Macbeth (1971 film)
1971 film by Roman Polanski / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Macbeth (also known as The Tragedy of Macbeth or Roman Polanski's Film of Macbeth) is a 1971 historical drama film directed by Roman Polanski, and co-written by Polanski and Kenneth Tynan. A film adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name, it tells the story of the Highland lord who becomes King of Scotland through treachery and murder. Jon Finch and Francesca Annis star as the title character and his wife, noted for their relative youth as actors. Themes of historic recurrence, greater pessimism and internal ugliness in physically beautiful characters are added to Shakespeare's story of moral decline, which is presented in a more realistic style.
Macbeth | |
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Directed by | Roman Polanski |
Screenplay by |
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Based on | The Tragedie of Macbeth by William Shakespeare |
Produced by | Andrew Braunsberg |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Gil Taylor |
Edited by | Alastair McIntyre |
Music by | The Third Ear Band |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 140 minutes[1] |
Countries |
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Language | English |
Budget | $2.4 million (or £1.2 million)[2] |
Box office | less than $1 million[3] |
Polanski opted to adapt Macbeth as a means of coping with the highly publicized Manson Family murder of his wife, Sharon Tate. Finding difficulty obtaining sponsorship from major studios, Playboy Enterprises stepped in to provide funding. Following troubled shooting around the British Isles mired by poor weather, Macbeth screened out of competition at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival and was a commercial failure in the United States. Initially controversial for its graphic violence and nudity, the film has since garnered generally positive reviews, and was named Best Film by the National Board of Review in 1972.