Shakespeare Retold: Macbeth

Okay, so I dated…ehm…watched James McAvoy again last night in Shakespeare Retold: Macbeth. What a very good movie! I can’t believe that I found it in Stockland (ahem… Macbeth was from Scotland…) in Angus&Robertson (is Angus not a Scottish name?). And just for your info, it’s a 2005 BBC production of the modernized Shakespeare stories (along with 'Much Ado about Nothing' and 'A Midsummer Night’s Dream'). It’s a part of the TV series Shakespeare Retold and hopefully it will be aired in Australia (or has it, unknown to me?).

Anyway, back to the date. Ahem. McAvoy was, as usual, amazing. I mean, anyone who knows Shakespeare and Macbeth would know that Macbeth is such a depressing story, full of people being massacred and stabbed and chopped… (well, Macbeth IS one of the bloodiest of Shakespeare dramas) and SR: Macbeth was also like that. But somehow, McAvoy managed not to disgust me with lots of blood. Yes, there was blood. But what mesmerised me was his acting. It was apparent that he was a product of drama school. His expressions etc conveyed that he understood the character and completely turned into the horrible, stupid Macbeth. Only this time, McAvoy portrayed a scared Macbeth instead of a tyrant one. After all, Joe Macbeth was a head chef who listened too much to his wife’s greed instead of his own heart. Somehow, I think I like this version better than the gruesome real Macbeth of Shakespeare. I also have to add that Keeley Hawes was amazing as Ella Macbeth. Can’t imagine the Shakespeare Lady Macbeth… must be even more horrid than her!

And of course, something that any fans of James McAvoy should not miss: James singing! And oh my… he sang well! He also laughed a bit, only a few scenes, but the laugh reminded me of Tom Lefroy’s laughing. So handsome…

I think James was very good with dramatic and tragic characters. But I also think that his laughter and singing voice are awesome! By and by… I still think that Becoming Jane gives the fans a comprehensive chance to see James at many facets of emotions. I mean, as Thomas Lefroy, James experienced and displayed playfulness, sexiness, wittiness, love, admiration and also angst and despair. It was complete, all in one movie.

Gosh, I want to see BJ again!!!

PS: I have signed the petition of Declaration of Reasonable Doubt About the Identity of William Shakespeare. After reading the articles in Wikipedia, I began to doubt that the gentleman from Stratford was indeed the famous Elizabethan writer. Not that I do not admire Shakespeare; I think his works (whoever he was) were fantastic. Yet, is it not interesting that Mr. Shakespeare of Stratford did not mention his books, writings, or play whatsoever in his will? Plus, no surviving letters of his indicated that he ever was interested in literature, let alone explorations of foreign countries and a wide array of subjects (from astronomy to zoology). Why, Ms. Austen left a huge amount of letters and correspondences for us to learn more of her (including her famous possible romance with Tom Lefroy)... surely a great writer such as Shakespeare would leave some traces of his passions in his letters? Not apparently.