NYFF ’10: The Tempest

It was neither a political statement nor a cheap gimmick. Director Julie Taymor and the accomplished Helen Mirren wanted to work together on a Shakespeare project, but the Bard just did not write a lot of great parts for women over the age of thirty-five or so. Yet, both independently considered the role of Prospero a possibility. After an early reading confirmed their hopes, the role of Prospero became Prospera in their resulting collaboration, The Tempest, the centerpiece selection of the 48th New York Film Festival, which screens tomorrow night at Alice Tully Hall.

When the Duke of Milan dies, his wife Prospera succeeds him, but not for long. Usurped by her unscrupulous brother Antonio, with the backing of King Alonso of Naples, Prospera and her daughter Miranda are cast adrift, presumably to die at sea. However, the loyal court counselor Gonzalo secretly stocked the slip with food, water, and Prospera’s magic books. Twelve years later, Prospera uses her command of the elements to shipwreck the vessel carrying Antonio, Alonso, his son Ferdinand, the good Gonzalo, and various ne’er do well retainers. Prospera and her indentured servant, Ariel the air spirit, toy with the treacherous royals, while encouraging romance to blossom between Ferdinand and Miranda. Further complicating matters, the fools Trinculo and Stephano conspire with Prospera’s resentful slave Caliban in an ill-conceived revolt.

Despite the changes necessitated by Taymor’s gender switch, her adaptation follows the original Shakespeare quite closely. She also earns points for not flinching in politically correct horror from depicting Caliban as Shakespeare described him: a black slave driven by rage for his master. Still, she works with actor Djimon Hounsou to humanize him as best they can, within the confines of the text.

Make no mistake though, The Tempest is Mirren’s film, pure and simple. She truly digs into the role, finding fresh humanistic insights, irrespective of Prospero/a’s gender. Perhaps her deepest work comes with Ben Whishaw’s androgynous Ariel, cutting to the core of the play’s themes of forgiveness and empathy. In truth, the rest of the ensemble just cannot keep pace with her. Surprisingly, Chris Cooper and David Strathairn are indistinguishably bland as the royal co-conspirators Antonio and Alonso, respectively. A genuine case of gimmicky casting, Russell Brand’s same old profane goofball schtick becomes an embarrassing distraction as the jester Trinculo (frankly, it was already getting tired). At least Felicity Jones and Reeve Carney exhibit some appealing chemistry as the young lovers.

Taymor’s Tempest is a good Shakespeare adaptation that picks up steam as it goes along, but never quite takes flight. The Hawaiian locales, particularly the black volcanic beaches, dramatically evoke the play’s otherworldliness and Mirren gives a powerhouse performance. There just seems to be an X-factor missing. Certainly entertaining, The Tempest screens tomorrow as the centerpiece of the 2010 New York Film Festival.

Way Off-Broadway: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead

From zombies in Pride and Prejudice to vampires in Little Women, the success of literary monster mash-ups have publishing houses scrambling to crank-out their copycat titles. The craze has not spared the Shakespearean canon either, with decidedly mixed results. Sure, mixing the morose Hamlet with brooding vampires has obvious potential. However, it is the hip irony brought to bear on the sub-genre, essentially mashing-up the mash-ups, that distinguishes Jordan Galland’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead (trailer here), which opens this Friday in New York.

Julian Marsh is in a bit of a Byronic funk. Dumped by his hot girlfriend Anna, he puts the moves on every attractive woman he sees. Frankly, he has remarkably good luck for an unemployed theater director living in the backroom of his father’s medical office. Dad is understandably losing patience though. To get his deadbeat son out of his office or at least paying rent, Dr. Marsh arranges an interview for him to direct a rather unconventional production of Hamlet.

In this mash-up version, Hamlet and Horatio were vampires, but the Sweet Prince has regained his soul by drinking from the Holy Grail. And then it really gets strange and complicated, not that Marsh really cares. He is still preoccupied with Anna, whom Theo, the sinister company manager, eventually casts in their Hamlet because she “smells like the real Ophelia.” This makes no sense to Marsh either.

Galland may very well have made up Undead’s elaborate backstory details as he went along, but many elements are cleverer than they needed to be. In fact, they might even support a more serious treatment, if focused and moderated. However, what really makes the film work is Jake Hoffman’s perfect deadpan delivery as Marsh. His wry reactions to the whacked-out version of Hamlet unfolding in their rehearsals effectively mirror that of viewers, thereby maintaining audience credibility.

Undead might not be the most ambitious film ever, but it is legitimately quite funny. The deliberately cheesy effects and eccentric graphics should please cult film connoisseurs, while more mainstream audiences will certainly be intrigued by its cast (including an uncredited cameo by Bijou Phillips). Hoffman (yes, the son of Dustin) has solid comedic timing and nice screen chemistry with the ethereally beautiful Devon Aoki as Anna or Ophelia. Looking like a full-fledged adult, the former Karate Kid Ralph Macchio shows a flair for the over-the-top comedy required from his character, Booby Bianchi, Anna’s new intimidating boyfriend. Appropriately for the genre, John Ventimiglia (of Sopranos fame) chews the scenery like a vampire from a Hammer Horror film as Theo/Horatio. However, perhaps the most likable supporting turn comes from Chip Zien as the good Dr. Marsh.

Employing the shotgun approach, Galland scatters out a lot of material, from ancient Dan Brown-style conspiracies to gentle mockery of the New York theater scene. Happily, it works more often than not. Though it loses steam down the stretch, resorting to rather conventional genre plot turns, Undead is surprisingly inventive for a horror movie spoof. Definitely recommended for genre lovers, Undead opens this Friday (6/4) in New York at the Village East.

Kurosawa Centennial: Throne of Blood

Reportedly, it was the favorite film of T.S. Eliot and it has one of the coolest death scenes in cinema history. As if that were not enough, Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood is also considered one of the best film treatments of the Scottish Play, sans the Shakespearean language. Recast during the “Warring States” period of Japanese history, Throne (a.k.a. Spider Web Castle, trailer here) ranks in the top tier of Kurosawa’s considerable body of work, making it an essential selection of Film Forum’s enthusiastically recommended celebration of the great director’s centennial (1910-2010).

Washizu (Macbeth) and Miki (Banquo) have just vanquished the enemies of Lord Tzuzuki (King Duncan). Expected at Spider Web Castle for a reception in their honor, the childhood friends find themselves lost in the forest. Wandering in circles, they stumble upon an evil spirit who makes several predictions. Not only does it foresee short-term promotions for both men, it prophesizes Washizu will become king, but he will be succeeded by Miki’s son.

If you don’t know the story from there, shame on you, but watching Throne would make for a heck of a crib note. Still, keep in mind Kurosawa and his four credited screenwriters cut one of Macbeth’s major antagonists, altering the climax as a result. (The upshot for Washizu/Macbeth is the same though.) Rewriting the Bard might sound presumptuous, but since in this case it produced that truly epic death sequence, Kurosawa and his team pulled it off with style.

Frequent Kurosawa collaborator Toshirō Mifune has the perfect larger-than-life swagger for Washizu, but also makes him a touch more sympathetic than other screen portrayals of Macbeth. Conversely, Isuzu Yamada’s ghastly pale Asaji, the Lady Macbeth figure, is particularly creepy, almost looking like she would be at home in a j-horror film. Takashi Shimura, another Kurosawa regular, is also on hand as Noriyashu, one of Washizu’s rivals who does not have a clear parallel in Shakespeare’s play.

Perhaps more than any other Macbeth on film, Kurosawa brings a real sense of place to Throne. Spider Web Forest is quite the foreboding environment, while the Castle is appropriately grand but austere. He clearly had a strong affinity for the material producing a masterwork that borders on legitimate masterpiece status. An essential Kurosawa film, Throne screens at Film Forum on Friday (1/15).