Henry & Richard.

This is coolbert:

Here are two movies I highly recommend. Both deal with war and are adaptations from Shakespeare. Somewhat vintage [1989, 1995] by now, but still worth renting and seeing.

Henry V. With Kenneth Branagh in the leading role as Henry and directing as well.

"The gritty adaptation of William Shakespeare's play about the English King's bloody conquest of France."

According to one reviewer:

"I was impressed with the acting, the staging, and everything else. But something kept nagging at me. It wasn't until Mountjoy (the French herald) entered Henry's throne room that I realized what was impressing me so much. THEY WERE WEARING THE RIGHT CLOTHES FOR 1415! That kind of attention to detail shows throughout, and makes what would otherwise be an exceptional effort even more superlative. Also, while I am a great fan of Laurence Olivier, I still feel that in this performance Branagh IS Henry. A truly masterful effort!"

Absolutely. I concur without reservation also. This IS an outstanding movie. A must see. The battle scene at Agincourt is realistic and downright bloody, as was the real battle. They do not seem to have missed a thing with this movie at all. For film fans, see it. The dialog does not seem to digress from original script of Shakespeare in the least. Sticks to the original to the greatest extent possible.

Richard III. With Ian McKellen as the brutal, fascist, cold-blooded, crippled, and possibly demented King of England.

Has been adapted from the original work of Shakespeare. Less true to the original. But then this version of Richard III takes place in 1930 England.

"Tagline: What Is Worth Dying For... Is Worth Killing For. (more)

Plot Outline: The classic Shakespearean play about a murderously scheming king staged in an alternative fascist England setting."

According to one reviewer:

"An absolute pleasure to watch. True, setting Shakespeare in a more modern yet parallel setting is nothing original, but the Bard here comes to life in a way unequaled by any other Shakespeare adaptation I've seen yet. The art direction is sumptuous, the jazzy score intoxicating and perfectly suited to the range of emotions these human characters encounter, the direction stylish without sacrificing substance, and the acting...well, they just make it look easy. McKellen floats somewhere above the realm of brilliant, and his cast follows him beautifully. Shakespeare's words don't come alive in this film; they sing."

Again, I concur. This movie did have Oscar nominations, but was not touted as well at the time as it should have been. I made a special point to rent and see, and I recommend that all do so that can.

It seems that the works of Shakespeare are eternal. Can be adapted for any and all settings and still come out as outstanding. I think that in the year 2000 Shakespeare was voted as the most important person of the last 1000 years!!?? I would generally agree with that.

coolbert.