked this movie. Even though some may find it sacrilegious, I hope they will make many more adaptations of Shakespeare's work like this. I give it an 8.5/10

Othello's story is moved nowadays when prejudices, racisms and all kinds of discriminations are constantly fought. The modern 'Othello' has two guidelines or two focuses: (1) racism and (2)sexual love.

(1)On the one hand Othello proves a rational, humanistic and open attitude against discrimination, (2) on the other hand he questions the 'purity' of his woman, even her purity before her marrying him. It seems a little bit strange that a man that fights prejudices finds hard to accept that his wife had a life before him (although she didn't have much of life, as we find out) and cannot find the wisdom in him to give her the benefit of the doubt.

But we know that Othello must kill Desdemona and a large part of the film focuses on Othello's obsession for her (Desdemona aka Dessie). There needs to be built the kind of love and sexual jealousy that leads to murder. And it is believable, but only if we take it out of the context and we ignore the status of this modern Othello. But if we take into consideration the forward-thinking context of today's story and the leading position of Othello in this context...well, I raise at least one eyebrow looking at Othello's actions.

If you thought this superb adaptation of the classic, and in particular Christopher Eccleston's "Jago", had about it a certain something reminiscent of Ian Richardson's "Francis Urquhart" in "House of Cards", then it might be because this comes from the pen of Andrew Davies, and he's really on form here.

When John Othello is promoted to Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police over the head of his friend and mentor Ben Jago, Ben is not amused, and with the unwitting help of Superintendant Cass, Jago sets about installing the skids...

This is like a bottle of good vintage port - take time to savour every drop.