Titus

[the division of joy]

Titus (IMdB listing)

 

The story is far too complex to go into so I've provided the above link.

 

Basically this movie blew my mind and I suggest you all see it right now. Its set in a wierd modern interpretation of the Roman Empire replete with cars, jazz music, electricity etc. The men wear suits that are vaguely reminisicent of the Toga.

 

Its essentially a tale of revenge based on a play called 'Titus Andronicus' by none other than Willy Shakespeare himself and the character development, cinematography and performances are second to none.

 

It was a late night movie on TV and I just thought I'd watch it for the hell of it cos I like classical epic stuff but about half an hour into it I found myself immersed the storyline, rooting for the protagonists and marvelling at the sheer spectacle of the movie.

 

To cut a long story short: WATCH IT!!!

[crimsonfire]

Above post was actually me. Once again i've furthered Ross's post count cos i forget to log myself in.

[Reverend Jax]

It's worth noting that Titus Andronicus (I've never seen this movie) is the least Shakespearean of shakespeare's plays, and it's widely debated whether he actually wrote it or not.

[Silent Bob]

Shakespeare's Quentin Tarantino phase.

 

Titus Andronicus is not a good play, but it's an interesting one. It's Shakespeare's first tragedy and most scholars believe that if Shakespeare did write it himself, he probably either meant it to be an over-the-top parody of the violent plays of more successful contemporaries (like Christopher Marlowe) or that he wrote it so gruesome and extreme in order to attract more attention to himself as a new playwright. It's also entirely possible that this was his first big play and he's just not that good yet. Either way, Titus Andronicus is not a good play, but it's an interesting one and it's worth a look.

 

And if you must look, the film version of Titus is definitely a great way to do so. Directed by first-time film director Julie Taymore (the woman who managed to make The Lion King work on Broadway), the movie is visually amazing, full of pretty fantastic shots and some inventive touches (a shot of a villainous character hanging a severed hand from his rear-view mirror is my favorite). The film is pretty extreme and nonsensical, visually, and it's works well with a story that is basically just extreme and nonsensical. Also props to the acting all around, Anthony Hopkins, Colm Feore, Alan Cumming and particularly Jessica Lang give great performances. And Harry Lennix (Commander Lock from the Matrix movies) does best of all in the role of Aaron.

 

The play is also notable for the role of Aaron, one of the juiciest parts meant for a black actor (until Shakespeare later topped it with Othello, of course). Though it's only been the last couple centuries that black parts are performed by actual black actors, having such an eloquent, intelligent and independent black character was still a rare thing at the time.