adaptations around, with some of the finest Shakespearean actors I have ever seen at their absolute best. Roman Polanski delves into the Witches' pot and finds out why blood really will have blood--it is a gory version packed with torn-up faces, popped-out eyes, spewing guts and, of course, naked old ladies. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis are two of the finest--if not the finest--actors for the roles of Macbeth and his lady, and they deliver the all-too brief dialogues with such bubbling passion and contempt and fury that sometimes I find myself holding back tears--bravo! I hate to admit it sometimes but I am such a Polanski fan. He directs this film beautifully and not to mention authentically. I think it's how Shakespeare intended it to be--bloodlust at its worst with stunning insight on the human condition in between. Get it if you're a Shakespeare-on-film fan. That's all I can say.
Rating: 
Summary: Macbeth, Tragedy brought upon the BIG SCREEN!
Review: Over 3 thousand y ears ago there was a man apart from the rest. He was a brilliant man who brought peace and tranquility amongst others, he gave hope back to the people and gave them entertainment when lower class individuals otherwise had none.During the 16 hundred's William shakespear wrote and directed one of his one of his most world renouned plays ever. enhabiting love, tragedy, laughter and pain. This play is known as macbeth.
With the art and passion shakespear put into this play, it would forever be next to impossible to recreat in our modern erra and grasp the sights shakespear himself had on the play. with an amazing director called Roman polanski.
Pokanski did a remarkable job bringing this amazing play to the bigscreen in 1978, Hey portrayed a great deal of emotion through this saga alowing the viewers to get intouch with the actors as if they were back in teh 1600's watching one of shakespears unbelievable plays.
Although the 1970's held weak special effects and the film quality was poor, This was still a raging blockbuster and can easilly be compared to spiderman, starwars and lord of the rings. Not from the special effects or the rulling heroe, but because of the saga itself. * i'ts a classic revailing story or one mans rule upon the kingdom * -Sisco claims-. And this movie brings enetertainment to an individual and trully grasps the full range of there emotions. It does just what it was first meant to do way back in the in 1606.
I rate this movie ****4 stars**** out of 5.
If you do not care for shakespear and you hate cheesy low budgeted films i dont recomend watching this movie.
If you enjoy shakespear and you enjoy a saga that trully brings hope into your life and connects you with the characters and you dont care if they dont have 20th century special effects this movie is for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Macbeth!!
Review: so umm, this movie was.... Interesting, the acting was unique, and the fighting, well thats beond words! the witches were kinda nasty but something that u would expect because of the Play Boy production. i love how the dagger was floating it was amazing, it blew my mind. Thanks For Your Time!
Rating: 
Summary: Haunting, Dark Drama: The True Macbeth On DVD
Review: Director Roman Polanski, who has produced horror films in the 60's, delivered an intensely dramatic, dark, controversial and disturbing film version of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Macbeth is the darkest of Shakespeare's tragedies- (witches, murder, violence) and in my personal opinion, despite the R rated material of Polanski's film, it truly captures the essence of Shakespeare's macabre Gothic drama. Polanski was actually convincing in this rendition, chalk full of the diabolical aspects of the play. At the time of production, sadly, his wife Sharon Tate had been murdered by the crazy Marilyn Manson cult in her Beverly Hills home. The deep toll must have, in some way, inspired the gruesome details on this film.
Macbeth (Jon Finch) encounters three haggard (and nude) witches who prophetize he will be king of Scotland. The ambitious, cruel, and driven Lady Macbeth urges Macbeth to kill king Duncan and take the throne of Scotland. When this is done, Macbeth does everything to keep his power, a cycle of killing ensues. I think, personally, that Shakespeare touched on Gothic suspense and drama. The supernatural elements typically found in such dark novels are found in the play. This includes the floating knife in the dark that flies into Macbeth's hand as he is about to kill King Duncan, the ghosts of Banquo, the ghosts of the bloody child and specters of kings, and of course, the witches themselves. Incidentally, it is the three witches from Macbeth who inspired the stereotypical witch boiling "eye of newt" over a smoking cauldron and ranting "Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble". Lady Macbeth has a nude spleepwalking scene. Towards the end of the film, Macbeth is defeated by Malcolm, his head chopped off and put on a pole. The twist of the film, of which one must pay close attention to for the irony of the story, occurs when Malcolm, now the king, on horseback, goes to see the three witches in their dismal cave. This tells us that the cycle of tragedy and violence will occur once again. Deeply dark, intense, violent, haunting, Roman Polanski's film truly captures the true Macbeth, but it is not meant to be observed by younger viewers- certainly not grade schoool children or junior high. A mature viewer in college can truly appreciate this film and its Gothic fatalism.
Rating:
Summary: Not your grandfather's Shakespeare.
Review: This movie is violent and brutal, sparing the audience none of the blood that's implied in the play and adding some gratuitous nudity to boot. If you read the play in high school English class, you're in for a shock or seven with this version.
But I think that this is how Shakespeare would have made a movie. He certainly didn't direct his plays the way they're performed today, all mannered diction and high art. He put in plenty of dirty jokes for the groundlings, lots of sensationalist death and destruction. Shakespeare's plays were intended to sell as many tickets as possible; if Lady Macbeth wasn't played by a man back then, he probably would have wanted her sleepwalking nude as she does in this film.
Polanski has done an excellent job of rescuing "Macbeth" from the constrictions of "literature" and making it shake its moneymaker, as it were. If you can handle some gore and nudity, You're in for a heck of a ride.
Rating:
Summary: Vaulting Ambition
Review: This is a terrific cinematic adaption of one of Shakespeare's greatest plays. The film is also known as "The Tragedy of Macbeth", or sometimes "Roman Polanski's Macbeth". Set in early medieval Scotland ( although filmed, I understand, in Wales ), this is a well-known tale of the ruthless ambition of a young noble, Macbeth, who is goaded into acts of evil by his scheming, manipulative wife. Macbeth literally murders his way to the throne of Scotland. Of course, we know what happens to those who "live by the sword" !
British actor, Jon Finch, has the title role, and he expertly peels away the various levels of his character's personality--his Macbeth is no cardboard villain. His performance is more than matched by Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth, whose twisted mind and blood-soaked hands drive her to madness. Performances by other members of this primarily British cast are all fine, with Martin Shaw particularly effective as Banquo.
The other "star" here, of course, is Polanski. The story of Macbeth, and the times in which it occurred, were brutal, primitive, stark--wars were constant--men settled disputes with swords, daggers, axes and maces--death was not heroic or pretty--women and children could be victims as well. Polanski portrays this environment with as much matter-of-fact authenticity as possible. There are certainly some gory scenes, even by current cinema standards, and the final battle between Macbeth and his sworn enemy Macduff is far from some of the choreographed sword fights in Hollywood movies. The spare landscape and ancient castles add to the atmosphere--for interior scenes, light is used very sparingly, to add to the mood and sense of foreboding.
The scenes with the three witches are creepy and effective.
I do have one question. The credits indicate that the script was written by Polanski and noted drama critic, Kenneth Tynan. Doesn't William Shakespeare deserve a little credit here ? Those soliloquies sound awfully familiar !
The DVD exhibits a decent, occasionally hazy, colour wide-screen picture. I was concerned at first when I noticed a vertical line on the right of the picture, but it disappeared, and the rest of the print seemed fine.
There have been numerous versions of this classic play, and I'm sure there will be more. How long before Kenneth Branagh decides that we need a new version on film ? In the mean time, Polanski's "Macbeth" gives us a totally engrossing, if bleak, cinematic experience.
Rating:
Summary: Wish it were on DVD!
Review: Brilliant film. This is one of the best <Macbeth> adaptations around, with some of the finest Shakespearean actors I have ever seen at their absolute best. Roman Polanski delves into the Witches' pot and finds out why blood really will have blood--it is a gory version packed with torn-up faces, popped-out eyes, spewing guts and, of course, naked old ladies. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis are two of the finest--if not the finest--actors for the roles of Macbeth and his lady, and they deliver the all-too brief dialogues with such bubbling passion and contempt and fury that sometimes I find myself holding back tears--bravo! I hate to admit it sometimes but I am such a Polanski fan. He directs this film beautifully and not to mention authentically. I think it's how Shakespeare intended it to be--bloodlust at its worst with stunning insight on the human condition in between. Get it if you're a Shakespeare-on-film fan. That's all I can say.
Rating:
Summary: Vaulting Ambition
Review: This is a terrific cinematic adaption of one of Shakespeare's greatest plays. The film is also known as "The Tragedy of Macbeth", or sometimes "Roman Polanski's Macbeth". Set in early medieval Scotland ( although filmed, I understand, in Wales ), this is a well-known tale of the ruthless ambition of a young noble, Macbeth, who is goaded into acts of evil by his scheming, manipulative wife. Macbeth literally murders his way to the throne of Scotland. Of course, we know what happens to those who "live by the sword" !
British actor, Jon Finch, has the title role, and he expertly peels away the various levels of his character's personality--his Macbeth is no cardboard villain. His performance is more than matched by Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth, whose twisted mind and blood-soaked hands drive her to madness. Performances by other members of this primarily British cast are all fine, with Martin Shaw particularly effective as Banquo.
The other "star" here, of course, is Polanski. The story of Macbeth, and the times in which it occurred, were brutal, primitive, stark--wars were constant--men settled disputes with swords, daggers, axes and maces--death was not heroic or pretty--women and children could be victims as well. Polanski portrays this environment with as much matter-of-fact authenticity as possible. There are certainly some gory scenes, even by current cinema standards, and the final battle between Macbeth and his sworn enemy Macduff is far from some of the choreographed sword fights in Hollywood movies. The spare landscape and ancient castles add to the atmosphere--for interior scenes, light is used very sparingly, to add to the mood and sense of foreboding.
The scenes with the three witches are creepy and effective.
I do have one question. The credits indicate that the script was written by Polanski and noted drama critic, Kenneth Tynan. Doesn't William Shakespeare deserve a little credit here ? Those soliloquies sound awfully familiar !
The DVD exhibits a decent, occasionally hazy, colour wide-screen picture. I was concerned at first when I noticed a vertical line on the right of the picture, but it disappeared, and the rest of the print seemed fine.
There have been numerous versions of this classic play, and I'm sure there will be more. How long before Kenneth Branagh decides that we need a new version on film ? In the mean time, Polanski's "Macbeth" gives us a totally engrossing, if bleak, cinematic experience.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Performance For A Great Play
Review: If reading the play wasn't enough, this movie kept me asking for more. Roman Polanski brilliantly executed what I had envisioned while reading the script for the play. The dark of the night at Macbeth's, to the special effects which were quite good for their time. I especially enjoyed the scene with the dagger, it was exactly as I had imagined it.
