The REAL Shakespeare?

Scholars have come across this portrait they think might be the only accurate rendering of the Bard, painted during his lifetime. Check out the story.

Pacino Does Aging Napoleon

Al Pacino's set to star in an adaptation of the Staton Rabin children's book Betsy and the Emperor, about a 14-year-old girl who meets the aging Little Corporal after his exile on the island of St. Helena.

Source: Variety

They Did Dickens?

Recently pondering all the Dickens adaptations I've seen in my lifetime, I thought I'd post about some of the bigger-name celebs who have tried their hand at portraying one of Boz's beloved characters. Here are a few who immediately come to mind, for better or for worse.



Michael Richards (Mr. Micawber: David Copperfield)
If anyone was born to play a Dickens character, it's the guy who brought us Cosmo Kramer. (This was back before his caught-on-tape racist rant which sort of spelled his stardom's demise.) Sally Field was also in this 2000 adaptation for the TNT network playing Aunt Betsy Trotwood. Hugh Dancy was David.


GOOP (Estella, Great Expectations)
I know Estella is supposed to be kind of hateable, and in that case, Gwyneth succeeeded ten-fold. I can never block this terrible move poster from my memory, but fortunately, I have mostly banished from my mind her cold-fish performance in this film. I think this marks the moment Gywnnie first started to bug (as I actually tolerated her in Emma — I know many others didn't.) Robert DeNiro and Anne Bancroft played Magwitch and Havisham types, but even with hottie Ethan Hawke as Pip, this one was pretty bad. For a far superior telling, you must see the version with Ioan Gruffudd and Justine Waddell. Watch the clip:





Christopher Plummer (Ralph Nickleby: Nicholas Nickleby,)
So perfect as mean Uncle Ralph, although I will always love him as my Georg. Anne Hathaway was in this one (I'd completely forgotten!) as Madeline Bray.


Gillian Anderson (Lady Dedlock: Bleak House)
I'm still not convinced she can offer up more than two facial expressions, but for this portrayal, it really worked. This might be my favorite Dickens adaptation to date, and Scully nailed it. No offense to Laura Linney, but I still kind of wish Gillian was doing the intros to Masterpiece Theater (if we can't have Russell Baker, that is.)



Alec Guinness (William Dorrit: Little Dorrit; Fagan: Oliver Twist; Magwitch: Great Expectations)
I've not seen any of these, but Obi-Wan got nominated for an Oscar for his performance in Little Dorrit (1988). Take a good look at the clip below and tell me we aren't lucky to get Matthew Macfadyen as Arthur Clennam? (Spoiler alert in case you haven't figured out what happens this Sunday on LD.)

Three Imaginary Poem-to-Film Adaptations

In honor of National Poetry Month, I'm proposing the following poems be adapted for the big screen:

Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven, directed by Tim Burton with Johnny Depp as the narrator, Amy Adams as the ghost of Lenore, and Dave Navarro as the voice of the raven.

Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock, directed by Woody Allen and starring Louis Garrel as the Baron and Scarlett Johansson as Belinda.

Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queen, directed by Peter Jackson with James Franco as Knight Red Crosse, Cate Blanchett as Gloriana, Michelle Williams as Una, and Emily Blunt as Duessa.

What poems would you like to see adapted for film?

Much Ado About Shakespeare Adaptations

I started to title this "My 5 Favorite Shakespeare Adaptations," but soon discovered there was no way I could narrow it down that much--even ten was too difficult. I still have this sneaking suspicion I'm missing a few. As for the plays, Romeo and Juliet was my Rosaline and then I read Hamlet and that was it for me. I was head over heels--I've even dated a few Hamlets, unfortunately. Henry V and Macbeth take third place. If I'm forgetting any or you disagree with my choices, take me to task in the comments. --Kim

12. The Taming of the Shrew dir. Franco Zeffirelli with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton

11. Tempest (1982) with John Cassavetes, Susan Sarandon, Gena Rowlands, Raul Julia, and Molly Ringwald


10. Henry V (1989) with Kenneth Branagh (Love the St. Crispin's Day speech in the video below.)


9. The Merchant of Venice (2004) with Al Pacino and Joseph Fiennes

8. Hamlet (1948) with Laurence Olivier

7. Hamlet (1996) with Kenneth Branagh and Kate Winslet

6. Romeo + Juliet (1996) dir. Baz Luhrmann, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes

5. Throne of Blood (1957) dir. Akira Kurosawa


4. Shakespeare In Love (1998) with Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth (meh) Paltrow, co-written by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, which is a combination of Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night

3. Much Ado About Nothing (1993) with Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Kate Beckinsale, Keanu Reeves, and Denzel Washington


1. Romeo and Juliet (1968) dir. Franco Zeffirelli


And I have to add Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) written and dir. by Tom Stoppard, starring Gary Oldman and Tim Roth, which is more of a spin-off than an adaptation, although the play Hamlet co-exists within the movie and drives the plot.

Long Live the King

First off, how HOT is this trailer for Season 3 of The Tudors, premiering Sunday? I so wish I had Showtime.

Second off, if you're in New York, you should check out this Vivat Rex! exhibit on Henry VIII's literary artifacts at the Grolier Club of New York, now through May 2. (It travels to Washington's Folger Shakespeare Library next fall, FYI.)

And Speaking of "Alice..."

...Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland (featuring Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, sweet Jesus!) will get an IMAX 3D release next March 5th! I'm already tripping out.