At 4 hours and 11 minutes, it was probably Hamlet, using a conflated text. Personally, the more Hamlet you give me the better I like it. The problem with Branagh’s film was not that he didn’t cut any text; it was that, since he was using cinematic pacing rather than stage pacing, there were lingering shots establishing mood which would have been pointless (not to mention impossible) in a live production.
iamtxlady, not necessarily–1969 version of Hamlet (with eponymous role played by Nicol Williamson) was quite boring (and also suffered from gross miscasting). I can remember being forced to watch part of it (it went over two class slots, so half at a time; two class-sections combined to watch it) in 12th-grade English. I snuck out somewhere between Laertes’ leaving Copenhagen and the Murder of Gonzago stageing which revealed Claudius, and then made a token-appearance at closing-credits (when other section’s teacher was doing a run-down about Marianne Faithfull).
On Othello, I can remember students in other schools who had to do this for grade-12 English (there were three plays assigned in Calgary high schools, which one was chosen depended on the particular school; the multichoice part of the final exam had a large–25 out of total 100 questions–dedicated to these; though all schools would get copies of an exam-question paper containing all three versions of that section) describing it as “the most-boring Shakespearean play they had to endure”.
They should watch the Trevor Nunn BBC production of Othello with Ian McKellan as Iago. Wonderful. Shakespeare is wonderfully entertaining when it’s done wonderfully, and dreadful when it’s done dreadfully.
In London I saw a production of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” live at the Globe, and I laughed my butt off. The thing is, you have to treat it roughly, as a living piece, rather than handle it with kid gloves like an antique.
prasrinivara over 15 years ago
Was it Hamlet or Othello?
Donna Haag over 15 years ago
Whatever one it was, it was directed by and starred Kenneth Brannnagh.The man needs a serious editor.
DesultoryPhillipic over 15 years ago
Maybe The Shrewing of the Tame.
yyyguy over 15 years ago
since it was a snoozer - “A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream?”
fritzoid Premium Member over 15 years ago
At 4 hours and 11 minutes, it was probably Hamlet, using a conflated text. Personally, the more Hamlet you give me the better I like it. The problem with Branagh’s film was not that he didn’t cut any text; it was that, since he was using cinematic pacing rather than stage pacing, there were lingering shots establishing mood which would have been pointless (not to mention impossible) in a live production.
prasrinivara over 15 years ago
iamtxlady, not necessarily–1969 version of Hamlet (with eponymous role played by Nicol Williamson) was quite boring (and also suffered from gross miscasting). I can remember being forced to watch part of it (it went over two class slots, so half at a time; two class-sections combined to watch it) in 12th-grade English. I snuck out somewhere between Laertes’ leaving Copenhagen and the Murder of Gonzago stageing which revealed Claudius, and then made a token-appearance at closing-credits (when other section’s teacher was doing a run-down about Marianne Faithfull).
prasrinivara over 15 years ago
On Othello, I can remember students in other schools who had to do this for grade-12 English (there were three plays assigned in Calgary high schools, which one was chosen depended on the particular school; the multichoice part of the final exam had a large–25 out of total 100 questions–dedicated to these; though all schools would get copies of an exam-question paper containing all three versions of that section) describing it as “the most-boring Shakespearean play they had to endure”.
fritzoid Premium Member over 15 years ago
They should watch the Trevor Nunn BBC production of Othello with Ian McKellan as Iago. Wonderful. Shakespeare is wonderfully entertaining when it’s done wonderfully, and dreadful when it’s done dreadfully.
In London I saw a production of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” live at the Globe, and I laughed my butt off. The thing is, you have to treat it roughly, as a living piece, rather than handle it with kid gloves like an antique.
benbrilling over 15 years ago
Cosmo knows it was that long because he looked at his watch right after he woke up.