Shakespeare Study: The Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet

This is the third year of my Shakespeare study. I read one play each month, and then watch as many film versions as I can get my hands on, and read as many books about the play as I'm able. January, 2012 was Romeo And Juliet. This blog entry has reviews of the films, and little blurbs about the books. (Scroll down for the film reviews.)

January: The Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet

Related Books:

- The Legend Of Romeo And Juliet by Olin H. Moore - This book traces the history of the story of Romeo and Juliet up to Shakespeare's play. Moore's main argument is that Arthur Brooke's Romeus And Juliet wasn't Shakespeare's sole source for the play, that Shakespeare must have had access to Luigi Da Porto's Giulietta E Romeo. The major flaw of this book is that whenever Moore quotes a passage, he presents the quoted material in its original language without offering an English translation. Hey, not everyone speaks Italian, French and Latin. Published in 1950.

- Manga Shakespeare: Romeo And Juliet adapated by Richard Appignanesi; illustrated by Sonia Leong - This is a strange adaptation which takes place in present-day Tokyo. Interestingly, Juliet says, "A rose by any other word would smell as sweet." In this version, Juliet has an actual bird, and carries it out to the balcony, which leads Romeo to say "I would I were thy bird." The Friar has a computer and a phone, but still sends another friar to Mantua with a letter to Romeo. Meanwhile apparently there is no cell phone reception in Mantua. It seems the Friar also tried to send an e-mail, but got an error message. The other friar returns with the letter; he offers no explanation, just "I could not send it." Apparently, there is no plague in present-day Tokyo. Romeo dismisses Balthasar before he even goes to the apothecary; thus, when he gets to the tomb he says "Partly to behold my lady's face...But chiefly to take thence from her dead finger a precious ring" to himself, which doesn't make a lick of sense. Balthasar shows up anyway, and when the Friar asks him to accompany him into the vault, he replies, "I dare not, Sir. My master did menace me with death." However, Romeo did no such thing. Those lines weren't included in this version. Published in 2007.

- Tragic Vision In Romeo And Juliet by James H. Seward - In this book, Seward argues that the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is that they are driven by passion rather than reason, that it is lust and not love that they feel. Published in 1973.

- Romeo's Ex: Rosaline's Story by Lisa Fiedler - This is a novel, aimed at teenagers, in which the story of Romeo And Juliet is told mostly from the perspective of Rosaline. But there are other chapters told from the perspectives of Benvolio, Mercutio, Tybalt and Romeo. It basically follows the action of the play, and many lines are taken directly from the play. But there are problems, moments when it seems that the author didn't fully understand the play. For example, Rosaline is watching what is the first scene of the play, and is relieved when Benvolio says "I do but keep the peace." But then Lisa Fiedler writes (on page 42), "But now, alas, as men so often do, this Benvolio doth contradict his own wisdom. 'Put up thy sword,' he says in a hot voice." Lisa seems to think that "Put up thy sword" means prepare to fight, but of course it means the opposite. It means, put away your sword, sheathe your sword. Ten pages later she makes another error. In a chapter told by Mercutio she writes, "I turn to see that the prince has arrived. His Grace has long opposed this feud and is by no means an admirer of mine." Wrong. Mercutio is kinsman to the Prince. The Prince feels quite strongly about Mercutio in fact. And though Mercutio is not a relative of the Montagues, several times in this book he is referred to as a Montague (such as on page 87 and page 103). Lisa Fiedler gives Juliet's Nurse a name: Angelica. In this story, Rosaline is learning to become a healer. And it is this element of the story that leads the author to some ridiculous changes from the play. Tybalt doesn't die during the fight. He is unconscious, but alive, and so Rosaline substitutes another corpse, burying a criminal in the tomb in Tybalt's place. Tybalt doesn't regain consciousness, but still narrates a few chapters from his ghostly state. Pretty ridiculous. But not as ridiculous as what happens later. Neither Romeo nor Juliet dies right away in this version. And Rosaline has the idea of performing a heart transplant to save Juliet's life (this is just after Tybalt has finally died, and so his heart is available). And the poison the apothecary sold Romeo apparently wasn't fatal after all. Rosaline gives him something that causes him to vomit up the poison, and so he's suddenly okay. That is seriously stupid. But then he decides to let everyone in Verona continue to believe he's dead, because his death has brought the town together. So he leaves Verona. I wanted to smack Lisa Fiedler hard across the face when I read that. That this book is aimed at teenagers makes it even worse, for rather than helping them appreciate the play more, it's only going to confuse and irritate them. And the book's title is a problem, because Rosaline is not Romeo's "ex" - they never actually dated. There are references to other Shakespeare plays. For example, Viola and Sebastian (from Twelfth Night) make an appearance as children. And on page 114 is the line, "Virtue, like honor, is merely an airy word," making a reference to Falstaff's famous monologue from The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth. And there is more than one reference to The Taming Of The Shrew. Published in 2006.

- William Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet edited and with an introduction by Harold Bloom - This is a volume in the Modern Critical Interpretations series, and includes criticism by Ruth Nevo, Northrop Frye and Thomas McAlindon, among others. Ruth Nevo brings up something I hadn't thought of before - "it is a plague which Mercutio invokes upons 'both your houses,' and an outbreak of plague which keeps the Friar a prisoner." For some reason, I hadn't thought about that specific connection. Thomas McAlindon writes that Romeo "has come to the masque in the disguise of a palmer (hence the candle)." I'd read elsewhere that Romeo's name is an Italian word for "pilgrim," but I hadn't thought that he actually attends the party at Capulet's home dressed as a palmer. It certainly adds something to Juliet's first line to Romeo, in which she calls him "Good pilgrim." I had thought that was due to his being a stranger and that he called her hand, her body, a "holy shrine" and his lips "two blushing pilgrims." Published in 2000.

- Letters To Juliet: Celebrating Shakespeare's Greatest Heroine, The Magical City Of Verona, And The Power Of Love by Lise Friedman and Ceil Friedman - This book chronicles the way the city of Verona has responded to the letters that folks have been writing to the fictional character of Juliet for decades. Apparently many people believe that Romeo and Juliet were actual people, and that the story took place in 1303. There is a tomb in Verona that is believed to be Juliet's, as well as a home considered to be hers and a home believed to be Romeo's. People from all over the world write letters to Juliet, seeking advice and comfort with regards to love and their relations. This book tells the story of those whose vocation it has been to answer these letters. It also includes many of the letters themselves. Published in 2006.

- The First Quarto Of Romeo And Juliet edited by Lukas Erne - This is a volume in The Early Quartos series of The New Cambridge Shakespeare. It contains a well annotated edition of the First Quarto, as well as a long introduction and several tables showing readings by different editors. One of the items in the introduction that stood out for me was regarding Romeo's threat of suicide in Friar Lawrence's cell. Erne writes, "At least one Q1 stage direction even suggests an interpretation that contrasts with Q2. Bewailing his banishment, Romeo is about to commit suicide, but the Nurse prevents him from doing so: 'He offers to stab himself, and Nurse snatches the dagger away' ... Nothing in Q2 suggests that the Nurse takes an active part in stopping Romeo's desperate action, and several modern productions, including Zeffirelli's and Luhrmann's film versions, have her shrink back in horror while Friar Laurence bravely intervenes. The contrast between the stage direction in Q1 and standard modern stage practice is well worth thinking about in the context of a play that questions stereotypical attitudes to gender in a variety of ways, including the protagonists' respective suicides - poison and stabbing - in an inversion of what traditional gender roles dictate" (page 29). Another observation that Erne makes is "The Nurse's first allegiance in Q2 seems to be to the parents, in Q1 to Juliet, expressed in an iambic pentameter shared between them... Whether by accident or design Q1's Nurse seems repeatedly more benevolent and sympathetic towards Juliet than her counterpart in Q2" (page 31). And one last thing I hadn't thought about before, that Erne talks about: "Shakespeare from quite early on encouraged the publication of his playbooks and was aware that his plays were not only being performed onstage but also read on the page. In other words, Q2 and similarly long play-texts seem to have been conceived by Shakespeare as reading texts in the knowledge that they would not reach the stage without substantial abridgement. If so, then the greater complexity of characters in the long text may partly be a matter of the medium of literacy for which they were designed" (pages 32 - 33).

- Romeo & Juliet & Vampires by Claudia Gabel - This novel aimed at teenagers takes the story of Romeo And Juliet and changes the location from Verona to Transylvania, and makes the Capulets a family of vampires and the Montagues a family of vampire hunters. The Prince has called for a truce between humans and vampires, but neither the Capulets nor the Montagues are happy about this. Juliet is about to turn 16, not 14. At 16, she'll become a vampire and have to kill a human, or die herself. Romeo is in love with Rosaline, a 15-year-old Capulet. Mercutio is dating Rosaline's servant, and that's how Romeo learns about the party at the Capulet house. He convinces Benvolio and Mercutio to accompany him, first getting garlic and holy water from Friar Laurence. Before the party, Romeo actually gets to tell his dream to Benvolio and Mercutio, and it's a variation of what he says at the beginning of Act V before Balthasar gives him the bad news. In this novel, Romeo asks Juliet to marry him during the balcony scene - it is he, not Juliet, who mentions marriage. When Tybalt slays Mercutio, Mercutio asks Romeo, "Why did you come between us," and Romeo says, "I - I just wanted to help." Mercutio does say, "A plague on both your houses." This version actually includes the confusion when Nurse says "He is dead, my lady" and Juliet thinks she is referring to Romeo, but she of course is referring to Tybalt. When banished, this Romeo is much more together than Shakespeare had written him. When Friar Laurence tells him to hide, he actually does, rather than lying on the floor, sobbing. It is Benvolio, not Balthasar, that goes to Romeo in exile, and not with words of Juliet's death (because Benvolio doesn't even know about her), but with provisions. Romeo goes back because there is a two-week quarantine because of small pox and he can't wait that long to see Juliet. The potion that the Friar gives Juliet is a bit different in this version. Friar tells her she'll appear dead, but will still be able to hear and see. In this version, Lord Capulet does not grieve at Juliet's death. Romeo learns of her apparent death by overhearing a conversation in a pub once he sneaks back into town. Outside the tomb, Romeo actually tells Paris that Juliet is his wife. But it makes no sense that Paris would even be at the tomb, as it was made clear early on that he didn't really love Juliet. Romeo drinks the potion, and Juliet is aware of it, but can't move until he's already imbibed it. She can't revive him, yet still hears a faint heartbeat. And the end of this novel is stupid. Juliet drinks Romeo's blood, hoping to turn him into a vampire. But she herself isn't a vampire yet, because she never did the initiation - she didn't take the life of a human. And yet, Romeo wakes. How? He took poison, and then was nearly drained of blood. And that revives him? Are we supposed to believe that she somehow drained all the poison from his body? Anyway, he drinks from her blood and becomes a vampire. So neither of them actually dies. And they go off and live in some distant land. At the end of the book, there is a one-paragraph biography of William Shakespeare that ends with this line, "We're pretty sure he would think this version of his play is awesome." Really? I very much doubt that. I didn't even think it was any good, and I'm not the greatest writer in the history of the English language. Published in 2010.)

- Romeo And Juliet/West Side Story with an introduction by Norris Houghton - This volume contains both plays, and a short introduction by Norris Houghton regarding the relationship between the two plays. West Side Story is by Arthur Laurents, with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The notes for Romeo And Juliet in this edition are by John Bettenbender, and are fairly rudimentary, often doing little more than defining words. No mention is made of which Quarto the editor favored for a particular passage. However, interestingly, in Act III Scene iii, this edition contains the line "Flies may do this, but I from this must fly" and then also "This may flies do, when I from this must fly." This edition divides Act IV into five scenes rather than four, the fifth scene beginning when Nurse goes to wake Juliet. At the beginning of that scene, this edition has the line "O, weladay that ever I was born!" (The Yale edition has the line has "O weraday that ever I was born!") In Act V Scene iii, this edition follows the Third Quarto in presenting the line as "And never from this palace of dim night" rather than the Q2 reading of "And never from this pallet of dim night." This edition also contains some extra lines in that scene. After the line "Depart again. Here, here I will remain" are the lines "Depart again, come lie thou in my arm/Here's to thy health, where'er thou tumblest in." But again, the notes offer no explanations of these choices. Published in 1965.

Film Versions:

- Romeo & Juliet (1978) with Patrick Ryecart, Rebecca Saire, Alan Rickman, Anthony Andrews, Celia Johnson; directed by Alvin Rakoff. This production has an uneven cast. While Rebecca Saire has the right look for Juliet - that is, she can pass for being thirteen - she's not a very strong actor. And Patrick Ryecart as Romeo isn't very good either, and appears to be too old. (He looks a bit like Tim Curry.) However, Alan Rickman is wonderful as Tybalt, and Anthony Andrews is really good as Mercutio. My favorite performances are by Michael Horden as Capulet, Celia Johnson as Nurse and Joseph O'Conor as Friar Lawrence. And it's nice to see John Gielgud briefly as Chorus. Some of the opening dialogue between Sampson and Gregory in the first scene is cut. In the first brawl, there is a very strange bit added in which a woman carrying a child suddenly falls, a sword accidentally hitting the child, and then we see the child is bloody. It comes out of nowhere and is really a bit too serious at this stage in the play. That leads to a single citizen shouting, "Down with the Capulets! Down with the Montagues!" The dialogue between Capulet and Tybalt at the party is done really well. And the Friar is great in the scene with Romeo when Romeo asks him to wed him and Juliet. Celia Johnson is excellent in the scene where Juliet wants the news about Romeo. But Rebecca's reaction should have been huge when she finally got the answer she sought - and we see no reaction at all. The Mercutio/Tybalt fight is playful, but drawn out a bit too much. And Patrick is simply terrible in his delivery of "I thought all for the best" when Mercutio is wounded, dying. Romeo doesn't react at all to his good friend's doom. Cut is most of Benvolio's explanation of what occurred. All he is allowed to say is "Tybalt now slain, whom Romeo's hand did slay." (Why he says "now slain" instead of "here slain" I don't know.) So the Prince has none of the information about how Romeo tried to stop the fight. A scene that is wonderful is the scene when Capulet gets upset with Juliet over her refusal to wed Paris. Michael Horden is perfect. I love that the Friar picks up the vial that Juliet dropped by her bed, so that others won't find it. The musician's line about staying for dinner is cut. But the most disastrous cuts are at the end. Some of them are unforgivable. Romeo's lines about going to see the apothecary are cut. He just suddenly shows up there. And then Romeo's last three lines from that scene are cut, so that the scene ends with the line, "I sell thee poison, thou hast sold me none." Romeo's lines to Balthasar about taking the ring from Juliet are cut. And Romeo seems pointlessly cold to Balthasar in that scene. It's not like Balthasar is even trying to follow him into the tomb. Romeo is standing at the top of the staircase, Balthasar at the bottom. So Romeo's cruel lines are unmotivated. But the worst cuts are still to come. Shockingly missing is Romeo's line, "O true apothecary,/Thy drugs are quick." How can you cut that line? And why would you cut that line? And then the Friar's explanation to the Prince is completely cut. All that remains is the line, "Romeo there dead was husband to that Juliet." But everything about the sleeping potion and the undelivered letter to Romeo is cut. And perhaps an even worse cut is the bit about how Juliet awoke and "it seems did violence on herself." That is important information for the Prince to have. Also cut is everything about the letter that Romeo wrote, which Balthasar has. In this version, there is no such letter. So the Prince has basically no information (just like in Act III Scene 1). How dare they make such drastic cuts to the play's final scene? One last note: this is the first of the BBC productions I've seen in which the full title of the play is not used.

- Romeo And Juliet (1936) with Norma Shearer, Leslie Howard, John Barrymore, Basil Rathbone; directed by George Cukor. The Chorus reads the prologue from a parchment, and ends with "take their life." The Capulets and Montagues arrive in town in a parade-like ceremony. The first brawl is big, involving lots of people, and several people are stabbed. After the Prince has his lines, it goes right to the second scene, with Capulet and Paris. Cut is the dialogue between Montague and Benvolio. Then when the servant is given the list of people to invite to the party, the film goes to Scene iii. So Juliet (Norma Shearer) is introduced before Romeo. Norma Shearer is in her thirties, way too old for the part. There is no way she can pass for thirteen. Edna May Oliver isn't very good as Nurse; her gruff voice seems odd. When Juliet sees Paris, she seems taken with him; and for some reason she is holding a bow and arrow. Then the film goes back to Scene i for the dialogue between Benvolio and Romeo (Leslie Howard, who is also too old for the role - being in his forties at the time). They almost immediately mention Rosaline by name, something Shakespeare didn't write. At the party, Rosaline is pointed out, and Romeo goes to her. She shuns him, which leads Romeo to say his "She hath forsworn to love" line from Scene i. Juliet's entrance is grand, with an extended dance where all the other women surround her. At the end of Act I, Juliet and Nurse walk down a long corridor, and as they pass, the lights on the wall are snuffed. The Chorus is cut from the end of Act I. I really like John Barrymore's performance as Mercutio at the beginning of Act II. And there are nice moments during the balcony scene. The lines designating the specific hour of meeting are cut. This version has Juliet saying "Parting is such sweet sorrow" and Romeo saying, "Sleep dwell upon thine eyes" (as in the First Quarto, not the Second Quarto). Romeo's last lines from that scene are cut. The film goes directly into Act II Scene iii. Mercutio's line "Any man that can write may answer a letter" is cut. Mercutio says "The immortal passado! The punto reverso! The hai!" but does not demonstrate those particular moves as is usually done. Juliet has her line, "The clock struck nine when I did send the Nurse" even though the earlier line mentioning that hour was cut. After the wonderful scene between Juliet and Nurse, we then go back to Act II Scene ii between Romeo and the Friar. That scene is combined with Scene v. John Barrymore mispronounces "zounds," making it rhyme with "sounds." In this version, Mercutio doesn't at first realize his wound is serious. And even later when he repeats "A plague on both your houses," he says it with a laugh. It's weird. Romeo goes with Mercutio and Benvolio, and so is with Mercutio when he dies. And then he gives the line about Juliet's beauty making him effeminate. He then rushes out and picks up a sword and goes looking for Tybalt, which is completely different from the way it's written. After the Prince arrives, Benvolio gives a brief account of things, and the Prince immediately banishes Romeo - without hearing Capulet's wife's lines, which are cut. We see Nurse in the crowd hearing Prince's words. Then it skips Act III Scene ii and goes right to Scene iii with the Friar. Then we see Juliet, and she already has the rope ladder. We now have Scene ii. But when Nurse enters, she is not carrying the cords of course, as we already saw the ladder. Gone is Juliet's confusion over who is dead. That's the worst cut so far. Nurse right away tells her Tybalt is dead and Romeo banished. Then we go back to Scene iii when Nurse knocks on the Friar's door. Scene iv is cut. We actually see Romeo climb the rope ladder, which is nice. And we see night pass into day, with shots of the morning birds before going into Scene v. All of that is done really well. In the scene where Capulet gets upset at Juliet, some of Capulet's best lines are cut, like "Out! you green-sickness carrion, out! you baggage,/You tallow-face!" After Act IV Scene 1, we actually see Friar begin his letter to Romeo, as well as him handing it off to Friar John to be sent. He says, "Hence to Mantua. Early in the morning, see thou deliver it" (lines not in the play). This leads to another scene not in the play, where Friar John looks after someone with the plague, and a panic is caused in the streets. Friar John is shut in. This scene is spoken of later in the play, but in this film we actually see it. Act IV Scene ii is cut. When Capulet sees Juliet he goes right into "Death lies on her like an untimely frost." Cutting out his first several lines makes him seem cold and uncaring. A poor choice. All the stuff with the Friar is cut, as well as the dialogue with the musicians. We then actually see Romeo write his letter and send it off (which is completely weird, since the whole bit with the letter at the end is cut). And we get a shot of Friar John still locked in that room with the plague victim. We then see Juliet's funeral procession. Balthasar sees it too, and rides off to Act V. Romeo's speech after "Well, Juliet, I will lie with thee tonight" is cut. So gone are his lines where he decides to go to the apothecary. Romeo's last lines from the apothecary scene are cut, so it ends with "I sell thee poison, thou hast sold me none." Most of Romeo's lines to Balthasar outside the tomb are cut. They part on friendly terms. Cut is everything about the ring. Cut also are Romeo's threats. I love that Romeo is just about to enter the tomb when he says, "And in despite I'll cram thee with more food." And his delivery of "live" to Paris is perfect. His fight with Paris is inside the crypt. But there is no Page to go call the watch. The dialogue between Friar and Balthasar is cut. The Friar doesn't exit until after Juliet's line "For I will not away," which doesn't make sense - because then the Friar would know she plans to kill herself. And wouldn't he try to stop her? Juliet's lines, "What's here? a cup clos'd in my true love's hand!/Poison I see hath been his timeless end" are cut. How can you cut that? That's probably the worst cut of the film. Juliet stabs herself before saying "There rust and let me die," which is kind of nice. The film ends abruptly with the Prince arriving and saying "Capulet! Montague!/See what a scourge is laid upon your hate." Cut is the Friar's long speech. (time: 124 minutes)

- Romeo And Juliet (1968) with Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery, Milo O'Shea, Pat Heywood, Michael York, Bruce Robinson; directed by Franco Zeffirelli. I love this production, even though it has strange cuts, the worst being the apothecary scene. The prologue is done as voice over. A lot of Sampson and Gregory's lines are cut, including, sadly, "Is the law of our side if I say 'ay'?" But the opening brawl is pretty good, with the citizens clearly angry at both houses. And I really like Bruce Robinson's performance as Benvolio. This film has a lot of nice touches. For example, Capulet sees Juliet playing when Paris asks about his suit in Act I Scene ii. And then after "Younger than she are happy mothers made," Capulet's Wife looks across toward them, leading Capulet to say "And too soon marr'd are those so early made," which adds another dimension to their relationship. We go from the Capulet/Paris scene straight to Scene iii. That means the bit with the illiterate servant is cut. However, that servant is what leads to Romeo attending the party. So how does Romeo know that Rosaline will be there? The serving man comes in a bit early, before Juliet answers her mother's question about Paris. Mercutio goes a bit crazy in Scene iv, and Romeo comforts him. An interesting and sweet moment. Romeo does watch another girl, presumably Rosaline, until he spies Juliet. Romeo lifts his mask when he gives his "she doth teach the torches to burn bright" speech. Tybalt sees him and then says "This by his voice should be a Montague." But as he's seen him, the line doesn't make sense. A couple of Capulet's lines to Tybalt are spoken by Capulet's Wife, and one - "For shame!/I'll make you quiet" - she actually speaks to Capulet. Weird, but clearly intended to flesh out their relationship. A song is added. (Titled "What Is A Youth" it was written by Nino Rota and Eugene Walter.) And during this, Romeo and Juliet find each other. It's a great scene. The youthful excitement of love is believable in these two actors. In Act II Scene i most of the dialogue between Mercutio and Benvolio is cut. Romeo goes from the "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks" to "It is my lady," shockingly cutting "It is the East and Juliet is the sun." I'm not sure how you can decide to cut that line. In this version it is Juliet who says "Parting is such sweet sorrow," as in the First Quarto (Romeo says that line in the Second Quarto). (Romeo also has that line in the First Folio.) And that is the last line of the scene. We then see Romeo joyfully running through the woods. In Act II Scene ii, the Friar's lines before Romeo's entrance are cut. In Act II Scene iii, a lot of Mercutio's lines about Tybalt are cut, which is a shame. Peter's response to Nurse after Mercutio's teasing is cut. Another nice touch is that after Nurse refuses payment from Romeo, Romeo goes to put the coin in the church box, but she intercepts it. But then a lot of the Nurse's teasing of Juliet is cut, including the great bit about being out of breath. That's one of my favorite moments in the play, and it's a shame to cut any bit of it. We see some of the wedding at the end of Act II. In this version, Tybalt really does draw Mercutio into a fight. But it's all in good fun. Tybalt gets the better of him more than once without hurting him. And then Tybalt is truly surprised to find blood on his sword. Very nice. Benvolio and Mercutio don't exit, so Mercutio dies in front of Romeo. Romeo goes chasing after Tybalt. After the fight, this film goes directly to Act III Scene ii. And the beginning of Scene ii is cut. It begins with Nurse saying that Tybalt is dead, so we miss that wonderful confusion where Juliet thinks Romeo is dead. Then it goes back to the scene with the Prince, and Benvolio telling him what occurred. So then Romeo is banished. Because of this order in scenes, Nurse wouldn't have the knowledge of the banishment or be able to tell Juliet. We lose the dialogue in which Nurse tells Juliet that she'll find Romeo. But after the scene with the Prince we go right to Nurse's arrival at the Friar's. Act III Scene iv is cut. Olivia Hussey is fantastic as Juliet when she feels that Nurse has turned against her too - when Nurse recommends she marry Paris. This is one of the best moments of the film. But at the Friar's, Juliet doesn't threaten to kill herself with the knife, and in the play that's what leads Friar to his solution. Most of Act IV Scene ii is cut, as well as the beginning of Scene iii. Juliet does not say her farewell to her mother, and her entire speech where she hesitates before drinking the vial is cut. All she says is, "Love give me strength," which is a line from the end of Act IV Scene i. Added is a scene where the Friar gives the letter to Friar John and instructs him to give it to Romeo. The beginning of Scene iv is cut, so the scene begins with the Nurse screaming that Juliet is dead. Everything with the Friar is cut from that scene. So too the stuff with the musicians. We do see the funeral procession, and we see Balthasar seeing it. There is a great moment where the Friar smiles at Juliet, then realizes he's smiling and stops. There is a shot of Balthasar speeding past Friar John on the road to Mantua - so gone is the idea of the plague halting Friar John's progress. Balthasar says "She's dead" instead of "Then she is well and nothing can be ill." On the road, Romeo and Balthasar speed past Friar John, who is still making his way to Mantua. They go straight to the tomb, where he quickly dismisses Balthasar. This section of the play is rushed. Cut is the entire scene with the apothecary. Cut are all of Romeo's threats to Balthasar, as well as the stuff about the ring. Cut also is the fight with Paris. Paris is not there. That means the page is not there either. So who calls the watch? But the tomb looks great, with lots of bodies in various stages of decay. Romeo still has the poison - where did he get it? Of course he doesn't say the line "O true apothecary/Thy drugs are quick." Friar shows up and finds Balthasar. But why does the Friar go when he's unaware that Romeo didn't receive his letter? Friar says "I dare no longer stay" four times. But he doesn't tell Juliet that Romeo is dead. Instead, she spies his body as Friar leaves. After Juliet stabs herself, we go to the next day. So cut is the Friar's entire speech to the Prince. The scene is a funeral procession in which Juliet is being carried next to Romeo. This is odd, since she is being carried out of her own tomb. To where? The scene begins with the Prince's lines, "Where be these enemies? Capulet! Montague!/See what a scourge is laid upon your hate." But when the Prince says he's lost a brace of kinsmen, who does he mean? Because Paris yet lives. Of his kinsmen, only Mercutio is dead. Montague's wife is also still alive at the end of this version. The dialogue between Capulet and Montague at the end is cut, which seems wrong, and the Prince's last lines are done as voice over by Chorus. But even with some insane cuts, I really think this is an excellent production. And of course I should mention that the music is wonderful. (time: 138 minutes)

- Romeo And Juliet (1976) with Christopher Neame, Ann Hasson, Robin Nedwell, Patsy Byrne, Clive Swift; directed by Joan Kemp-Welch. It's wonderful to see the complete play done, with no scene omitted. There are some wonderful performances in this production, especially by Clive Swift as Friar Lawrence. And I love Patsy Byrne as the Nurse (though it's difficult to get her other nurse role, from Blackadder, out of my head). But Ann Hasson as Juliet is less than stellar. And this production overall seems a bit flat, though there are several excellent moments. Sampson and Gregory are appropriately playful at the beginning. And the timing is great on Sampson's "No, sir" after hearing from Gregory that the law would not be on their side. That made me laugh out loud. In this production Romeo says "I have left myself" rather than "I have lost myself." I prefer "left," which was an emendation in 1875. The servant speaks his bit about the list of names directly to us, then drinks from his master's cup before exiting - a nice touch. Juliet's first scene, with Nurse and Capulet's Wife, is fairly dull, static, the three of them simply seated outside. In Act I Scene iv, Mercutio says his "True, I talk of dreams" almost as if to himself, lost in serious thought, rather than pointedly at Romeo. At the party, I love the way Capulet delivers his lines about how he once wore a visor. He makes it clear that he knows they're crashing the party, and that it's okay. Romeo speaks his first lines about Juliet while standing in the open, rather than quietly to himself, which doesn't quite work. The Chorus doesn't enter the scene at the end, but is in his own, unspecified location. In the balcony scene, Juliet says "that which we call a rose/By any other word would smell as sweet," following the Second Quarto. Something about Ann Hasson's voice doesn't quite work in the balcony scene. I'm not exactly sure what it is. Juliet speaks the line, "Parting is such sweet sorrow," and Romeo says, "Sleep dwell upon thine eyes." Friar Lawrence speaks his opening lines to himself, not to us. (You'll recognize Clive Swift from Keeping Up Appearances.) This scene is great between Friar and Romeo. I like that Romeo stresses "today" in the line "That thou consent to marry us today," showing the urgency his new love or infatuation has created. Ann Hasson is kind of weak in her scene with the Nurse (Act II Scene iv). She plays the scene all in the same way, not finding the various layers. That scene is one of my favorites from the play, and in this production Ann's performance makes it rather flat and uninteresting. In Act III, there is the sound of flies buzzing throughout the scene before the fight (also there are church bells, which were used in an earlier scene too - these sounds are distracting). In the fight between Mercutio and Tybalt, Tybalt makes a move and Mercutio calls it "The punto reverso." I like that Tybalt actually uses a move that was mentioned earlier, but I'm not sure I like the added line. The fight is playful, neither clearly wanting to truly hurt the other. But then suddenly Tybalt does draw blood, hitting Mercutio's arm. Added is a moment where Mercutio plays dead. However, the fatal blow comes just before Romeo comes between them, so the blow does not come under Romeo's arm, and the play suggests. Some harsh lighting in Act III Scene ii makes Juliet look forty years old after she scolds Nurse for speaking ill of Romeo. Act III Scene iii is really good, though the camera angle on Friar's closeup was poorly chosen. At the beginning of Scene v, Romeo is already up and dressed, rather than in bed with Juliet. He does then lie down with her. We don't see Juliet's reaction when Romeo says she bids him to die, and that's the moment when she changes from wanting him to stay to urging him to go. We need to see that on her face. This is an uneven scene anyway, because Christopher Neame's performance is much better than hers. However, Ann Hasson is really good in her reaction to Nurse's advice to marry Paris. That is one of her best moments. She is also pretty good in Act IV Scene i, with Paris and the Friar. Why do we hear birds chirping while Juliet gives her speech before drinking the sleeping potion. The sound effects in this production are often distracting. Patsy Byrne is wonderful as the Nurse when she goes to wake Juliet. In Act V, the apothecary is a bit too full in body for the line "Famine is in thy cheeks." The actor seems much too healthy for the part of the poor apothecary. In the tomb, Juliet says "For I will not away" before the Friar leaves. (time: 186 minutes)

- West Side Story (1961) with Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris; directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins. This musical adaptation of Romeo And Juliet takes place in New York rather than Verona, and features two gangs, the Jets and the Sharks, rather than the two families, the Montagues and Capulets. The opening brawl is done mostly as a dance before finally turning into an actual fight. Two cops (rather than the Prince and his men) arrive to break it up. The stakes aren't nearly as high as in the play. If caught fighting again, these kids are threatened with jail time rather than with death. Tony (the Romeo character in this film) wasn't at the fight, not because he's lost in adoration for Rosaline (there is no Rosaline character in this film), but because he got a job and was working. Riff (this film's Mercutio) goes to get him, to convince him to go to the dance that night, where both gangs will meet on neutral turf. So even though Riff is the film's Mercutio, he also acts in this scene as Benvolio. (There really is no Benvolio in this film, unless it is Baby John.) Maria (the Juliet character) is introduced with her friend Anita (who functions basically as the Nurse character). They're both Puerto Ricans - the Sharks are a Puerto Rican gang. This scene also introduces us to Bernardo (the movie's Tybalt), who is Maria's brother rather than cousin, and Chino (the film's version of Paris). Bernardo and Anita are dating (an interesting variation from the play, though in the play it's Nurse who seems to mourn most Tybalt's death, so maybe there was something there). Tony and Maria meet at the dance, and instantly fall for each other. After the dance is the film's best song, "America." Oddly, this song has absolutely nothing to do with the play. It's about being an immigrant in the United States. We do get the balcony scene, but it begins with Tony calling to Maria from the street. And then he climbs up to her on the fire escape, so she ends up looking up at him through a good part of the scene. They plan to meet at 6 p.m. the next day, which is closing time at the bridal shop where Maria works. Just before that time the next day, Maria sings that "I Feel Pretty" song. In this film, Tony and Maria don't actually get married, but they pretend to in the bridal shop, exchanging vows and everything. But again, the stakes aren't as high, because they're not really married. And keep in mind there are no parents in this film, so no one is forcing her to wed Chino. So there is no urgency. The Jets and the Sharks have a fight planned, and Maria tells Tony to stop it. But of course when he goes to stop it, things go wrong. Bernardo stabs Riff, and then Tony grabs a knife and stabs Bernardo. In the play, Mercutio and Paris are both related to the Prince. In this film, there is no relation between the cop and either Bernardo or Chino. So again, the stakes aren't as high. Chino (rather than Anita) goes to tell Maria the results of the fight. Tony doesn't get banished. He doesn't leave town; he hides. Again, the cops don't pose as much of a threat as did the Prince in the play. But Tony does sneak into Maria's room, and they sleep together. Anita does knock on the door while they're in bed, like the Nurse does in the play, except in this case Anita doesn't know Tony's in there. Tony tells Maria to meet him at Doc's store, that Doc will help them with some money so they can leave town. (Doc is the closest thing this film has to the role of Friar.) The cop detains Maria for a moment to ask her some questions, so she asks Anita to go to the store to give a message to Tony. And that leads to the best scene of the film, which oddly has no real counterpart in Shakespeare's play. Anita, whose boyfriend has been killed by Tony, goes to help Tony. That alone is intense. When she arrives in the store, all of the Jets are there. Doc is apparently upstairs, while Tony is hiding in the basement, so both are unaware of her presence. Anita tries to get by, to give Doc or Tony the message, but the Jets won't let her. In a scene that is very close to rape, Rita Moreno gives a great performance as Anita. Doc arrives before things go too far, but Anita is clearly shaken, and in understandable anger, she changes the message. She says that Maria is dead, that Chino killed her because he had found out about things between her and Tony. And then Anita leaves. That is by far the most powerful scene in the film, and it's ironic that this film is best when it deviates completely from its source. So when Tony gets the message, he runs into the streets, distraught, yelling to Chino to come and kill him. But then he sees Maria, who apparently has finished answering the cop's questions, and he runs to her. But just as Tony reaches her, Chino shoots him. Tony dies in Maria's arms. Both gangs arrive, and Maria grabs Chino's gun, threatening to kill all of them, and threatening to kill herself. But she doesn't fire the gun. She doesn't kill herself. And members of both gangs help carry Tony's body. The look of the film is wonderful, and there is some excellent dancing. But this film is completely devoid of Shakespeare's poetry, and of the intensity of the play. Essentially the script is crap. It might have been interesting to see Maria learn that Anita betrayed her, but I guess that's beyond the scope of the film. And it would have been great if Maria had killed herself. (time: 153 minutes)

- The Secret Sex Lives Of Romeo And Juliet (1969) directed by A.P. Stootsberry. This is a playful softcore comedy version of Romeo And Juliet. It actually begins at the Globe Theatre, where a drunk and rowdy audience demands to see Romeo And Juliet. They threaten to burn the theatre down if the play doesn't start immediately, a joking reference to the fact that the Globe Theatre did in fact burn down (though during a production of Henry The Eighth rather than Romeo And Juliet). The characters are each introduced while in the middle of various sexual acts. The characters include six maids. Gregory fondles Lady Capulet's ass in the first scene. The sword fight is between Gregory and Balthasar, performed to the cheering of the crowd of the playhouse. The Prince stops them, saying it's the third time they've disturbed the streets. There is the repeated joke of the location of the play as "beautiful downtown Verona." When we're introduced to Juliet, we see her having sex with the Prince. She of course doesn't want Romeo to find out. The action of the play is often interrupted by jokes. Like this one: "If a captain of a ship had a first mate by the name of Monty and he glued his door shut, could you say, 'Cap, you let Monty glue you in'?" There is a wonderful period-type song playing during the scene with Juliet and the Prince (and again later), whose lyrics refer to Juliet as a "wanton country maid." The song also mentions "golden showers" (though there are no such scenes in the film). Juliet tells the Nurse that she's certain Romeo is faithful to her. She then says, "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" And the film cuts to Romeo fondling Lady Capulet, so clearly the filmmakers had no idea what the word "wherefore" means. Anyway, Capulet arranges the marriage between Juliet and Paris, although Paris is gay. And there is a scene in the dungeon of the Capulet house, where a naked woman is being whipped for stealing Lady Capulet's scarves. When Balthasar asks Gregory for a kiss, Gregory turns to the camera and says, "Willie never wrote this." Indeed. We do get the balcony scene, and interestingly, as far as the dialogue goes, this is the most faithful scene. However, while Romeo stands in the garden beneath Juliet's balcony, it's revealed that another woman is going down on him. Meanwhile, someone is under Juliet's dress, going down on her. When Romeo delivers his line about being a glove on her hand so he could touch that cheek, he touches the butt cheek of the woman in the garden. Then there is a long and extremely boring orgy scene with the servants. Romeo goes to the Friar to ask him to wed him to Juliet. He tells the Friar he killed Tybalt (but we didn't have the scene of the fight - in fact, there doesn't seem to be a Tybalt or a Mercutio in this film), so he'll be banished from "beautiful downtown Verona." The Friar fools around with the Nurse, and gives her the message to give to Juliet. Juliet is so distraught by the news that she takes the Nurse to bed. Capulet comes into Juliet's room to let her know she'll be wed to Paris the next day. Friar goes to Juliet to give her the sleeping potion, leaving Romeo and the Nurse along, and because this was shot in the late 1960s, the Nurse shouts, "Sock it to me." Romeo. along with the rest of the folks in beautiful downtown Verona, hears that Juliet is dead and goes to her tomb. He finds the vial of the sleeping potion, and thinking it poison, swallows what is left. He falls next to the coffin. Montague and Capulet enter the tomb, see the two dead, and lift Romeo's body into the coffin with Juliet and put the lid on the coffin. After they leave, we hear Romeo and Juliet awake, and that's the end of the film. (time: 92 minutes)

- Romeo And Juliet (1984) with Alessandra Ferri, Wayne Eagling, Stephen Jefferies, David Drew, Mark Freeman; directed by Colin Nears and Kenneth MacMillan. This is a filmed performance of The Royal Ballet doing Romeo And Juliet at The Royal Opera House in Convent Garden. The choreography during the opening brawl is great, the clanking of many swords working in time with the music. Capulet and Montague actually engage in a bit of swordplay themselves in this version. When Prince shows up, the dead from both sides are piled up. Yes, people were killed in the brawl in this production. Swords from both sides are then laid at the Prince's feet. Then the production moves to Juliet dancing around her nurse, acting even younger than her thirteen years. Paris is then introduced to her. But their dance together seems like wooing, and Paris never really woos her in the play. Then we go to the exterior of the Capulet home, before the party, with folks arriving. The opening dance at the party is incredibly serious, solemn rather than festive. During this scene is the first time we hear applause from the audience, the first time we're aware that this is a live performance. Paris and Juliet dance. Then Romeo and Juliet dance, but not as part of a bigger dance, but rather with everyone watching. Nothing secretive about it. That of course gives it a very different tone. The stage then does clear for Romeo and Juliet to be alone for another dance. But then Tybalt comes in, recognizing Romeo. Capulet comes between them before Tybalt and Romeo could come to blows. It's not long into the balcony scene before Juliet comes down (Romeo does not climb up) so they can dance. After all, there's not enough room to dance in the small balcony of the set. And she returns to the balcony for the end of the scene - the two of them reaching for each other. Then there is a long scene at the marketplace, with lots of dancers. I found myself longing for the Nurse to make her entrance. And finally she does. And she, Romeo, Mercutio and Benvolio have a playful dance together. At Friar Lawrence's chapel, the Nurse brings Juliet in, and we see the wedding ceremony. In the next marketplace scene, Romeo does not come between Mercutio and Tybalt. In fact, Tybalt is truly played as a villain in this production, stabbing Mercutio in the back (after Mercutio tossed him his sword). Mercutio is fairly funny after being stabbed, trying to continue the fight, then pretending his sword is a musical instrument. What would be the line "A plague on both your houses" were there dialogue was done by Mercutio agrily pointing at Tybalt and then at Romeo before dying. The fight between Romeo and Tybalt is fast-paced and pretty great. Then we go to Juliet's bedroom, where Romeo and Juliet wake up together. Their dance before he goes out the window is wonderful. Nurse, Lady Capulet and Capulet come in, followed by Paris - for how else are they to show who she'll be wed to without dialogue? After Capulet strikes her, they exit, leaving Juliet alone for a while - a good moment. When Juliet arrives at the Friar's, Paris is not there in this version (after all, he was present in the previous scene, so not needed here). Friar gives her the potion, and the scene returns to her bedroom, where she hides the vial under her pillow. Nurse, Capulet, Lady Capulet and Paris re-enter. Juliet is still running away from Paris rather than pretending to be the dutiful daughter - at least, at first. But by the end she bows to Paris. So they leave. Juliet dances with the bottle, then away from the bottle, before finally drinking from it. Maids find her in the morning before the Nurse enters. And then Capulet enters, cradling her body, rather than Lady Capulet. We see the end of the funeral at the crypt, with everyone leaving, except Paris, who remains behind at Juliet's side. Romeo enters. The fight between Romeo and Paris is incredibly brief, just a few seconds. Romeo lifts Juliet's and dances with her lifeless body, as if trying to will her to live. Eventually he gives up, lays her back down, and then takes the poison. Of course, there was no apothecary scene, explaining how he got the poison. Also, there is no Balthasar in this production, nor a page to call the watch. Juliet awakens moments later. Friar Lawrenc is not there, so she discovers Romeo's body on her own. She then stabs herself without seeing if there is more poison in the vial. This production ends with her death. There is no final scene with the Prince and Montague and Capulet. (Time: 130 minutes)

- William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996) with Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo, Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Rudd, Paul Sorvino, Harold Perrineau, Miriam Margolyes; directed by Baz Luhrmann. This production is a modern adaptation in location, dress and style, but retains Shakespeare's language and poetry. It's an interesting combination, and when it works it's incredible. This film is best in its quieter moments. When it gets frenetic, it becomes silly and irritating. The prologue is done by a news reporter on a television, and then again as voice over. The first part of the first scene is done in a moving car. Oddly, the first line is "A dog of the house of Capulet moves me." The line in the play is Sampson's and it is "A dog of the house of Montague moves me." The opening lines are given to the Montagues, including the thumb-biting bit, which is done at a gas station. Why switch houses for that dialogue? One of the things that doesn't work for me is trading the swords and knives in for guns, especially as the lines remain the same. Benvolio still says, "Put up your swords." Tybalt shoots as they drive away, then burns down the gas station with his cigarette. Romeo's first lines, which should be to Benvolio, are done as voice over as he sits by himself. Montague (Brian Dennehy), his wife and Benvolio have their conversation in the back of a limo, and then Benvolio gets out to talk to Romeo on the beach. A building at the beach is labeled "Globe Theatre," and it includes a pool hall, which is where Romeo and Benvolio go to continue their conversation about Rosaline. On television is announced the Capulet party, including a list of the guests, so there is no illiterate servant in this production. Lady Capulet is portrayed as a vain, annoying woman. Claire Danes is older than 13, and all references to her exact age are cut from her first scene. Mercutio is introduced in drag, as the party is a costume party. During his Mab speech, he goes a bit mad, shouting - and Romeo calms him. There is actually a lot of shouting in this production - it gets to be a bit much. Romeo takes a pill before going into the party - an hallucinogen? - and then whispers, "Thy drugs are quick," which of course is a line from the end of the play. But should Romeo be tripping at this party? Shouldn't love, or infatuation, be the thing to alter his senses? The fish tank is beautiful, and it is through the tank that Romeo first spies Juliet. It's actually a beautiful moment. Claire Danes is dressed as an angel. Romeo has removed his mask, so Tybalt (dressed as the devil - not too subtle there) recognizes him by face, not by voice. Nurse tells Juliet Romeo's name without Juliet asking her. Romeo jumps out of the car and runs back to the Capulet mansion, with Mercutio yelling after him his saucy comments about Rosaline. Then they drive off without him. The balcony scene has an interesting twist. Romeo looks to the room he thinks is Juliet's, and says his "What light through yonder window breaks" speech. But when the window opens, it's the Nurse who appears. And then Juliet appears at ground level, leading Romeo to then say, "It is my lady! O it is my love!" He hides from her and listens to her speak as she walks to the pool. I love Claire Danes' delivery of "nor any other part belonging to a man." In this production, Juliet says "By any other word would smell as sweet." Romeo sneaks up behind her, and when he answers her, she is startled, and they both fall into the pool. The rest of the scene is done in the pool, which sounds cheesy, but works. Both Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio are wonderful. Security cameras and guards pose a real threat to Romeo in this scene. Juliet goes back to the balcony near the end of the scene after Nurse calls to her, and so he does climb up a bit. Juliet has the "parting is such sweet sorrow" line, and it's the last line of the scene. Pete Postlethwaite plays Friar Lawrence, who is called Father Laurence in this version. He's shirtless in his first scene, and there are young altar boys behind him (hinting at something completely inappropriate for the character), and he has a big cross tattoo on his back. In the church, the choir sings "When Doves Cry." Romeo actually does stumble in this production, leading Father Laurence to give his "Wisely and slow, they stumble that run fast" line. There's a joke reference to another play - a sign saying "The Merchant Of Verona Beach" (because the setting is very much like Venice Beach). Mercutio has his lines about the "punto reverso," but as he is holding a gun, he can't really demonstrate the moves. Because the Nurse knows who Romeo is, she doesn't have the lines asking for him. She starts right in with "I desire some confidence with you." Instead of "Bid her devise some means to come to shrift," Romeo says, "Bid her to come to confession." We get the wedding scene, and Nurse is present. Father Laurence starts with "These violent delights" (lines which in the play are spoken only to Romeo before Juliet arrives). Tybalt is played as a thorough villain in this production, and attacks Romeo even after Romeo says "be satisfied." So Tybalt is one hundred percent at fault for the brawl rather than Mercutio. Mercutio dies in Romeo's arms rather than off stage. So then Romeo goes chasing after Tybalt. But instead of going straight into their fight, the film cuts to Juliet on her bed saying, "Come, gentle night." Then it cuts to Romeo chasing Tybalt in his car. Tybalt crashes, and then they fight in the street. Romeo shoots Tybalt. It is Balthasar, not Benvolio, who says, "Romeo, stand not amazed." After Romeo is banished, the film goes into Act III Scene iii, and the Nurse arrives at Father Laurence's cell. But we miss the dialogue between Nurse and Juliet from Scene ii. The ring Nurse gives Romeo from Juliet is inscribed "I love thee." Then we go back to Scene ii for some of Juliet's lines, starting with "O God! Did Romeo's hand shed Tybalt's blood" - though instead of to Nurse, she speaks these lines to a religious shrine. That leads right into Scene iv, the scene with Paris that is often cut from film versions. We then go back to Juliet in her room, and Romeo enters (something that is not shown in the play). It then goes back to Scene iv, when Capulet tells his wife to tell Juliet she'll be married to Paris. He says the "ere you go to bed" line, which then leads us to wonder if she'll catch Romeo in bed with Juliet. But it then cuts to morning, with Romeo and Juliet waking (and Balthasar waiting in the car outside). Juliet's reaction to Romeo's "come death, and welcome - Juliet wills it so" is laughter, which is not a great choice. There is also no strong reaction to Nurse's betrayal, and that's usually a fantastic moment. But Claire's delivery of "Thou hast comforted me marvelous much" is pretty good. In Act IV Scene i Juliet holds a gun to her head instead of a knife to her chest. She then turns the gun on Father Laurence, which leads to him helping her. Father Laurence sends the letter to Romeo by mail. Juliet says "Farewell. God knows when we shall meet again" to her mother rather than after her mother has left the room. (Nurse is not in that scene in this production.) Most of Juliet's speech before drinking the potion is cut. We don't see the Nurse finding her. All of that is cut, as are her parents' reactions, which is a shame. We really need to see her father there, because that's the moment that we actually feel for him. But instead, the scene opens with Father Laurence removing the vial. We get the funeral scene, and see Balthasar enter. Father Laurence sees him, and looks worried, but can't catch him before he runs out. Act V Scene i, Romeo's speech is done as voice over. Then we see Balthasar's car rushing past the mail truck on its way to Romeo's trailer (a scene similar to the one in Zeffirelli's production). Father Laurence calls the post office, learns that Romeo hasn't received the letter. Romeo's threats to Balthasar are cut. Suddenly there are cops on Romeo's trail, which is fairly ridiculous. There is even a helicopter following him (like in Goodfellas). The cops arrive at the church as Romeo does. So he takes a hostage, and shouts to the cops (instead of to Paris), "Tempt not a desperate man." Paris is not in this scene, so he is not killed. Romeo then locks himself inside the church. Juliet looks great lying on the altar surrounded by dozens of candles. As it's the church and not the crypt, Tybalt's body is not there. Juliet moves slightly, but Romeo doesn't see it, which is great. It makes the scene even more intense. She opens her eyes before he drinks the vial, but he is looking up and so doesn't see that either. Her hand reaches his face just after he's swallowed the poison, but before he's died. So we see on his face that he realizes his mistake. And of course he doesn't say "thy drugs are quick" (but he said it in that earlier scene). It's an interesting change. But wouldn't Juliet be confused as to why he's swallowed poison? After all, Father Laurence is not there to tell her their plans have been thwarted. It is a gun, not a dagger, so Juliet doesn't say those lines, but rather just puts it against her head and fires. The Prince still says his line about losing "a brace of kinsmen," but it doesn't make any sense, as Paris is still alive. The last lines of the play are spoken by the news reporter on a television rather than by the Prince. (time: 120 minutes)

- My Shakespeare (2005) with Paterson Joseph, Baz Luhrmann, Jonathan Taylor, Muska Khpal; directed by Michael Waldman. This documentary follows actor Paterson Joseph as he directs a production of Romeo And Juliet using non-actors from the poor neighborhood where he grew up. Film director Baz Luhrmann serves as a mentor to Paterson, though only by remote hook-up. We see the casting process, and learn a bit about each of the actors who get cast. For example, Muska Khpal, who plays Juliet, is from Afghanistan and wants to become a doctor. (During the first section - the casting process - there is a lot of annoying music playing.) Paterson has lots of trouble at first. The actor who plays Benvolio is constantly late. And all of the actors have trouble tapping into their emotions. The actors at first basically all say they don't understand any of it. It's interesting that when it comes to the fights, their personal experiences play a large part. Jonathan Taylor, who plays Romeo, has actually been stabbed in a fight. They have an easier time with anger than with love. As a documentary, this film fails to answer some basic questions. Like, how did Baz Luhrmann become involved? Also, a fight choreographer and a vocal coach are brought in. Were they paid? Were any of the actors paid? How were they able to rent the theatre? But once the film got going, it managed to pull me in emotionally, and I actually was anxious for them as it got down to the final rehearsals. Paterson has the actors do an emotional workshop to help them, because these folks are used to hiding emotion. He also takes the leads to a graveyard to rehearse the death scene. Some of the cast goes to the new Globe Theatre, and this trip clearly inspires them - it's actually a great scene. And we do see sections of the actual performance, as well as some of the celebration afterwards. So though this film has a shaky beginning, and doesn't provide some basic information, it ends up being quite satisfying. I came to care about these people. (time: 90 minutes)

- Romeo And Juliet Get Married (2005) with Luana Piovani, Luis Gustavo, Marco Ricca; directed by Bruno Barreto. This loose adaptation of Romeo And Juliet turns the Capulets and Montagues into fans of rival soccer teams in Brazil. Juliet is a fan of the Palmeiras team, and at a soccer match she notices Romeo, who is leading the fans of the Corinthians in a cheer. In this version, they are not teenagers - Juliet is 25, while Romeo is 40. Juliet is also the coach of a women's soccer team, until that program is canceled. She feels betrayed by her father, who is on the board, but abstained from voting. During the argument, a spark from the fire hits her eye, so she goes to the doctor, who of course turns out to be Romeo. And they fall in love. This is an adaptation that is aware of Shakespeare. On their first date Juliet says, "My name has nothing to do with Shakespeare. It was my dad's way of paying homage." Then, "Juliet was because of two Palmeiras players." Romeo lies, saying he is a fan of Palmeiras. They go to bed, but apparently her Palmeiras bedspread causes him to be impotent. But Juliet of course knows he's a Corinthians fan, and brings him a Corinthians condom, and then they're able to have sex. Juliet's father is an insane Palmeiras fan, so they decide to keep it a secret from him, telling him that Romeo is a Palmeiras fan. Juliet's mother met him years ago, and remembers him to be a Corinthians fan, but she keeps it a secret from her husband, much in the way that Nurse keeps Juliet's love from both parents in the play. But of course the lie grows bigger, and Juliet's father takes Romeo to Tokyo to attend a Palmeiras game. And when he learns the truth about Romeo, he feels betrayed, and becomes enraged. At the end, Romeo and Juliet do get married, with Palmeiras fans on one side of the aisle, and Corinthians fans on the other. The priest does a variation of the prologue during the ceremony, saying, "Two households, both alike in dignity, in the fair metopolis of Sao Paulo. Where I have the honor of celebrating a wedding that began from an ancient grudge and comes to an end this sunny afternoon." (time: 93 minutes)

- Romeo & Juliet: A Monkey's Tale (2005) directed by Karina Holden. This very odd little film stars two monkeys as the "star-crossed lovers." And no, this is not a cartoon. In Lopburi in Thailand, there are thousands of monkeys. They are divided into two rival groups - the Temple Troop and The Market Monkeys. The Temple Troop live in a temple. The Market Monkeys live across the road in the marketplace. This film is narrated by a Temple monkey called Tybalt, Juliet's cousin (he refers to her as "a pretty piece of flesh," which just feels weird). In describing the Market Monkeys, our narrator says, "Like hooligans with their heckling ways, they did bite their thumbs at us." And sure enough, we see a shot of a monkey with his fingers in his mouth, though not actually doing the thumb-biting gesture. Romeo is described as the leader of the Market Monkeys. The narrator does use some of Shakespeare's text. For example, he says, "Peace - I hate the word." Anyway, during Thailand's Festival Of Lights, Romeo first sees Juliet, and they fall in love. Romeo crosses the road (breaking the rule) and infiltrates the temple to be with Juliet. The next day Juliet sees that Romeo is a thief and a villain - he leaps up to steal food from a pedestrian, and the narrator says, "her only love sprung from her only hate." Days pass without others noticing their relationship (thus straying from the play a bit). There is a shot of them looking at fish in an aquarium, a reference to Baz Luhrmann's film. But of course eventually Romeo is discovered in the temple, and the Temple Troop attack him, driving him back across the road. There is then a shot of Romeo seated on a motorcycle. Juliet goes to visit him, and there are shots of the two kissing and romping, with soft piano music playing. But the Market Monkeys spot her and attack, driving her back to the temple. This leads to a war between the two groups of monkeys. There are amazing shots of dozens of monkeys crossing the street and climbing buildings. Some are wounded in the battle, but none are killed. No mention of a Mercutio, and clearly Tybalt is fine, as he is still narrating. Romeo is outcast by his own family, because as the narrator says, "The Market Monkeys no longer wanted a trouble maker amongst them." But I thought the whole gang were trouble makers. Oh well. As Tybalt says, "Romeo was fortune's fool." Romeo is banished, so he gets on a train. Seriously. And then bad karma settles on both groups. The narrator says, "A plague descended on our houses." The Market Monkeys become sick. The Temple Troop's babies die. Tybalt tells us, "Juliet blamed herself, and frankly she was right." Ouch. She pines for Romeo. And Tybalt says, "I also wondered wherefore art Romeo, that mischief-maker." Wrong. Once again, "wherefore" means "why," not "where." I shouldn't have been surprised by this error, since on the back of the DVD case it says, "Oh, monkey, monkey, wherefore art thou monkey?" And yes, a lot of the narration is stupid, and includes grammatical errors. But this whole thing is gloriously ridiculous. Anyway, humans dress as monkeys in a parade to end the feud between the monkey clans. (What?) They present a banquet for the monkeys at the temple, and the Market Monkeys are also invited, thus uniting the two clans. During the party, Juliet leaves in the back of a pickup truck to go find Romeo. And Tybalt says, "We never heard from either of them again." This film really needs a Friar Lawrence monkey and a sleeping potion, but it's still sort of wonderful. (time: 43 minutes)

- Gnomio & Juliet (2011) with James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Matt Lucas, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, Jason Statham, Ashley Jensen; directed by Kelly Asbury. This animated film features the tale of Romeo And Juliet as portrayed by garden gnomes and other lawn ornaments. It begins, however, at a theatre, with the curtain closed. A gnome comes out onto the stage and says, "The story you are about to see has been told before. A lot. And now we are going to tell it again, but different. It's about two star-crossed lovers kept apart by a big feud." Anyway, the gnome goes into the prologue which he first refers to as "a long, boring prologue." He only gets as far as "loins of these two foes." The Capulets and Montagues live in houses right next to each other on Verona Drive. The blue house, owned by Miss Montague, is 2B Verona Dr., and the red house, owned by Mr. Capulet, is not 2B (the "2B" being crossed out). There are little references to Shakespeare's other plays throughout this film. The other thing that happens throughout the film is instrumental versions of Elton John songs. The first being "Crocodile Rock." Romeo says, "Red. I hate the word," a play on Tybalt's "What, drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word." Gnomeo and Tybalt, who is played as a villain in this production, race lawn mowers down an alley to Elton John's "Saturday Night's All Right For Fighting." Juliet tries to sneak out of red garden to get a special flower, so she'll be taken seriously. When she opens the gate, a dog is on the other side. So she slams it shut, shouting, "Out, out." A man in the distance finished the line for her: "Damn Spot, over here, boy." Get it? (Macbeth, Act V, Scene 1.) Meanwhile Gnomeo is sneaking into red garden to get revenge because Tybalt apparently cheated during the race. Anyway, he and Juliet end up grabbing the flower at the same time, and look into each other's eyes, all done to a relatively annoying pop song, "Hello, Hello" (which is sung by Elton John and Lady Gaga - ugh). They realize they're from opposing houses. A frog named Nanette is the closest thing to Nurse (Nanette - Nanny - Nurse). Nanette tells Juliet, "It's a doomed love, and that's the best kind." Then we get the balcony scene, which begins with Juliet saying, "Oh Gnomeo, Gnomeo, are we really doomed, Gnomeo, to never see each other again? Why must you wear a blue hat?" Gnomeo hides under water in the pool (as Leonardo DiCaprio does in the Baz Luhrmann film). Nanette leads Gnomeo out through the gate, and it is she who says, "Parting is such sweet sorrow." (But before that she sort of quotes from Hamlet: "Good night, sweet Prince, and flights of angels, or pigeons or sparrows or whatever.") But Gnomeo and Juliet sneak another moment together, and make plans to meet the next day, "Back in the old Lawrence place." Then Gnomeo says, "Parting is such sweet sorrow." The humans who own the gnomes are also at war, and there is a seriously funny bit when Miss Montague watches a commercial for a new lawnmower (if you watch this on DVD, pause it so you can read the fine print). Then there is a silly "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" musical montage. Juliet's dad sets Juliet up with Paris, but Juliet quickly escapes for her rendezvous with Gnomeo. There is an annoying flamingo (played by Jim Cummings - but think Robin Williams as the genie in Aladdin). The flamingo says, about dandelions, "A weed by any other name is still a weed." As annoying as the flamingo is, we then get a scene where Paris serenades Juliet with a bastardization of Elton John's "Your Song": "It's a little bit runny, this pesticide/I used it all up/Some insects have died." Then it actually goes into Elton John singing the proper song. Gnomeo and Juliet go into some little shack. Tacked to its wall is a ticket to As You Like It from 1986. There is another terrible Elton John song about love called "Love Builds A Garden," which plays during a flashback of the flamingo's love being taken away in a moving truck. The moving company, by the way, is Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Movers. The character Benny is a combination of Benvolio and Mercutio, because it is he who is attacked by Tybalt. Benny's large hat is cut off. Gnomeo attacks Tybalt, and Tybalt dies crashing into a wall. Gnomeo is apparently killed, driven over by a truck in the street - but it turns out to be a blue teapot in the street. The truck says, "Tempest Teapots." Gnomeo is hanging onto the bottom of the truck. Later, a double decker bus says, "Stratford Upon Avon." Gnomeo ends up at a statue of William Shakespeare. At the base it says, "William Shakespeare 1564 - 1616 Or Thereabouts." Why "thereabouts"? Gnomeo speaks to Shakespeare's statue, telling him what's happened, and Shakespeare tells Gnomeo the end of his play, in which they both die. That scene is kind of great, partially because Shakespeare is played by Patrick Stewart. Gnomeo's mom says, "Unleash the dogs of war," a variation on "Let slip the dogs of war" from Act III Scene i of Julius Caesar. She is referring to the giant lawn mower in this case. It appears that Gnomeo and Juliet die in the destruction and Shakespeare's statue says, "Told you so." Juliet's dad and Gnomeo's mom shake hands, ending the feud. But of course Gnomeo and Juliet are okay, while an instrumental version of "Your Song" plays. Then it ends with a version of "Crocodile Rock" in which the lyric is changed to "I remember when rock was young/Gnomeo and Juliet had so much fun." And the gnomes dance. Why? Well, Elton John was executive producer of the film. Maybe that's why. Anyway, this version is performed by Nelly Furtado and Elton John. It took seven people to write this screenplay, and another two who worked on the story. The Prince appears in one of the deleted scenes on the DVD. There is also a reference to Mantua. In another deleted scene, Juliet agrees to wed Paris and her dad says he needs a friar gnome. (time 84 minutes)

Related Films

- A Courtyard In Verona (2010) This short "featurette" includes interviews with Lise Friedman and Ceil Friedman, authors of the book Letters To Juliet, and is about the courtyard where people leave letters to the fictional character of Juliet. This is a special feature on the DVD for the film Letters To Juliet. (time: 6 minutes)
- Letters To Juliet (2010) with Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Egan, Gael Garcia Bernal; directed by Gary Winick. This film stars Amanda Seyfried as a fact-checker for The New Yorker who is going to Verona with Victor, her fiance, for a pre-honeymoon, and so that he can meet with suppliers for the restaurant he's going to open in New York. Sophie wants to be a writer, not a fact-checker. In the first scene in Verona, Sophie is walking back to the hotel, where Victor is on the balcony. When he sees her, he calls down, "Sophia! Sophia! Wherefore art thou, my sweet Sophia?" So put this film in with all the others that don't know the meaning of the word "wherefore." Of course, in this one, they clearly don't think it means "where" either, because he is saying the line to her. So it really just doesn't make any sense at all. Anyway, Victor is busy meeting suppliers, so Sophie goes to Casa di Giulietta. And that scene is great. They show all the things that people actually do there - standing on the balcony, affixing letters to the wall, rubbing the right breast of the Juliet statue. Women are writing letters in the courtyard, crying. Sophie stays, and toward the end of the day, a woman comes and collects the letters. Sophie follows her, and the woman is of course one of the secretaries of Juliet, the women who respond to the letters. So Sophie helps with the letters, and finds behind a loose brick an old letter written fifty years ago by a woman named Claire, a letter that had never been answered. So Sophie answers that letter. And a week letter Sophie is still there, writing. And Claire's grandson, Charlie, confronts her, saying Claire is in town. So she follows him to meet her. Claire has come to find Lorenzo, the man she wrote about in the letter. Sophie joins them on their journey to find Lorenzo. There are 74 Lorenzos in the general area. Victor is busy at wine auctions, and conveniently keeps needing more time, so Sophie can go on this adventure. And Sophie and Charlie become attracted to one another. At one point, Sophie says to Charlie, "Do you know what you are? You are the Montagues and the Capulets." Charlie responds, "You mean... Well, at least I'm not Romeo." That of course doesn't really make sense, as Romeo is a Montague. But Sophie says, "That's the understatement of the century." Charlie says, "No, no, no, because you see, if I found the love of my life, I wouldn't stand there like an idiot whispering in a garden. I would just grab her from that blasted balcony and be done with it." The movie goes exactly where you expect to. And at the end we get the balcony scene, sort of. This film mentions William Shakespeare in an early scene. The secretaries of Juliet accuse Charlie of being a bit of a cold fish, as he's an English man, and Charlie reminds them that it was William Shakespeare, an English man, who wrote Romeo And Juliet. (time: 105 minutes)
- Romeo & Juliet: A Family Feud (2005) with Christopher Reame, David Robb; directed by Jeff Smart. Actors Christopher Reame and David Robb talk about their performances in the 1976 production of Romeo And Juliet.
- Shakespeare In Love (1998) with Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth, Ben Affleck, Judi Dench; directed by John Madden. This film, which takes place in 1593, tells the tale of how William Shakespeare (played by Joseph Fiennes) came to write Romeo And Juliet. There is a joke during the opening credits in which Shakespeare is practicing signing his name, using different spellings - because all of the surviving signatures do have different spellings. While this film is mostly about Romeo And Juliet, there are several references to The Two Gentlemen Of Verona and Twelfth Night (and one reference to Henry The Sixth). The first comes when Shakespeare says to Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush), "Half of what you owe me - I'm still due for one gentleman of Verona." We see in this film how Shakespeare gets his inspiration, how he influenced by everything. For example, in an early scene he passes a street preacher who is railing against the threatres. The preacher says, "And the Rose smells just as rank by any name. I say, a plague on both their houses!" The Rose of course is one of the theatres, and "both their houses" refers to the two theatres. Shakespeare is seeking his muse, feeling that he can no longer write (which is a bit weird, because Romeo And Juliet is still relatively early in his career). Another early scene shows Burbage and his company performing The Two Gentlemen Of Verona for the Queen. We see Valentine give the first line of the play, and then later we see the bit with the dog, and then a little of Act III Scene i ("What light is light, if Sylvia be not seen?/What joy is joy, if Sylvia be not by?"). It is then that we are introduced to Viola (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is in the audience, mouthing the words. Viola then talks about that play to her Nurse (Imelda Staunton). Shakespeare wants Rosaline to be his muse, until later when he meets Viola (as in Romeo And Juliet when Romeo meets Juliet). Shakespeare also gets some of his inspiration from Marlowe. When Viola dresses as a boy, calling herself Thomas Kent, she auditions with a speech from The Two Gentlemen Of Verona (that same speech from Act III Scene i). Shakespeare, seeking Thomas Kent, sneaks into a party at Viola's house and spots Viola (now dressed as a woman), and falls for her. We get a version of the balcony scene then when Viola steps out and says, "Romeo, Romeo. A young man of Verona. A comedy by William Shakespeare." Shakespeare is below, in the garden. Nurse calls to Viola. She tells Shakespeare, "I will come again." Shakespeare says, "I am fortune's fool." When Shakespeare and Viola make love, her Nurse keeps it secret, just as Nurse does in the play. And when they wake, they do a variation of Act III Scene v. There is a scene where Viola thinks Shakespeare is dead, but it turns out to be Marlowe (like the scene in Romeo And Juliet in which Juliet believes Romeo to be dead when it is in fact Tybalt who is dead). Toward the end of the film, we see a good deal of the play Romeo And Juliet. Oddly, the Friar is not in the death scene when Juliet awakes. And the film ends with Shakespeare beginning to write Twelfth Night. (time:122 minutes)

Films With References To This Play

- Beautiful Girls (1996) In this wonderful film directed by Ted Demme, Timothy Hutton plays Willie, who has returned home for his high school reunion. Natalie Portman plays Marty, the 13-year-old girl who lives next door. In an iceskating scene, Marty flirts with Willie. Willie says they have a bit of an age problem. Marty says, "We're as star-crossed as Romeo and Juliet. It's a tragedy of Elizabethan proportions." Willie then recites, "What light through yonder window breaks? Tis the east and Juliet is the sun." To which Marty replies, "And the colored girls go do do-do do-do." Then in a later scene, Willie sees her through his window. So he opens it and calls down to her, "Hey." She looks up and responds, "Romeo And Juliet, the dyslexic version."
- Came The Brawn (1938) a Little Rascals short film directed by Gordon Douglas. Alfalfa is trying to come up with someone to play the Masked Marvel, someone he can beat in the wrestling ring. In walks Waldo, a nerdy kid, reading aloud from Julius Caesar. From Act III Scene ii he reads, "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him." He then trips over a box. Then, in a later scene, the nerdy kid - now dressed as the Masked Marvel - is reading aloud from Hamlet. He only manages to say, "Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer -" before Butch interrupts him, saying, "All right, Shakespeare, can the chatter and hand over that wrestling suit." And then during the wrestling match, Waldo steps out, reading aloud from Romeo And Juliet. He says, "Good night. Good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow that I'll say good night till it be morrow" (from Act II Scene i). And then, if that weren't enough, the end of the short finds Waldo wooing Darla with these words from Romeo And Juliet: "Oh, that I were a glove upon that hand that I might touch that cheek." Darla chooses him over Alfalfa, and tells him to continue. As they exit, he says, "Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear..." (also from Romeo And Juliet).
- Decadent Evil (2005) with Phil Fondacaro, Jill Michelle; directed by Charles Band. This silly horror film has one Shakespeare reference. Ivan says, "I hate to break it to you, Romeo. I think your little Juliet's a vampire."
- Grease (1978) with John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing; directed by Randal Kleiser. The best musical ever made of course has a reference to Romeo And Juliet. While the girls are having a sleepover, the guys pull up in their new car. "Hey, Putzie, why don't you call her?" And so he stands up in the car, and calls, "Oh, Sandy. Wherefore art thou, Sandy?" And that's it. (time 110 minutes)
- Harold And Maude (1971) with Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles, Ellen Geer; written by Colin Higgins; directed by Hal Ashby. My favorite film has a wonderful Romeo And Juliet reference. Harold's mother has arranged some dates for him through a computer dating service. He has scared the first two away. The third is an actress named Sunshine Dore (played by Ellen Geer). Harold (Bud Cort) stages a hari-kari scene in front of her. But being an actress, she doesn't buy it for a moment. She's not scared off like the other girls. She says, "Oh, Harold. Oh, that was marvelous. It had the ring of truth." She then takes off her hat and says, "I played Juliet in the Sunshine Playhouse. Louie thought it was my best performance." She then goes into actor mode. She puts her hat upside down next to Harold's head, and says, "What's here?" She picks up the hat, and continues: "A cup, closed in my true love's hand?" She lifts the hat to her face and sniffs it. "Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end." At that point, Harold gies up the act of being dead, and turns his head toward her. Sunshine picks up the knife Harold had used and says, "O happy dagger!" She tests it on her palm, making certain that it is fake, and repeats, "O happy dagger." She touches her chest and says, "This is thy sheath. There rest." (Yes, she says "rest," not "rust." It is also "rest" in the novel.) She stabs herself, saying, "And let me die." She falls to the floor. Harold picks up the knife and stands, just as his mother enters the room. She sees Sunshine on the floor, apparently dead, and exclaims, "Harold, that was your last date." And that's the end of the scene. Every time I watch this film, I wonder what happened next. How did he get rid of her? The novel ends the scene there as well, but includes more from Romeo And Juliet, including Sunshine saying, "Drunk all, and left no friendly drop to help me after?" And in the novel, it's when she goes to kiss him to get a drop of poison from his lips that Harold gets up. (time: 91 minutes)
- Master Will Shakespeare (1936) directed by Jacques Tourneur. This short film tells the tale of William Shakespeare moving to London and beginning his career in the theatre. Most of it is narrated. But then there is a scene where Shakespeare is in a tavern, reciting his own lines from near the end of The Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet to his glass. This short also includes a bit of the balcony scene from the 1936 production with Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer. (time: 10 minutes)
- Stage Door Canteen (1943) with Cheryl Walker, William Terry, Marjorie Riordan, Katharine Cornell, Katharine Hepburn; directed by Frank Borzage. This odd bit of wartime propaganda has a nice long Romeo And Juliet sequence. As the soldiers are in line, getting food, one of them says, "You're Katharine Cornell, aren't you?" Katharine replies, "Yes. How'd you know?" He says, "Oh, our dramatic coach at school has your picture. He said we hadn't lived until we'd seen you play Juliet. See, we put it on, and I was Romeo." Katharine says, "You were? What scene did you like best?" The soldier says, "You remember where Romeo swears by the moon?" Katharine nods, and he launches into the scene. "Lady by yonder blessed moon I swear/That tips with silver all these fruit tree tops." Katharine Cornell takes the part of Juliet and responds, "O swear not by the moon, th' inconstant moon/That monthly changes in her circled orb/Lest thy love prove likewise variable." The soldier asks, "What shall I swear by?" She replies, "Do not swear at all./Or if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self/Which is the god of my idolatry/And I'll believe thee." He says, "If my heart's dear love-" Katharine says, "No, do not swear. Although I joy in thee/I have no joy in this contract tonight/It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden/Too like the lightning that doth cease to be/Ere one could say it lightens. Sweet, good night." She then skips to the end of the scene, saying, "Parting is such sweet sorrow/That I shall say good night till it be morrow." It's a really sweet moment, broken up by another soldier saying, "Hey, what's holding up the line?" Katharine says, "A little unrationed ham being served. You're holding up the works, Romeo." She hands him an orange. He tells her, "I'll never eat this orange, Juliet. I'll just keep it to remember." Later, in the barracks, he says, "Some party, wasn't it, Dakota?" Dakota replies, "Sure was, Romeo." Katharine Cornell played Juliet on Broadway in 1934, and also toured with the play. (time: 130 minutes)
- Student Bodies (1981) with Kristen Riter, Matt Goldsby; directed by Mickey Rose. This horror comedy has a reference to Romeo And Juliet. The killer interrupts the movie to ask the audience, "Who could I be?" He goes through a list of possible suspects including, "Nurse Krud and Ms. Van Dyke. What's in a name? Everything." A reference, of course, to Juliet's line in the balcony scene. (time: 86 minutes)
- Wax Works (1934) In this Oswald The Lucky Rabbit cartoon,Oswald finds a baby on his doorstep and reluctantly takes him in. In the middle of the night the baby has fun with wax statues. And we get a short variation of the balcony scene from Romeo And Juliet. Romeo sings, "Oh my Juliet, where are you?" Juliet appears on the balcony, and says, "I'm here, my lover. Yoo-hoo!" Romeo sings, "Shall I croon beneath this moon?" He climbs the ladder to Juliet, but is pushed off the ladder by Groucho Marx. Groucho then grabs Juliet and says to Romeo, "Not tonight, Romeo." (time: 9 minutes)

Next month is Julius Caesar.

Second Year Of Shakespeare Study

For those who don't already know, I'm reading all of Shakespeare's plays (and then his poems and sonnets). I started last year, and I've been reading one play a month (so this will take more than three years), and then reading related books and watching film versions. This year was mostly the histories. Here is a list of the plays that I read, as well as related books that I read and films that I watched, and of course plays I attended.

January: Measure For Measure
Related Books:
- Measure For Measure by Harriett Hawkins
- Twentieth Century Interpretations Of Measure For Measure edited by George L. Geckle
- Shakespeare: Measure For Measure by Nigel Alexander
Film Versions:
- Measure For Measure (1979) with Kenneth Colley, Kate Nelligan, Tim Pigott-Smith, John McEnery; directed by Desmond Davis.

February: The First Part Of King Henry The Sixth
Film Versions:
- The First Part Of King Henry The Sixth (1983) with Peter Benson, Trevor Peacock, David Burke; directed by Jane Howell. This film has some great moments, but it suffers from a terribly miscast Brenda Blethyn as Joan of Arc. She's just horrible. And Peter Benson is two decades too old to be playing the young King Henry VI. Every time he mentions his young age, it comes off as a joke. Also, way too many of the lines are said as asides. On the positive side, Trevor Peacock is really good as Lord Talbot.
- An Age Of Kings Part Nine: The Red Rose And The White (1960) directed by Michael Hayes; this is the ninth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard II through Richard III; this episode has an odd moment with Eileen Atkins as Joan of Arc, where she is in extreme close-up, and in her eyes is the image of a dancer; the play is heavily cut - down to an hour.

March: The Second Part Of King Henry The Sixth Related Books:
- The Wars Of The Roses by Hubert Cole (about the wars during the reign of King Henry The Sixth, though these continued through that of Richard III as well)
Film Versions:
- The Second Part Of King Henry The Sixth (1983) with Peter Benson, David Burke, Paul Chapman, Julia Foster; directed by Jane Howell. This film has some great performances, particularly by David Burke as Gloucester and Anne Carroll as his wife, and also Bernard Hill as York. Trevor Peacock, who played Talbot in the First Part, plays Jack Cade, and he's excellent. The only weak performance is that by Julia Foster as Queen Margaret - she's always at one level, finding few nuances.
- An Age Of Kings Part Ten: The Fall Of A Protector (1960) with Terry Scully and John Ringham; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the tenth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard II through Richard III; this episode covers the first two acts and the first scene of the third act.
- An Age Of Kings Part Eleven: The Rabble From Kent (1960) with Terry Scully and Mary Morris; directed by Michael Hayes.

April: The Third Part Of King Henry The Sixth
Related Books:
- Rose Rage adapted by Edward Hall and Roger Warren (An adaptation of the three Henry VI plays in two parts)
- Henry VI by Bertram Wolffe (This is actually not based on Shakespeare's play, but is rather a biography of Henry VI)
Film Versions:
- The Third Part Of King Henry The Sixth (1983) with Peter Benson, Julia Foster, Ron Cook; directed by Jane Howell. This production is excellent. And Julia Foster's performance this time round as Queen Margaret totally works. She's fantastic in this one. The staging, the lighting, the shot composition - everything in this production is wonderful.
- An Age Of Kings Part Twelve: The Morning's War (1960) with Julian Glover and Paul Daneman; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the twelfth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard II through Richard III; this episode covers the first two acts and the first two scenes of Act III.
- An Age Of Kings Part Thirteen: The Sun In Splendour (1960) with Mary Morris and Julian Glover; directed by Michael Hayes.

May: The Tragedy Of Richard The Third
Related Books:
- King Richard III: Shakespeare In Performance by Hugh M. Richmond (published in 1989)
- The African Company Presents Richard III by Carlyle Brown (a play set in 1821 about a group of people putting on Richard The Third)
- The Daughter Of Time by Josephine Tey (a mystery novel which looks into whether Richard III really was as he's been portrayed, and if someone else didn't kill the princes in the tower)
Film Versions:
- The Tragedy Of Richard The Third (1983) with Ron Cook, Rowena Cooper, Julia Foster and Zoe Wannamaker; directed by Jane Howell. This is the best of all the Shakespeare films I've watched so far. The acting is superb. The staging and blocking are perfect. For example, the scene where Margaret is cursing the Queen, it is staged so that Richard is between them, but in the background. As he listens to Margaret's various curses, you can almost see him thinking, "Okay, yes, that will come to pass. And that." There are moments that are really funny, and there are moments that are chilling. Julia Foster is magnificent as Margaret. Ron Cook is incredible as Richard The Third. The dream sequence was done wonderfully, and in a really imaginative way. And the end of the battle was just fucking awesome. The tableau at the end is mind-blowing. Seriously, if you get the chance, you should watch this film. It is just under four hours, and it flew by.
- An Age Of Kings Part Fourteen: The Dangerous Brother (1960) with Paul Daneman and Patrick Garland; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the fourteenth part of fifteen-part series that covers Richard II through Richard III; this episode covers the first two acts and the first scene of Act III.
- An Age Of Kings Part Fifteen: The Boar Hunt (1960) with Paul Daneman and Jill Dixon; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the final part of the series; this is really good, though I didn't appreciate some of the cuts. For example, Act IV Scene IV is cut almost entirely, so we lose all of Margaret's lines as well as that great moment between Richard and Elizabeth in which he woos for Elizabeth's daughter using many of the same tactics that won him Lady Anne.
- Richard III (1955) with Laurence Olivier, Ralph Richardson, John Gielgud and Claire Bloom; directed by Laurence Olivier. This famous film version has a lot of great scenes, but suffers from some disastrous cuts. Queen Margaret is cut completely, which throws off the balance of the play. And thus gone too are all of the curses. How can you cut the curses, all of which of course come to pass? The curses bear on so many of the characters, all of whom become Richard's victims. Margaret is really the other strength of the play, Richard's opposition. She is greatly missed in this film version. There are a lot of other changes. This film begins with the coronation of Edward IV, a scene taken from The Third Part Of King Henry The Sixth. The incredible Lady Anne scene is also changed. Instead of the body of King Henry VI, she is mourning the death of her husband. The scene is cut after the line, "Your bed chamber." Then, a little later, after Clarence is shuttled off to the tower, the scene picks up again. Claire Bloom as Lady Anne spits at Richard in both sections of the scene, which doesn't really work, for he only reacts to the second spitting. Also, the scene ends with Lady Anne actually kissing Richard when he tells her "Bid me farewell." When she leaves, he says the line about "Was ever woman in this humour won," but he'd already given the line "I'll have her, but I will not keep her long" after the first section of the scene. That's totally fucked, because it breaks up the rhyme. There are many other changes, including Mistress Shore's actual appearance (and one line) in the film - in the play she is alluded to, but not present. Cut from the film is all the great dialogue between the murderers. Missing also from the film is that fantastic scene where Richard woos for Elizabeth's daughter. Toward the end, the ghosts that visit Richard in his sleep were cut from eleven to five. Cut completely is when the ghosts visit Richmond. A much worse cut is when Richard wakes from his nightmare. Gone are the wonderful lines when Richard has an extended fearful conversation with himself - the "What? do I fear myself? there's none else by" bit. That is a necessary moment, for it shows that Richard is completely unraveling, that his confidence has evaporated before going into battle. Another problem is that the sun is clearly shining before and during the battle - after the scene where they discuss how the sun will not shine that day. Gone too are the final lines of the play. Still, there are some great performances here, particularly Ralph Richardson as Buckingham and John Gielgud as Clarence. And there is a lot of interesting work with shadows. There are lots of wide shots in the film, and I would have liked more closeups during key moments. Still, there are some really well structured shots, as when the young prince first sits on the throne.
- Richard III (1995) with Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent; directed by Richard Loncraine. This adaptation is set in the 1930s, and has an incredible cast which includes Nigel Hawthorne as Clarence, Tim McInnerny as Catesby, Kristin Scott Thomas as Lady Anne, and Maggie Smith as the Duchess of York. This film, like Olivier's, cuts Margaret completely (though a few of her lines are given to Maggie Smith), but for some reason her absense isn't as bothersome to me as it is in the earlier film. There are some interesting changes and touches, some good, some not so good. Ian McKellen says the line "Your bed chamber" as an aside, so Lady Anne doesn't hear it - an interesting choice. Tyrell is given a much more significant part. Mistress Shore is never mentioned, so the scene in which Richard turns on Hastings doesn't really work. Also, the "bear me on your shoulders" bit with the princes isn't done right. Only one prince is involved, and it comes off as harmless playing rather than a possibly intentional jab. So we don't see the princes as witty and intelligent. Another problem is the scene in which Buckingham asks for a moment to think about whether the princes should be killed. When he comes back, instead of giving his consent, he immediately demands that Richard fulfill his promises to him. This doesn't make sense at all. He has to answer Richard regarding the princes. And then, to make it worse, we don't have that scene where Buckingham realizes he's doomed if he doesn't escape. Another change is the addition of the marriage of Richmond and Elizabeth. This scene is inserted before the battle. The nightmare is done as voices, not as apparitions, and again, it's only Richard who is visited, not Richmond. But when Richard wakes, we do have that great frightened speech where he calls himself a murderer, which Olivier had cut. This film also includes the scene where Richard woos for Elizabeth - a scene that was cut from An Age Of Kings and from Olivier's Richard III. And it's an excellent scene - probably Annette Bening's best scene in the entire film.

June: The Tragedy Of King Richard The Second
Related Books:
- Twentieth Century Interpretations Of Richard II edited by Paul M. Cubeta (published in 1971)
Film Versions:
- King Richard The Second (1978) with Derek Jacobi, John Gielgud, Jon Finch, Wendy Hiller, Charles Gray; directed by David Giles. This production never fully drew me in, though there are some really good performances. John Gielgud is of course excellent. Derek Jacobi played Richard as a bit of a queen, which was odd, and it weakened the impact of the scene near the end where he is forcibly parted from the queen. But he was absolutely phenomenal in the deposition scene. That was by far the best scene of the film. Richard Owens did a bit of overacting as Mowbray, but he's in the play only briefly. Oddly, they cut out the end of the gardener's scene, after the queen has exited - so we're missing the whole bit about rue and ruth. The other problem with this production is the lighting. The entire thing is so dark. And there are many poorly composed shots. At one point it seems like someone bumped the camera. Why didn't they do another take?
- An Age Of Kings Part One: The Hollow Crown (1960) with David William, Edgar Wreford, Tom Fleming; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the first part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third; this episode covers the first two acts and the first two scenes of the third act; cut are Mowbray's lines about how his tongue will no longer be useful due to his banishment; also, Act I Scene II is cut entirely, and thus is cut the Duchess of Gloucester; there are some awkward camera movements in both the Bolingbroke/Mowbray scene and the Gaunt/Bolingbroke scene; Sean Connery plays Percy, the role Jeremy Bulloch played in the 1978 film.
- An Age Of Kings Part Two: The Deposing Of A King (1960) with Tom Fleming, George A. Cooper, David William; directed by Michael Hayes.

July: The Life And Death Of King John
Film Versions:
- The Life & Death Of King John (1984) with Leonard Rossiter, Claire Bloom, George Costigan, Mary Morris; directed by David Giles. There is some great stuff in this production, but it's uneven. The least effective element by far is the dull blinking boy who plays Arthur. Seriously, if you took a sip of alcohol each time the boy blinked, you'd be drunk halfway through his first scene. Even after his character has died, he's still trying to blink. Claire Bloom must have been so frustrated acting with him. George Costigan is excellent as Phillip the Bastard. And of course Claire Bloom is wonderful, particularly during that famous speech with the cardinal (perhaps partly because the boy isn't in that scene).

August: The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth
Related Books:
- Henry IV Part One: Shakespeare In Performance by Scott McMillin (focuses on performances from 1945, 1951, 1964, 1975 and 1986, as well as on Chimes At Midnight and the BBC production; published in 1991)
- With The Rogue's Company: Henry IV At The National Theatre by Bella Merlin (Not very well written, this book chronicles the rehearsal period of a production of both parts of King Henry The Fourth, focusing mainly on the first part; that production starred Michael Gambon as Falstaff and Matthew Macfadyen as Prince Hal; published in 2005.)
- Henry IV by Bryan Bevan (This is a biography of Henry IV, with several references to Shakespeare's plays; published in 1994)
- Falstaff: Being The Acta Domini Johannis Fastolfe, Or Life And Valiant Deeds Of Sir John Faustoff, Or The Hundred Days War, as Told By Sir John Fastolf, K.G., To His Secretaries William Worcester, Stephen Scrope, Fr. Brackley, Christopher Hanson, Luke Nanton, John Bussard, And Peter Basset by Robert Nye (This is a novel, told in the first person, mostly by Falstaff. The more Shakespeare you know, the more you'll enjoy this book, for it has references to many - if not all - of the plays. Those even slightly familiar with Shakespeare will recognize many of the lines. For example, on page 346 he writes, "...there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of in your philosophy." And on page 330 he writes, "Because we are suddenly become virtuous, shall there be no more cakes and ales?" And on page 363 he writes, "I think for Hal the whole world was a stage, and all the men and women merely players." Throughout the book, but particularly on page 202, are references to the female characters in Shakespeare's plays, such as Imogen, Juliet, Titania and Beatrice. This book also contains references to John Oldcastle on page 144 and page 352. There are many references to the chimes at midnight. Of course, the largest section of the book deals with the events told in The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth. The "honour" speech is on page 240, though in this novel Falstaff says it to Prince Thomas. The robbery is described in several ways on pages 259 through 267. Published in 1976.)
- The Fortunes Of Falstaff by J. Dover Wilson (This book was first published in 1943, so it's easy to understand the inclusion of the line, "...while the Germans glorify war, we have always preferred to joke about it" - page 83.)
Film Versions:
- The Globe Theatre Presents Henry IV Part 1 (2010) On August 1, 2011, several movie theatres across the country held a screening of this filmed play. I caught it at the Century 8 Theatre in North Hollywood. The film also included interviews with some of the cast and a look at the design of the Globe. The production was really good. Roger Allam as Falstaff and Jamie Parker as Prince Hal gave excellent performances. I laughed out loud quite a few times during the film.
- The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth, With The Life And Death Of Henry Surnamed Hotspur (1979) with Jon Finch, Anthony Quayle, David Gwillim, Tim Piggot-Smith and Clive Swift; directed by David Giles. This version has some seriously weak moments near the beginning, such as Falstaff mumbling through his first scene and Hal thinking his first monologue aloud to himself rather than delivering it to the audience (which just doesn't work). But then it settles down, and has some excellent performances, particularly Tim Pigott-Smith as Hotspur. Also, I really came to love Anthony Quayle as Falstaff. I really felt for the guy. The major problems with this version are inadequate lighting and some poorly shot fight sequences. But the performances are more important, and they are mostly really good.
- An Age Of Kings Part Three: Rebellion From The North (1960) with Tom Fleming, Robert Hardy, Frank Pettingell and Sean Connery; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the third part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third; this episode covers the first two acts of The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth. Sean Connery does the bit where Hotspur has a bit of trouble getting out the letter W, though maybe it's just when followed by an O, because he says "wife's" without trouble in Act I, Scene 3, line 144, as well as "west" and other W words. But he says "but yet a woman" with ease to Kate in Act II scene 3, line 102. So is it only in the presence of men? Prince Hal makes fun of his stutter in Act II Scene 4. Robert Hardy is excellent as Prince Hal. And Sean Connery is really good as Hotspur. There aren't too many cuts in this production, though the end of Act II Scene 1 is cut. One interesting choice is that those men who are robbed remain onstage to watch Hal and Poins rob Falstaff; in fact, the scene ends with a push-in on them, so they're well aware of just who has robbed them, and who has robbed the robbers. This helps with the later scene when the Sheriff arrives to search for Falstaff. This is a really good production.
- An Age Of Kings Part Four: The Road To Shrewsbury (1960) with Sean Connery, Geoffrey Bayldon, Tom Fleming, Robert Hardy and Frank Pettingell; directed by Michael Hayes; this is the fourth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third. Sean Connery sometimes does the stuttering on the letter W, and sometimes doesn't. He is able to say "word" with ease in Act III Scene 1 and again in Act IV Scene 1, but has trouble saying "worse" in Act IV Scene 1. And of course he has trouble at the end, so Hal can finish his sentence, "For worms." (Note: In Bryan Bevan's biography of Henry IV, he writes, "Hotspur retorted, lapsing into a stammer, characteristic of him when angry" - p.98.) A lot of Act III Scene 3 is cut, including Falstaff's "O I do not like this paying back. 'Tis a double labor." In Act IV Scene 2 Falstaff rearranges his first lines of the scene. The scene ends with the line about finding linen on every hedge, so Prince Hal is cut from the scene. There is a weird cut when Douglas engages Falstaff - a sudden insert shot - and we don't see Falstaff fall. Then when Falstaff has risen, he says, "If I be not John Falstaff, then I be a Jack" rather than "If I be not Jack Falstaff, then am I a Jack." Tom Fleming has some great moments has Henry IV. Robert Hardy is a little uneven this time around as Prince Hal. Still, this is a good production.
- Falstaff (Chimes At Midnight) (1965) with Orson Welles, Jeanne Moreau, John Gielgud, Margaret Rutherford, Walter Chiari; directed by Orson Welles. This film is mostly The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth, but also a good chunk from the Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth, and just a few lines from Henry The Fifth. The pickpocket scene is moved to before Prince Hal and Falstaff's first scene together. Hal does his "I know you all" speech with Falstaff standing just behind him. The robbery scene is done during the day. It actually looks great, but doesn't really make sense, especially considering the whole Kendal green bit where Falstaff says it was so dark he couldn't see his hand before him. Orson Welles does the "honor" speech directly to Hal. The battle sequence is kind of great, and I love the early wide shot of Falstaff walking with everyone rushing past him. But the battle sequence goes on a bit long, before we even get to the important stuff between Hal and Hotspur.
- My Own Private Idaho (1991) with River Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, William Richert, Udo Kier; directed by Gus Van Sant. This is an odd adaptation of The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth, where the Prince Hal character is playing at being a prostitute, but vows that when he turns twenty-one he will surprise everyone by suddenly maturing. Keanu Reeves plays Scott, the Hal character. William Richert plays Bob, the Falstaff character. And so just who is River Phoenix? Poins? Anyway, in Bob's first scene he says, "We have heard the chimes at midnight" (which is from The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth, Act III, Scene ii, line 191). And when Scott wakes Bob, Bob goes into the bit about having his pocket picked - but instead of a ring, he claims that his drugs are missing. And he's being truthful; after all, we've just seen Scott and Mike (River Phoenix) with the drugs. Anyway, they then plan and commit the robbery. And we do get the scene afterwards where Bob does the whole 2 to 4 to 7 to 9 to 11 bit, with regards to how many attackers he fought off. Scott does the "I know you all" speech to himself, but Bob overhears him (basically the same as was done in Chimes At Midnight). Scott asks Bob how long it's been since he's seen his dick rather than his knees. Scott's father is the mayor, not king, and there is a reference to the Hotspur character, named Bill Davis in this film. But of course there is no war, so the Hotspur character isn't really a factor. And another problem is that the son of a mayor doesn't automatically become mayor upon the death of his father. There are entire scenes that have nothing to do with Henry IV. Then suddenly there are scenes that are completely straight out of the play, with a lot of the dialogue and everything. It's really kind of a mess. A lot of the film deals with Scott and Mike trying to track down Mike's mom - they even go to Rome (they don't find her). At the end Scott has inherited his money, and we get the scene where he denies knowing Bob (from The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth). But there is no reason why Scott would have to turn from him. He's not king. Or even mayor. We get the mayor's death and Bob's death. But there is so little between Scott and Bob that we don't really get a sense of the importance of that relationship. Scott says early on that he loves Bob more than his parents. But we don't see it. In the credits is the line, "Additional dialogue by William Shakespeare," but Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson beat Gus Van Sant to that joke by nearly ten years. (By the way, the deleted scenes on the second disc include the scene in which both Bob and Scott play at being Scott's father, and Scott says "I will" in answer to "If you banish Bob Pigeon, you banish all the world" - not "I do, I will.")

September: The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth
Related Books:
- Twentieth Century Interpretations Of Henry IV Part Two edited by David P. Young (a collection of critical essays published in 1968)
- A Critical Commentary On Shakespeare's King Henry IV Part 2 by Peter Hollindale (published in 1971)
Film Versions:
- The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth Containing His Death And The Coronation Of King Henry The Fifth (1979) with Jon Finch, David Gwillim, Anthony Quayle; directed by David Giles. The induction is done as voice over, over the fight scenes from the end of The First Part. The beginning of Act II Scene iv - with the two drawers - is cut. Likewise is cut the end of Act II Scene iv, so we lose the bit where Bardolph calls Doll Tearsheet once again to Falstaff. Jon Finch is really good as King Henry IV, particularly in his "uneasy lies the head that wears a crown" speech and that entire scene. And the scene with him and David Gwillim as Prince Hal is fantastic. Ralph Michael is excellent as Chief Justice, and the scene with him and King Henry V near the end is perfect. I also loved the scene where Falstaff turns over his prisoner. Anthony Quayle has some wonderful moments as Falstaff, and you do really feel for him at the end. But this production also did a great job with making us feel that his being turned away was inevitable.
- An Age Of Kings Part Five: The New Conspiracy (1960) with Robert Hardy, Frank Pettingell, Angela Baddeley, Hermione Baddeley; directed by Michael Hayes. This is the fifth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third. This episode covers the first two acts of The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth. It skips the induction completely. In Act I Scene i, when Morton says, "But, for my lord your son," he then hands Northumberland his son's sword, rather than Northumberland finishing the sentence. Northumberland's lines are cut. I could have done without the pie in the face of the extra during the mayhem at the attempt at Falstaff's arrest. But I love that the Lord Chief Justice has a certain fondness for Falstaff. He sounds amused when he says, "Now the lord lighten thee! Thou art a great fool" in Act II Scene i. Interestingly, it goes right from that to Scene iii, and then to Scene ii, so that Hal's first scene doesn't follow Falstaff's. But what this re-ordering does is allow the scene where Hal and Poins joke with Falstaff to follow directly after Hal's first scene. And the two drawers are included in this version. Also, in this version Doll Tearsheet knows Prince Hal and Poins are there, and that's what leads her to ask Falstaff, "Sirrah, what humour's the prince of?" So she's in on the joke, which is wonderful. This version also includes the end of Act II Scene iv when Bardolph returns to fetch Doll for Falstaff. And in fact, that's where this episode ends.
- An Age Of Kings Part Six: Uneasy Lies The Head (1960) with Robert Hardy, Tom Fleming, Frank Pettingell, Patrick Garland; directed by Michael Hayes. This is the sixth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third. This episode begins with the third act. There is some funny business with drinks in Act III Scene ii. But there are a lot of cuts in this production. Act IV Scene i is cut completely, so we're missing Westmoreland taking the schedule of grievances that Prince John refers to in Act IV Scene ii. The beginning of Act III Scene iii is cut, so we don't see Falstaff take his prisoner. Instead, Falstaff enters so that it continues straight from Scene ii with Prince John's line, "Now, Falstaff, where have you been all this while?" There is no mention of Falstaff's prisoner; he is cut completely. The end of Act III Scene iii is also cut, so Bardolph never enters. Some of the key lines in the great Henry IV/Prince Hal scene are cut, such as "God put it in thy mind to take it hence, That thou mights win the more thy father's love." How can you cut that? At the end of the scene, when Henry IV asks them to move him back to the chamber called Jerusalem, he dies before they can do so. Thus, a very different tone for his death. Act V Scene i is cut completely. But the worst cut of all is the Lord Chief Justice's response to Henry V's accusation, his reasons for having put Hal in prison. The entirety of his speech is cut. Cutting that takes away all the power of the scene, and of Hal's change, and of Falstaff's later line "woe to my lord chief justice." Interestingly, over the closing credits we see one of the actors take off his wig and makeup, which leads him to do a portion of the play's epilogue after the credits.

October: The Life Of Henry The Fifth
Related Books:
- Twentieth Century Interpretations Of Henry V edited by Ronald Berman (a collection of critical essays published in 1968)
- The Case For Shakespeare's Authorship Of The Famous Victories by Seymour M. Pitcher (interesting book that includes the complete text of the anonymous play as well as some passages from both Hall and Holinshed; published in 1961)
- Henry V by William Shakespeare (this is the script of Olivier's film, with an introduction by Laurence Olivier; it was published in 1984)
- Henry V: The Graphic Novel by John McDonald; adapted by Brigit Viney (For a comic book, it's surprising how much is included - the glove bit, the stuff about Bardolph, even the bit about Alexander The Great. But the whole thing is simplified, so we have even this line: "We few, we happy few, we team of brothers." Apparently people who read comic books are so stupid as to not understand the word "band." The book shies away from the word "ransom" as well. Yet it has pictures of decapitated heads and blood spurting out of wounds. Just what age is its intended audience? The French scene is in English, so it doesn't work. And Alice says, "Dress" instead of the fun word, so Katharine's line, "These are very bad words" makes no sense. Likewise, the scene with Henry and Katharine is all in English, so a lot of it doesn't work. Changing Katharine's line to "I don't understand 'like me'" ruins Henry's line, "An angel is like you, Kate" - not that that was such a great line to begin with. There is a glossary in the back, defining such difficult words as "bell" and "chin." It incorrectly defines "dice" as singular: "A dice is a small cube which..." Also, there is a short biography of William Shakespeare which includes this error: "His final play was Henry VII written two years before his death." Shakespeare never in fact wrote a play titled Henry VII. Basically, this is a terrible adaptation, and students should stay far away from it. It was published in 2010.)
- The Royal Shakespeare Company's Centenary Production Of Henry V edited by Sally Beauman (This book actually contains the entire play, with notes about certain lines and cuts; there is an introduction written by the play's director, as well as interviews with many of the cast members, sketches of the costumes, excerpts from reviews of the play and letters from audience members to the company. Published in 1976.)
Film Versions:
- The Life Of Henry The Fifth (1979) with David Gwillim, Alec McCowen, Bryan Pringle, Jocelyne Boisseau; directed by David Giles. The tennis ball scene was excellent. Henry is playful at the end of the scene, tossing the balls to members of the court (thus connecting to his character in The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth). I liked some of the stuff with the Chorus, when he interacted with characters. (He catches a tennis ball at the beginning of Act II.) But I would have used more wide shots, letting him be more free with his gestures. Of course the Chorus doesn't quite work the same way it does on stage. Act III Scene vii was hilarious. It was really well done. I laughed out loud multiple times during that scene. Another bit that was funny was in Act IV Scene iv, when Pistol makes his exit. He says, "Follow me" and heads off in one direction until there is the sound of an explosion, at which point he does an about face, and repeats, "Follow me." (The only problem with that is that in the play there is only one "Follow me.") Probably my favorite scene in the play is Act IV Scene i, and this production did a great job with it. David Pinner was excellent as Williams. This was actually a really good production. It basically only suffered at the end. The wooing of Katharine doesn't quite work. But really, it's the play's fault. The fifth act is weak. The bit with Pistol eating the leek is rather stupid, and Burgundy's speech is long and dull. But it's the wooing that really comes off poorly, though Jocelyne Boisseau, who plays Katharine, is beautiful.
- An Age Of Kings Part Seven: Signs Of War (1960) with Robert Hardy, William Squire, Judi Dench; directed by Michael Hayes. This is the seventh part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third. This episode covers the first three acts of The Life Of Henry The Fifth. I like the way the Chorus uses the space, the stage at the beginning. The camera drifts ahead of him at the end of his speech, so by the words "our play" we see the players and not the Chorus. Act I Scene i is cut, which is a shame because that scene reveals the religious figures' true reasons for wanting war and sets the tone for the play. Without that scene, it seems like everyone is ultra-patriotic. In Act I Scene ii, we see Henry while the ambassadors of France speak. At the beginning of Act II, when the Chorus mentions the three conspirators, the camera shows each in turn, which is great, because this way we're introduced to them before the king confronts them with their treason. Interestingly, part of the Chorus' speech is moved to the beginning of Act II Scene ii - "There is the playhouse now, there must you sit..." is done as voice over. All three conspirators appear nervous even before opening their commissions, when they realize that all three were given commissions, making them suspicious - which was cool. The beginning of Act III Scene ii is cut, so that scene begins with Boy's lines (so Bardolph and Nym are cut). In Act III Scene iii the Governor is off screen, We see Henry looking up toward the camera as we hear Governor's lines, which doesn't really work. The scene in which Katherine is learning English was adorable. Judi Dench was of course perfect. In Act III Scene vi, the dialogue with Pistol is cut, those lines which explain why Bardolph is to be executed. So later when Fluellen mentions it to Henry, it doesn't really make sense.
- An Age Of Kings Part Eight: The Band Of Brothers (1960) with Robert Hardy, Kenneth Farrington, Robert Lang, Judi Dench; directed by Michael Hayes. This is the eighth part of a fifteen-part series that covers Richard The Second through Richard The Third. This episode covers Acts IV and V of The Life Of Henry The Fifth. This episode suffers from a lot of terrible cuts, while the weak Act V is almost entirely intact. The first part of Act IV Scene i is cut. So after the Chorus it goes straight to the three soldiers. That means more stuff with Pistol is cut (as in Part Seven). And then the whole bit regarding the gloves is cut. There are weird shots of feet walking in place. It looks like some odd dance. That is supposed to signify the battle. It doesn't work. Act IV Scenes iv, v and vi are completely cut, as is the beginning of Scene vii. So once again we lose Pistol's scene (scene iv). And Williams is cut from scenes vii and viii (the glove bit). That means Montjoy and the heralds leave to count the dead, and then almost immediately the heralds return with the information - no time having passed in which to count the dead. Oddly, Act V Scene i is left in. That is the scene with Pistol and the leek. Why cut all the great Pistol scenes and leave that stupid scene in? Judi Dench is delicious as Katherine in Act V. During the epilogue, Chorus steps over to Henry's coffin and rests his hand on it, which is a nice touch.
- Henry The Fifth (1944) with Laurence Olivier, Robert Newton, Leslie Banks, Esmond Knight; directed by Laurence Olivier. This production is interesting, for it starts as theatre (well, filmed theatre, of course) and then becomes a movie, before finally returning to theatre. A title card tells us that the play is acted this day of May 1st, 1600. And there is a shot of The Globe. And then we're inside The Globe, as folks take their seats and the play begins. In the first scene, the archbishop of Canterbury has a line about Falstaff, which is not in the play, and which elicits a cheer from the audience (Olivier's way of demonstrating the popularity of the character at that time). The second scene starts from backstage, and there is a lot of comic business in the scene. All of the first act is done on the stage, and sometimes the laughter of the audience is distracting. At the beginning of Act II, after the Chorus, it begins to rain, and some of the groundlings move for cover. Mistress Quickly is played by a woman, but she plays it (and is made up) like a man playing the role. After Act II Scene i we get the rest of the Chorus's speech from the beginning of Act II, starting with "Linger your patience on," and then the film moves from the stage into the movie (though still with obvious backdrops). Most of Act II Scene ii is cut. And then we actually see Falstaff, who doesn't appear in the original play. He is in bed, and says some of his lines from the end of The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth, and then hears Henry's response - reliving in a sense the scene in which Henry turns him away. Then the film goes into Act II Scene iii, and now that we're in the film, Mistress Quickly is a woman played as a woman, without the heavy makeup - a very cool touch. The "carnation" line is cut. The Chorus's lines at the beginning of Act II are moved so they lead into Act II Scene iv. The French king fainting at the end of Act II Scene iv is rather lame. Then Act III begins with the second half of the Chorus's speech ("Work, work your thoughts...") done as voice over. The Boy's lines are cut from Act III Scene ii. After the English lesson, Katherine and Alice walk into Act III Scene v (and they react in a shocked manner to the word "bastard," which is kind of lame). The beginning of Act III Scene vi is cut - all the stuff with Pistol, the stuff about Bardolph. The scene begins with Montjoy's entrance. Oddly, the lines in which Henry pokes fun at the French are cut, so it seems his sad assessment of his own troops is in earnest. So what do his troops think of that? Because usually they laugh at the jest, and it unites them. After the Act IV Chorus speech, it goes back to Act III Scene vii, and that scene is done well - it's quite funny. Then more of the Chorus begins Act IV. Act IV Scene i, line 66 is changed from "So! in the name of Jesu Christ, speak fewer" to "In the name of Beelzebub, speak lower." And odd change. Some of Williams' lines are given to Alexander Court, which is an odd choice. The glove bit is cut. And Henry's soliloquy is done as voice over as we see Henry seated in front of a fire. Before Montjoy enters, we actually see the stakes being hammered into the ground, which is cool. Henry's line, "I fear thou wilt once more come again for a ransom" is cut. Of course we see the battle. One archer has a bit of trouble (watch the left side of the screen when they're at the edge of the woods). Act IV Scene iv is cut. We get the first line of Scene vi, then more battle shots leading into Scene v. We see the French destroying the English camp, which leads into Scene vii. Henry has his line about being angry, and that leads once again to the battle before Montjoy returns. Henry's line "I know not if the day be ours or no" is cut. Act IV Scene viii is cut. Act V begins without the Chorus. At the wedding, the scene returns to The Globe, and the Chorus speaks the epilogue on the stage after drawing the curtain on Act V.
- Henry V (1989) with Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Ian Holm, Judi Dench, Christopher Ravenscroft, Emma Thompson; directed by Kenneth Branagh. This production starts with a lit match revealing Derek Jacobi as Chorus. Soon we realize he's on a soundstage, not a theatre's stage. And the end of the prologue, he pushes open a door on the stage, leading to the actual set. In Act I Scene ii, Montjoy takes the place of the French Ambassador. The lines in which he asks if he can speak freely, as well as Henry's response ("We are no tyrant, but a Christian king") are cut. Act I ends with everyone exiting toward camera, and there is a wonderful touch right at the end of the scene - the bishops of Canterbury and Ely exit last, and give each other a look which says they've been successful in their endeavor. The Chorus starting Act II is done as voice over, and Bardolph has a funny bit with a cat. As in Olivier's production, we see Falstaff in bed. And we get a flashback to Falstaff entertaining the group from The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth - the bit from Act III Scene iii: "not diced above seven times a week." And that goes right into the Act II Scene iv part about "Banish plump Jack and banish all the world." Hal's response is oddly done as voice over. We then get the "chimes at midnight" line from Act III Scene ii of The Second Part Of King Henry The Fourth. And then Henry says the "I know thee not old man" bit from the end of that play. That leads back to the end of Act II Scene i in Henry V. We see the Chorus introduce the three traitors. The traitors actually try to fight, rather than immediately beg forgiveness. Act II Scene iii begins with a brief shot of Falstaff dead in bed. Pistol's lines near the end of the scene are cut, but otherwise the scene is intact - so both the humor and sadness are there. After Henry's speech at the beginning of Act III, we see Bardolph, Nym and Pistol hang back, but their lines are cut. The end of the English lesson scene is great. Emma Thompson as Katherine has a lot of fun with the joke about "foutre" and "con." Before Act III Scene vi, we see several shots of Henry's army walking in the rain. The stuff about Bardolph is included. In fact, we see Bardolph - and so does Henry - when Fluellen talks of him. We get another flashback to the Eastcheap days, and Bardolph says Falstaff's line from Act I Scene ii of The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth, about not hanging a thief when you are king. Henry replies, "No, thou shalt." And then we see Bardolph hanged in front of Henry. When Montjoy enters, he goes right into his speech. Henry's response does not include the joking and bragging bit. The Chorus steps in and looks at Bardolph's corpse, and then does the beginning of his Act IV speech (through "Who like a foul and ugly witch doth limp/So tediously away"), which leads into Act III Scene vii. Montjoy is in the scene in place of Lord Rambures, so he asks about the stars on Constable's armor (just as in the 1975 RSC production). The Constable says, "Stars, Montjoy" rather than "Stars, my lord." Chorus then continues his Act IV speech, ending with "a touch of Harry in the night" (again, the same as the 1975 RSC production). Williams throws his glove down, but none of the dialogue regarding the glove is spoken. We see the stakes being hammered into the ground before Act IV Scene iii. Henry's line that he fears Montjoy will return once again is cut. As they rush into battle, the Chorus finishes his Act IV speech. Rather than see the French approach, we hear them while seeing the English army's reaction, which is a great moment. And then we see the battle, which of course Shakespeare did not write. And what he did write of the battle - Act IV Scene iv, in which Pistol gets a ransom from a French soldier - is cut. We do see Pistol stealing, however - and Nym being killed. The dialogue between Henry and Fluellen (ending with "God keep me so") leads directly into Pistol's short speech from Act V Scene i about Mistress Quickly's death. Then it goes back to Act IV Scene viii, when the numbers of the dead are given. As Henry exits, he simply returns the glove to Williams - a nice touch, and a great way to include the glove bit without going through the whole thing. We then go to Act V Scene ii - so the leek bit is cut, as is the speech of the Chorus from the beginning of Act V. Henry has the Queen's lines at the end of the play (again, as in the 1975 RSC production). The Chorus speaks the epilogue and then closes the door from the beginning. There are some excellent performances, particularly by Ian Holm as Fluellen, Christopher Ravenscroft as Montjoy, and Judi Dench as Mistress Quickly. (By the way, I watched this on October 25th, which is the day the Battle of Agincourt was fought.)

November: The Life Of King Henry The Eighth
Related Books:
- The Problem Of Henry VIII Reopened by A.C. Partridge (This is an essay detailing linguistic criteria for the two styles apparent in the play; published in 1949)
- A Study Of Shakespeare's Henry VIII by Cumberland Clark (This book has chapters on the authorship question and the historical accuracy of the events portrayed, as well as chapters on some of the major characters such as Henry VIII, Wolsey, Cranmer, and Katharine and Anne; published in 1931.)
- The Rise And Fall Of Anne Boleyn: Family Politics At The Court Of Henry VIII by Retha M. Warnicke (This book, of course, goes well beyond the scope of Shakespeare's play, which recounts only Anne's rise; published in 1989.)
Film Versions:
- The Famous History Of The Life Of King Henry The Eighth (1979) with John Stride, Timothy West, Julian Glover, Claire Bloom and Barbara Kellerman; directed by Kevin Billington. This production was filmed on location at Leeds Castle, which was a wonderful choice. The prologue is done as voice over during a slow push in on King Henry. This production has an excellent cast. Claire Bloom of course is great as Katharine, though I didn't like that she crossed herself on the line "God mend all" in Act I Scene ii - it lessens the impact of the line. In Act IV her dream sequence is done quickly and not very interestingly. I thought Julian Glover was perfect as Buckingham, and Timothy West was wonderful as Cardinal Wolsey. But the play itself is strangely episodic, and at times a bit dull. The epilogue was completely cut from this production.

December: The Tragedy Of Titus Andronicus
Related Books:
- Shakespeare's Earliest Tragedy: Studies In Titus Andronicus by G. Harold Metz (One of the most interesting chapters is that on the text, in which the three quartos and the First Folio editions are compared; published in 1996)
Film Versions:
- Titus Andronicus (1985) with Trevor Peacock, Eileen Atkins, Gavin Richards, Brian Protheroe, Anna Calder-Marshall; directed by Jane Howell. I was surprised by how good this production was. I expected Trevor Peacock to be great as Titus, and he was even better than I'd imagined. And Eileen Atkins clearly was having a wonderful time playing Tamora. But I wasn't expecting this production to be so good, mostly because the play is not fantastic. But this film had so many nice touches. For example, the top of the stick was stained red with blood after Lavinia (Anna Calder-Marshall) wrote the names of her attackers in the sand, and that was done without any cuts. Probably my favorite touch was having Young Lucius hand his dagger to Lavinia in the banquet scene. She then hands the weapon to Titus. Done this way, we feel for Titus as we do for Lavinia - that this is unavoidable. It's a moment when they're close, that it's something they've decided together, rather than seeming like a selfish and violent act on the part of Titus. This production also made a really interesting choice with Aaron's baby at the end (something not indicated in Shakespeare's play, but which fits perfectly). And Hugh Quarshie was wonderful as Aaron. (I have to guess that the Marquis De Sade read his monologue before writing some of his most famous passages.) The stuff with Young Lucius was great. And the sets are excellent. The design was really well done. Sure, there are brief moments where it went over the top, nearly straying into melodrama - but only a couple of times, and only for a few seconds. This is not Shakespeare's best play, but this production seems to even transcend the material. It's hard to imagine a better version of Titus Andronicus.
- Titus (1999) with Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Lange, Alan Cumming, Harry Lennix; directed by Julie Taymor. This adaptation is great when it works, and is seriously annoying when it doesn't. This film works best when it's doing the play in a straightforward manner, like in the forest scenes. It's at its worst when director Julie Taymor tries to get creative. It opens with a child with a paper bag over his head in a contemporary kitchen destroying his action figures and making a mess. There's an explosion outside, and the child is carried outside into the Roman colosseum. Suddenly soldiers appear, marching stiffly like living action figures. The dead are carried in. It looks pretty amazing, but I wish the contemporary boy would disappear. Instead, we get a weird mixture of ancient Rome and contemporary items, like motorcycles and tanks. Titus, as imagined by an adolescent boy. The first line in the film is Titus saying, "Hail, Rome, victorious in thy mourning weeds," so a good portion of the first scene is cut. His opening speech is followed by a short, highly stylized shower scene, before going back to the end of the speech. Saturninus and Bassianus are each leading a parade, pitching their worth as the next emperor to the people. And then the two parades meet, and Marcus speaks into a microphone (as Ian McKellen did Richard III). Saturninus' throne is ridiculous - a horrid large metal easy chair. Lavinia is next to Bassanio when Saturninus claims her for his bride. And Titus reacts with alarm, looking to his daughter. Alan Cumming plays Saturninus as an evil, wormy guy. After the quiet scene in the tomb, when Titus says, "Well, bury him, and bury me the next," it cuts to a jazz nightclub, a display of decadence - an orgy without the sex. Great juxtaposition, but no lines are spoken here. When Tamora steps outside to speak to Aaron, there is a giant hand statue, a none-too-subtle symbol. Jessica Lange as Tamora delivers "I'll find a day to massacre them all" directly to us. The fight between her sons, Demetrius and Chiron, is not done well, and has weird incestuous tones between the brothers. In Act II Scene iii, Aaron changes "panther" to "tiger," saying, "Where I espied the tiger fast asleep." And in the next shot we actually see a tiger, which makes no sense, and then Martius falls into the hole. Quite a bit of the dialogue before Quintus also falls in is cut. Tamora reads the beginning of the letter that she brings to Saturninus; he then finishes it. (In the play, Saturninus reads the entire thing.) Lavinia's hands are replaced with twigs by Demetrius and Chiron. Marcus spies her from afar, so his speech actually makes much more sense. He speaks as he approaches her. After "Why dost not speak to me," Lavinia opens her mouth, and a river of blood pours out. It looks great. Marcus stares, then says, "Come, let us go, and make thy father blind." So most of his speech is cut. Titus begging the tribunes for pity on his sons is followed by some silly images of an angel and then an even more silly image - that of Mutius' head on the body of a lamb. But the closeup on Titus during the rest of his speech is excellent. Marcus carries Lavinia to Titus. Marcus' lines, "thus I found her straying in the park/Seeking to hide herself" don't make sense because when Marcus found her, she was standing in the middle of a marsh, in the exact spot where her attackers left her, not attempting to hide at all. Aaron drives off in a car with Titus' severed hand - it's these moments that don't work. The score is sometimes so overpowering, and that doesn't fit well with the contemporary stuff. These elements work against each other, and against the piece as a whole. The messenger arrives like a carnival, bringing the heads and hand in the back of a truck and speaking through a megaphone. This scene doesn't work at all. The messenger, as Shakespeare wrote him, has sympathy for Titus. This guy taunts him. What should be one of the most powerful moments of the film is just silly. And because the heads are in the truck, the messenger has to remain there until the end of the scene, and so hears what Titus says. The boy purchases fake hands for Lavinia before Act III Scene ii, so she has them on in the dinner scene. So when Titus says "stumps" we see hands, not stumps. Not just in this scene, but every time for the rest of the film. And the boy, of course, turns out to be Young Lucius. And in this production, it is Young Lucius, rather than Marcus, who kills the fly, giving the scene a much more playful tone. Then there is a video game scene - seriously - Demetrius and Chiron playing video games, while Aaron plays pool. This scene is pointless, as there are no lines. When Lavinia uses the stick to reveal her attackers' names, we get loud music and stupid annoying imagery. (She doesn't put the stick in her mouth, but holds it between her head and shoulder.) When Young Lucius arrives with the weapons, Demetrius is playing video games again. We then get an orgy scene - with no lines, of course. Meanwhile Titus is gathering people for the archery scene. The arrows go through a hole in the ceiling above the orgy and land among the fornicators. The clown is cut completely from this production. When Lucius tells the Goths to hang Aaron "on this tree," there is no tree nearby. When Tamora and her sons arrive at Titus' home, Titus is drawing pictures in blood in a bathtub. He is clearly crazy, and Tamora's voice is in his head, which makes no sense whatsoever. Then he opens the window and sees that Tamora and her sons are actually out there. But keep in mind that Titus is not crazy, but feigning it - so this scene is all wrong. Titus' aside in which he shows he's not mad is cut. That is by far the worst cut in the film. There is a silly shot of the meat pies cooling in front of an open window. So the banquet scene, which should be horrific and serious, begins with a joke. A terrible idea. Alan Cumming is made up like a half-assed drag queen. And because he plays Saturninus as such a villain, his lines at the end when he asks who ravished Lavinia, aren't believable - he seems like a different character then. After Lucius kills Saturninus, the scene suddenly moves outdoors, and there is an audience. Marcus speaks into a microphone again, making Lucius emperor as plastic sheets cover the bodies. We actually see Aaron buried up to his chest. and it is then that he delivers his last lines. Like in the BBC production, at the end Young Lucius is looking at Aaron's baby in a cage - except in this version the infant lives. And in this version the last shot is along, dull shot of Young Lucius carrying the infant off into the sunrise. Seriously.


Miscellaneous Books:
- 1601, and Is Shakespeare Dead? by Mark Twain (with an introduction by Erica Jong; This book contains two of Mark Twain's works - the first being the very short "1601," in which Shakespeare is a character, and incidentally the only Mark Twain book I've read that contains the word "cunt." The second, "Is Shakespeare Dead?" is Mark Twain's rant on the authorship question. It is quite funny at first, then becomes tiresome, before becoming somewhat funny again toward the end. Mark Twain basically argues that William Shakespeare couldn't have written the plays because he wasn't a lawyer and the plays are filled with correct legal details, and that Francis Bacon was a lawyer and therefore probably wrote the plays. This is such a lame argument, and Mark Twain offers no ideas on why Francis Bacon, if indeed he did write all of Shakespeare's works, didn't want to take credit for them. Nor does he offer any insight into why so many people would engage in a conspiracy to attribute the plays to another person. But, as i said, it is funny at first - and actually had me wondering if Mark Twain was possibly being sarcastic about the whole thing. He even makes a bizarre comparison of Shakespeare and Satan. But then he goes into a dull and repetitive argument, and it goes on long enough that any humor has run out, and he seems to actually be angry about the whole thing.)
- The BBC Shakespeare Plays: Making The Televised Canon by Susan Willis (published in 1991)
- The Cambridge Companion To Shakespeare's History Plays edited by Michael Hattaway
- Contested Will: Who Wrote Shakespeare? by James Shapiro
- The Elizabethan Underworld by Gamini Salgado (published in 1977)
- The Elizabethan World Picture by E.M.W. Tillyard
- Gender And Performance In Shakespeare's Problem Comedies by David McCandless (has chapters on All's Well That Ends Well, Measure For Measure and Troilus And Cressida)
- Jungle Of Cities And Other Plays by Bertolt Brecht (includes "Roundheads And Peakheads," which is an adaptation of "Measure For Measure")
- Metadrama In Shakespeare's Henriad: Richard II To Henry V by James L. Calderwood (published in 1979)
- The Resistible Rise Of Arturo Ui by Bertolt Brecht (with references to "Richard The Third" and "Julius Caesar" and other plays)
- Shakespeare: A Biographic Aesthetic Study by George H. Calvert
- Shakespeare For All Time by Stanley Wells
- Shakespeare On Television edited by J.C. Bulman and H.R. Coursen (This book is an anthology of essays and reviews, focusing mainly on the BBC series; published in 1988)
- Shakespearean Metadrama by James L. Calderwood (This book has chapters on Titus Andronicus, Love's Labour's Lost, Romeo And Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Richard II; published in 1971)
- Shakespeare's Hand by Jonathan Goldberg (a sometimes interesting and sometimes tedious collection of essays published in 2003)
- Shakespeare's "Histories": Mirrors Of Elizabethan Policy by Lily B. Campbell (interesting book about Shakespeare's history plays really being about the current political situations of his time; published in 1947)
- The Tiger's Heart: Eight Essays On Shakespeare by Herbert Howarth (published in 1970)
- Treason By Words: Literature, Law, And Rebellion In Shakespeare's England by Rebecca Lemon (published in 2006)
- Unspeakable ShaXXXspeares: Queer Theory And American Kiddie Culture by Richard Burt (published in 1998)
- Will In The World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare by Stephen Greenblatt

Miscellaneous Films (and shows):
- The 5,000 Fingers Of Dr. T (1953) with Peter Lind Hayes, Mary Healy, Hans Conried and Tommy Rettig; directed by Roy Rowland. This strange children's movie about a boy who doesn't want to learn the piano has a wonderful reference to Hamlet. When Dr. T picks up the severed ends of the beards, he says, "Alas, poor Judson. Alas, poor Whitney. I knew them. Fellows of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy." Compare to lines 169 to 171 of Act V Scene i: "Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio; a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy." Also, Dr. T is wearing yellow stockings near the end, like Malvolio, but that might not be an intentional reference.
- Blobermouth (1991) This movie is basically The Blob, but with a silly dubbing. One of the characters is constantly quoting Shakespeare, particularly the first line of Richard The Third. He also does the "my kingdom for a horse" line, some bits from Julius Caesar, a bit from Hamlet, and this: "What rock through yonder window breaks" and he throws a rock through a window.
- Elizabeth (1998) with Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush; directed by Shekhar Kepur
- Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) with Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush and Clive Owen; directed by Shekhar Kepur
- Free Enterprise (1999) with Rafer Weigel, Eric McCormack and William Shatner; directed by Robert Meyer Burnett. In this film, William Shatner pitches a full-text version of Julius Caesar as a musical in which he would play all the male roles. And at the end, he does a rap version of some of Julius Caesar, titled "No Tears For Caesar."
- The Goodbye Girl (2004) with Jeff Daniels and Patricia Heaton; directed by Richard Benjamin. This is the remake of the 1977 film. In it, Jeff Daniels is an actor hired to play Richard The Third, but to play him as a total queen. There are scenes of him rehearsing Richard III, and we see the opening night (which is also the closing night).
- Great Acting: Laurence Olivier (1966) Laurence Olivier discusses his roles in "Hamlet," "Richard III" and "Othello."
- Kings Of The Road (2005) Film scholar Paul Arthur discusses My Own Private Idaho, and its connections with Shakespeare and Orson Welles
- The Making Of Titus (2000) More than half of this documentary is about the rehearsal process, and includes interviews shot before the principal photography, which is great. We get to see moments from the first read-through with the cast, as well as physical and vocal warm-ups with Cicely Berry. But then the documentary rushes through principal photography, and dedicates way too much time to the film's score.
- Much Ado About Shakespeare (2003) Directed by Michael Rubbo. This is a messy and largely unfocused documentary about the possibility that Christopher Marlowe wrote all the plays attributed to William Shakespeare. The problem is that people who believe this are morons. The theory is based on an incredible amount of suppositions and basically no evidence whatsoever. They suppose that Marlowe didn't die in 1593, as is recorded, but rather was whisked away by higher powers to Italy, where he continued to write and send plays back to London. And in a conspiracy involving everyone related to the theatre his plays were attributed to William Shakespeare. Of course, they never to take into account, for example, the play he co-wrote with John Fletcher. Are we to assume that Christopher Marlowe co-wrote that play? Or did they just throw in Fletcher's name to mix things up a bit?
- Shakespeare's Women & Claire Bloom (1999) with Claire Bloom performing monologues and talking about some of the great roles she's done.
- Strings (2004) a strange puppet movie that has loose ties to Henry IV and Henry V. Prince Hal has to become a wise leader and bring peace to the land after his father had gained the throne through nefarious means. But there is no Falstaff character, sadly. And this film also borrows from the Star Wars saga - as the king had turned to the good side in the last moments of his life, like Anakin Skywalker - and Hal has a line that he is like his father, as Luke said to Palpatine toward the end of Return Of The Jedi.
- Will Shakespeare (1978) with Tim Curry as William Shakespeare; this British mini-series also features Ron Cook and Peter Benson (who play Richard The Third and Henry The Sixth in the BBC productions).

Plays I've Attended During The Year
- As You Like It: The Musical (The Classical Theatre Lab - Great Hall Courtyard, Plummer Park, West Hollywood; July 24, 2011; adapted and directed by Tony Tanner) (As You Like It actually works as a musical. And most of this cast can really sing, particularly Jessica Pennington as Rosalind. Also, for once, Rosalind was believable as a boy when dressed in men's attire. They devised an inventive solution to the problem of staging the wrestling match. The scene where the poems are found on the trees was really well done and quite funny. I thoroughly enjoyed this show, and loved the songs - which surprised me. If this cast put out a soundtrack, I would want to get it. I really liked Touchstone's song about Audrey.)
- Hamlet (Independent Shakespeare Company - Griffith Park; July 23, 2011) (This was a seriously wonderful production. I was thrilled with basically all of the performances. There are two things that I didn't like. The first was Hamlet's shirt, which said "Beer." That was a bit distracting. The second was some of the clowning of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Most of it was fine. But during one of Hamlet's key speeches, there was laughter from the audience. Hamlet was upstage left, on a set of stairs. My focus was on him, but at the laughter I looked to the ther side of the stage, and stage right those two were striking poses and making faces. That's just wrong. Their backs should have been to the audience, so that all of the focus was on Hamlet, as it should be for that scene. But seriously, everything else was incredible. I became completely oblivious to the rest of the audience and the park and everything during the second half of the show. I was totally immersed in the world of this production.)
- Love's Labour's Lost (Independent Shakespeare Company - Griffith Park; August 18, 2011) (I loved every moment of this performance. There is nothing that I would alter. Every cast member was strong. They played the comedy well, and let the seriousness of the last scene work. I particularly enjoyed the way they handled the masked scene. And during the scene where the men hide and spy on each other, the three hid among the audience, which was a lot of fun. Because I was seated right in the front, I was brought on stage at the beginning for a bit of silliness involving a curtain and some hardcore bonking - well, a curtain anyway. It was actually a great way to start the play - seeing Jacuenetta and Costard engaged in a bit of hanky panky. They were played by the wonderful - and sexy - Mary Guilliams and the incomparable David Melville. This was after the rules of Navarre were read to us - rules including No looking at a member of the opposite sex, which I broke and for which I was written a ticket - a five dollar fine, which I paid after the performance. This is a perfect play for the outdoors, especially on lines like, "this ceiling is too high for your court" (CHECK))
- The Merry Wives Of Windsor (Independent Shakespeare Company - Griffith Park; July 21, 2011) (The actors I thought were excellent were Danny Campbell as Falstaff, David Melville as Ford, Bernadette Sullivan as Mrs. Page, and Lorenzo Gonzalez as Dr. Caius.)
- Richard III (at The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum; September 4, 2011) (Interesting production in which a woman, Melora Marshall, performed the title role. I liked a lot of her choices, but there were times when she seemed to be making faces and drawing out words. There was something reptilian in her perfornance. Other choices of hers I didn't care for, like that she fell down when Lady Anne spit at her. The best performances were by Christopher W. Jones as Buckingham and Abby Craden as Queen Elizabeth. The production felt a bit rushed, and there were terribly weak performances as well, particularly by the boy who played the young prince. It took me a bit to get used to a black Margaret - as her presence sort of re-writes history - but I thought she did a good job. She was a strong presence, as Margaret needs be. The ghosts came from the woods upstage, which was a really great use of the space. Directed by Ellen Geer.)

Boxed Cherries by Jack Pine

Boxed Cherries tells the tale of a father who hypnotizes his daughter into being his sex slave. Bruno Hancock also hypnotizes his piano students into having sex with him. But do they also learn to play the piano? We don't know. Can this guy even play piano? Is he any good? What is his musical background? The book fails to delve into this area at all. Yet parents are constantly dropping off their daughters to be taught by this guy. So there must be something to him; he must have some skill in that area. Perhaps he should hypnotize them into being great pianists. Would that work? Just take a few moments to do that, then have sex with them. After all, wouldn't the girls' parents expect them to show some improvement in their playing after several sessions with this guy?

Well, as far as these sorts of books go, this one is fairly well written. This line made me laugh: "The mere thought of taking his penis in any of her orifices gave her the feeling of being strangled in the hangman's garden of lust by the phallic noose of satan." Is this the work of a frustrated poet or what?

Boxed Cherries was published in 1969 by Pendulum Books, Inc.