King Lear...

[fajrdrako]

This evening I watched the Ian McKellen 2008 version of King Lear with commodorified, raynedaze, and auriaephialia.

First off, King Lear is far from my favourite Shakespeare. One of my least favourite. So grim, so many nasty people betraying their families, so little hope for anyone. But I've seen some terrific productions - my first sight of Ralph Fiennes (as Edmund) was unforgettable.

This one was good. Good enough to draw me in emotionally. A lot of the credit goes to Ian McKellen, who is endearing enough to soften the harsh and often cruel character of Lear.

1. It was a Royal Shakespeare Company production, and, typically, had some of the oddities of RSC productions that seem to have been a tradition since at least the 1970s. Not much colour in the costumes, lots of black and white, a certain type of enunciation and acting. Though I thought Goneril sounded as if she had an incongruous North London accent. (Not that I have any kind of an ear for British accents.)
   
   
2. As usual, I keep confusing Goneril and Regan, and their respective husbands, Cornwall and Albany. I've never seen a production in which I could keep them straight. I thought Goneril looked like Miss Hannigan in Doctor Who: The Next Doctor, with a huge skirt and red dress, dark hair and pail skin, and a cold manner against a dull background when everyone else was in monochrome.
   
   
3. I thought Philip Winchester was great as Edmund, though for the first half of the movie I thought he'd wandered out of Wuthering Heights (the storm and the setting reinforced that impression), and for the second half, where he was more militaristic, it was as if he had stepped out of a Sharpe movie, complete with effete, posh sneer.
   
   
4. I always love the scene where Edgar lies to his father about the cliff.
   
   
5. Sylvester McCoy made a very odd fool. Oddly dressed in a patterned Edwardian dressing gown, he consistently looked more like the Doctor than a Shakespearean Fool - though I've seen Shakespearean Fools of all types, shapes, and genders.
   
   
6. The vaguely eastern-European vaguely-19th century costuming seemed somewhat out of place to me. I kept thinking of Barrayar.
   
   
7. After the show, we were shown Ian McKellen's comments on Lear. One interesting thing he said was that he thought, throughout the course of the play, Lear lost his faith in the gods. I'd never considered that before, but it seemed right.
   
   
   

Comments

[mmegaera.livejournal.com]

Netflix had Merchant so it's in my queue. I like Jeremy Irons, although I occasionally want to slug Pacino, so it will be interesting to see how I react to his Shylock.

Braveheart is the only movie I've ever walked out of from sheer steaming anger, without being able to figure out precisely what had pissed me off so. It was a strictly visceral reaction. But I had to sit in the car for about fifteen minutes to calm down before I felt safe enough to drive home. It was seriously bizarre.

And, yeah, the Zeffirelli R&J probably isn't good Shakespeare, but it's a good movie.

My only real problem with Branagh as Aral is that I don't see him as the romantic male lead (unlike practically everyone else). He's the romantic male lead's father. Since my crush on Branagh is long-standing (for about 16 years now), my brain is having a hard time reconciling him in the part. But I suspect I could get over it, given half the chance [g]. Branagh does look darned good in military uniform...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I like Jeremy Irons, although I occasionally want to slug Pacino, so it will be interesting to see how I react to his Shylock.

I like him as Shylock, though I had a few quibbles with the direction, which I mostly don't remember now.

Braveheart didn't anger me but it made me laugh, groan, and squirm. The oddest reaction to a movie I have had, that I recall, was to The Fisher King which made me cry for hours in sheer wretched misery. I'm not sure why to this day. It just - triggered a brief dark depression. (Hmm, is that a little Miles-like?)

I don't have a crush on Branagh I do love his acting and I sometimes have a crush on his characters. I'm still trying to think of my ideal Aral. The people I can think of who look the way I picture Aral couldn't do his personality, I think. So I'm still working on it. Branagh is good as an interim measure. And since for me, Aral is one of the Great Romantic Heroes of All Time, it's all good.

I don't see him as the romantic male lead (unlike practically everyone else)

You did read Shards, right? [g]

[mmegaera.livejournal.com]

You did read Shards, right? [g]

Oh, yes. And I even read it before the Miles books (it was my second Bujold book after Falling Free -- I had been told to read them in strict series order), so I can't blame it on that.

And, yes, he was very romantic, esp. as Michael Hanson read him (that voice [sigh]), but since my favorite books in the series are the Memory, Komarr, ACC arc, and since Miles is the romantic hero in those, I'm afraid Aral loses out there.

Sorry [g].

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Well, you know how I feel about Aral. But I do completely agree with you about Michael Hanson's excellent reading there. Shards is a superb audiobook.