O

Rating:
Summary: Lost Potential
Review: Really dumb movie, could be viewed backward or forward for same results. Totally predictable and unbelievable. Of all the kids killed or injured in the movie, one wonders why no one blasted the loud-mouth coach who abuses his son constantly.

Rating:
Summary: Watered down but remains true to the original
Review: It's sad that today's youth (and myself included at that age) are really ill-equipped to handle Shakespeare. That being said, however, O with it's tragic ending seems just a little bit unrealiistic in a modern setting. But it certainly is imaginative to have it set in a modern day prep school with the title role transformed into a black basketball star in an all-white privileged environment. Unfortunately something is lost in the translation. Yet the jealousy and deception remain.

And I just have to comment that athleticism is something that just can't be faked on film. And as much as I admire Mekhi Phifer as an actor his basketball talents leave much to be desired. Plus the 8 foot rims were a little ridiculous. Mekhi 'O' gives a credible performance (as he always does) just not over the top.

A good introduction to the Bard for our younger viewers.

Rating:
Summary: So much potential...
Review: Great play, great concept, LOUSY execution! I agree with another reviewer who commented on the bad sound editing. I could barely understand what was being said at times, even when I replayed the scene.
The script is badly written with a very slow beginning and an unrealistic building of the plot. Odin goes berserk with little prompting and Desi does virtually nothing to persuade him otherwise. Some of the more dramatic scenes are played out chillingly, but the build up is lacking and an increasingly inappropriate soundtrack plagues the viewer throughout the movie. Apparently the director felt that a movie with an African-American main character can't possibly have good music.
Some of the acting is very well done, but overall I expected much more. They took a great concept and made a film of mediocre quality at best.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful update of Othello
Review: This is a great update of the play Othello. It's been years since I've read the play, but the silent movie included on disc 2 helped jog my memory some. Comparing the two, it was interesting how closely _"O"_ follows _Othello_.

This is not like _Romeo + Juliet_ where the play was acted out within a modern setting. _"O"_ is a true update - including the language. You have a basketball player instead of a warrior out on the battlefield, a basketball coach named Duke instead of an actual duke, and so on. All of the elements are there even if there are slight changes to names. There may also be some changes with the ending. (I have not reread the play recently.) All of it has wonderful acting and production style. Some of the less major characters are not performed as well as the main ones, but they aren't too bad. Very powerful ending!!

The first DVD has the movie in both letterboxed and pan/scan. The DVD box incorrectly mentions the trailer being on disc 1. All of the extras are on disc 2.

The second DVD includes the trailer, interviews, deleted scenes and a silent film version of _Othello_.

The movie _Othello_ is a nice production of the play, and from what I can remember, it seems to follow the play very well. It appears to have been made on an average budget. The sets look like stage sets - which wasn't too unusual for silent movies. The silent film runs about 80 minutes. However, about 66 minutes into the movie, it appears some frames are missing. It doesn't seem to cause too much trouble in following the plot.

The DVD of _"O"_ is a great value considering you're actually getting two movies. Definitely worth the price of the DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Wow, Is This Well Written Said Hubby
Review: I had just put it on the DVD player making no comments about what it was. The language was completely modern so there was no Shakespearean giveaway there. When we got to the end, he said, "That was fabulous. More movies should be written like that." I then told him it was "Othello" and this sheepish look passed over his face as he realized he'd completely missed it was Shakespeare! Not everyone would tumble to the fact that this is a modern day version of Shakespeare so it should be completely enjoyed on its own merits. It is an outstanding job by everyone involved. Amazingly, Tim Blake Nelson, who played a very simple fellow in "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" is the film's director so it is more than obvious that was just acting! Another outstanding Shakespearean modern work on film.

Rating:
Summary: AMAZING!!!!
Review: I loved this movie a great deal, it had a very interesting plot. But i can see why they held it back after its original release during the Colombine masacre. i have 2 words for you JOSH HARTNETT he is AMAZING!...This movie wanted to make u break down and cry it was so sad. It was very well directed and produced!

Rating:
Summary: "P" "U"
Review: An English fellah named William Shakespeare is credited with writing a story of obsession, distrust and murder. The name of that tragedy is OTHELLO. Now, take that same basic storyline, place it in a modern setting with some 'hot' talent and you are left with one of the most inane and ridiculous waste of 2 hours. This is the second time the beautiful Julia Stiles is in way over her acting head. She comes across soulless and shallow. Mekhi Phifer plays the Othello role and he has moments of strength and promise, but it is lost in the ludicrous script. The same can be said for Josh Hartnett who is the "in" guy right at this writing. Martin Sheen makes a thankless appearance as the basketball coach. Do yourself a favor, check out any of the other performances of OTHELLO and leave this one well enough alone.

Rating:
Summary: Yawn
Review: This movie was held up by the studio for various reasons but it should have been shelved permanently! It was obviously early in the careers of some of the actors (this is Julia Stiles at her worst) so I can let a little bit slide.

The story itself is a novel twist on Othello taking place at a private school in the South. Class lines, racial themes, etc. are all addressed and neatly packaged in this teen flick. However, the story itself just drags on forever until you want them all to be killed! Really, really putrid acting made it even worse! Reading the original play by Shakespeare would be more fun.

On a good note, Josh Hartnett was great. You could see even then that he was going to be a star!

Rating:
Summary: Awesome.
Review: One of the most powerful movies I've seen in quite a long time. Well worth renting.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Attempt at an Update of Othello
Review: You'd think any movie based on a Shakespeare play would have little trouble making it to the screen. Such was not the case with "O'", which is based on "Othello". Once the small, independent production was finished, prestigious Miramax Films quickly picked it up for distribution. Then came the Columbine shootings, and since "O" updates the violent story to a private high school in South Carolina, Miramax got cold feet and shelved the film. They didn't count on the persistence of Tim Blake Nelson, the director, who sued them. Finally, two years later, "O" was picked up and released by Lions Gate. All this fuss was about bad timing, not bad moviemaking. We can, of course, argue that movies overall are too violent. What was Nelson supposed to do? Change the ending of a story written four hundred years ago? Shakespeare's plays have either happy or unhappy endings, never ambiguous ones. "Othello" is definitely in the unhappy category; it ends the way it ought to.

This fictional private high school in Charleston, SC may be small, but it has one great basketball team. The star of the team, Odin [Mekhi Phifer] is the only black student. [Remember that in Shakespeare, Othello was the only black man in Venice.] When the team wins the game that allows them to go to the state championships, Coach Goulding [Martin Sheen] lets the whole student body know that he loves Odin as if he were his own son. This does at all please the troubled Hugo [Josh Hartnett], who is not just another star player. He's Goulding's real son. Enlisting the aid of another student, Roger [Elden Henson], who will do anything to get the approval of the school's winners and leaders, Hugo plots to destroy Odin. He tries several things that don't work before he discovers Odin's fatal flaw - a jealous streak that can be manipulated into rage and fury. When he suggests that their good friend, Michael [Andrew Keegan] may be sleeping with Odin's girlfriend, Desi [Julia Styles], a sinister plot is irreversibly set into motion. As is typical of Shakespeare, though, this plot is not as foolproof as its perpetrator thinks it is.

The cast is quite good. Josh Hartnett, often seen in big budget action fare such as "Black Hawk Down", gets to display a wide range of emotions. Mekhi Phifer does a wonderful job as Odin. Part of their success can be credited to the director, who is a fine actor himself.

The movie's plot follows Shakespeare closely, but it throws out all of his glorious dialog. This, and the choice of what setting to place the modern story in, are both the strongest and weakest points of the movie, depending on the point of view. It's strong because it presents the story in an accessible way to teenagers. It preserves Shakespeare's astute observations about the cataclysmic results that some emotions [in this case, jealousy] can induce. It shows that violence only begets more violence. The weaknesses, though, almost outweigh the strengths. It's true that the same character flaws that undo a great prince and warrior can also destroy a basketball player, but reducing the grandeur and stature of the characters also reduces the impact of the story. Hugo uses his words to propel Odin into action, just as Iago uses them on Othello. In Shakespeare's version, Iago's words are so powerful that we readily understand Othello's reactions to them. Odin's being so swayed by Hugo's modern lingo makes him seem rather gullible. As a result, that shocking ending loses much of its emotional impact.