Oct 031971
Macbeth (Jon Finch), a brave Scottish noble, kills the king after hearing a prophecy from three witches that he will be king. His ambition is his flaw, and it eventually destroys him and his even more ambitious wife (Francesca Annis).
Quick Review: The best screen adaptation of Shakespeare, this tale of sound and fury is filled with blood, cruelty, and even occasional nudity. Shakespeare would have been thrilled.
Macbeth is the best and the brightest man in Scotland. He is strong, smart, and caring while others are simpering and ignorant. And that makes his fall so interesting. Jon Finch’s performance is perfect, a little naive at the beginning and filled with hate at the end. Roman Polanski makes the images as dark as the story; it is often claimed that the violence and existential focus of this version comes from Polanski’s loss of his wife, Sharon Tate, to the Manson family just two years earlier. Perhaps. The darkness fits.