Shakespeare Gets Trashy Like its 1939

So I just viewed the 1995 version of Shakespeare's breakthrough play Richard III. It stars and was written by Ian McKellan, directed by the faceless Richard Loncraine. As the title of this post may have hinted, this is a modern adaptation taking place in an alternate universe England where fascists under the Gloucester family have taken over after a civil war. As far as Shakespeare adaptations go, this may be the most entertaining I have ever seen.

Let me ask you this: how many Shakespeare movies open with a tank bursting through the wall of a drawing room, whereupon men in gasmasks jump out, gunning down the King of England in cold blood? Then, how many spell out their titles with each resounding gunshot in true cheesy action movie form? Only this one does that. On top of that, it has Robert Downey Jr. as Lord Rivers! Robert Downey Jr. as an English Lord! It doesn't get any better than that.

Ian McKellan deftly handles the lead role of the sinister Richard III, now replete with a crustache and fascist military regalia. Rather than having most of Richard's lengthy asides taken as him talking to himself, this movie has McKellan actually address the audience, often with a wink and smile. I couldn't help but think of Ferris Bueller's Day Off for some reason - yet somehow, this works, in a campy fun sort of way. Of course, all of this focus upon McKellan makes you realize how truly ugly the man is. Yech.

The rest of the cast is mostly those kinds of actors who you recognize but whose names you cannot remember, barring Downey Jr. and Annette Benning's compassionate portrayal of Elizabeth. They all handle their parts beautifully, inspiring pity or disgust despite the film's action movie bravado and horror movie murder scenes. They also make Shakespeare's dialogue easily understandable, for those who have issues with that. I find that actors in films using Shakespeare's dialogue often say the lines far too quick, losing some of the meaning. That hardly happens here.

Of note is a brief cameo by jazz singer Stacey Kent, playing herself as the opening credits fade out under a hilariously and intentionally inappropriate swing song.

The score for this film is a mix of '30s swing and classical orchestration, never failing to accentuate the right scenes. This film has a black sense of humor that the score wholly reinforces, as the aforementioned inappropriate swing song shows. The song resurfaces even more hilariously for the last shot of the film, which has to be seen to be believed.

Loncraine, despite being a no-name, handles the direction gorgeously. This film is lush, to say the least, but it also has the World War II era grit to it. This is particularly present in the prison scenes and the final battle scene. The costuming, props, and set design are all appropriate for the era, which makes the alternate universe scenario all the more believable.

This film is indeed strange. It swings wildly between serious drama and campy action/horror, yet somehow holds it all together. It was nominated for several awards in varying categories by several institutions, a few of which it won. As I said, it's the most entertaining adaptation I've seen, though not the best (Kurosawa's Ran holds that for me). Still, it's worth a look if you ever are feeling indecisive at the video store - given its odd conglomeration of opposing elements, you will probably be satisfied in some way.