Macbeth (1971) | Rotten Tomatoes (original) (raw)

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Critics Consensus

Roman Polanski's Macbeth is unsettling and uneven, but also undeniably compelling.

Les Bridges Chicago Tribune At the outset, Jon Finch, who plays the title role, seems to lack the depth of emotion needed to play such a tragic figure... In the end, he has charged the role with a brooding force that is astonishing coming from an actor of 28 years. Rated: 4/4 Jul 21, 2023 Full Review William B. Collins Philadelphia Inquirer There are excellences in this Macbeth that would be beyond tamer talents. The play has been translated from the stage to the screen with a movement, a rhythm and a visual impact unique to the medium. Jul 21, 2023 Full Review Perry Stewart Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com Without a shred of "modernization," Polanski has created a film which is as contemporary and as relevant as The Godfather. Jul 21, 2023 Full Review Bernard Drew Gannett News Service If it is not great Shakespeare, it is damned good moviemaking. Jul 21, 2023 Full Review R.H. Gardner Baltimore Sun The very degree to which Polanski has striven to supply his creation with realistic detail works against the stylization necessary for a faithful rendering of Shakespeare. Jul 21, 2023 Full Review Stanley Eichelbaum San Francisco Examiner Intense, compelling and weirdly beautiful, it rakes up horrors few of us would permit ourselves to see in Shakespeare's bloody tragedy. Jul 21, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Alec B Shakespeare's play as a violent fever dream. This concept for "MacBeth" has been tried a few times but only Polanski seems to have pulled it off, likely because he cast professionals who didn't need direction on the language, leaving him to focus on the imagery. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/24 Full Review Shioka O To be honest I'm always bored by Shakespeare adaptations, and this is not an exception, but this is among the most decent and pure adaptation. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/11/23 Full Review Audience Member Shakespeare's play as a violent fever dream. This concept for "MacBeth" has been tried a few times but only Polanski seems to have pulled it off, likely because he cast professionals who didn't need direction on the language, leaving him to focus on the imagery. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member The perfect rendition of MacBeth! From breathtaking Scottish landscapes to realistic renaissance battles this movie has everything anyone could ask for. I was most impressed with its historical background, actors and easy to follow Shakespearean dialogue. Legends, Myths and Pagan superstition were depicted extremely accurately. The 3 Fates also known as the Maiden, Mother and Crone reminded me the way Witches were described in my childhood fairy tales. Each Characters role was portrayed strong enough to captivate the audience with dazzling enchantments. No detail was spared during combat scenes or withheld any shocking aspects of ruthlessness. The never-ending conquest for power, Greed and ultimately the throne has never been retold quite as well as Roman Polanski's version of MacBeth. This is a true Masterpiece classic! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Audience Member Roman Polanski's "MacBeth" pulls out all of the stops in terms of its gritty and graphic visual aesthetic while simultaneously envisioning a portrait of the title character that evolves along a unique arc from guilty timidity to tyrannical abandon. The esoteric sequences at the midpoint of the work involving MacBeth's encounter with the witch coven are stunningly bold and original, fully emblazoning the Polanski stamp on a work that might otherwise have felt like a common rehashing of Shakespeare. Indeed, so many film adaptations of the bard's works have been obligatorily churned out that one must insist on some element of artistic liberty as a mark of distinction, and Polanski's starkly brutal and at times surreal take on the material assuredly provides one. While too intense for younger viewers, Polanski's "MacBeth" is sufficiently visionary as to establish itself as the definitive version for the majority of viewers. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a wonderful adaptation of a timeless tragedy that so many other filmmakers have fumbled. The portrayals from the unknown actors are engaging, the sets look like actual lived-in locations and the score is fittingly modern and unsettling. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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Synopsis Proud Macbeth (Jon Finch) and his power-mad wife (Francesca Annis) plot to murder King Duncan (Nicholas Selby) and usurp the throne of Scotland, despite the increasing suspicions of Macbeth's rival, Macduff (Terence Baylor), and his once-loyal friend Banquo (Martin Shaw). Roman Polanski directed this violent and sexualized revision of William Shakespeare's tragedy of madness and political intrigue, financed by executive producer Hugh Hefner, publisher of Playboy magazine.

Director

Roman Polanski

Producer

Andrew Braunsberg, Roman Polanski

Screenwriter

Roman Polanski, Kenneth Tynan

Distributor

Columbia Pictures

Rating

Genre

Drama

Original Language

English

Release Date (Theaters)

Dec 15, 1971, Original

Release Date (Streaming)

Dec 15, 2010

Runtime

2h 20m

Sound Mix

Surround