| Henry V (1944) |
| Directed by and starring: Laurence Olivier |
Description: This play, about a British military campaign, was filmed during World War II to boost the morale of British troops. |
| Hamlet (1948) |
| Directed by and starring: Laurence Olivier |
Description: Simplified version of Hamlet as "a man who could not make up his mind." |
| Macbeth (1948) |
| Directed by and starring: Orson Welles |
Description: Employs a mixture of stage and screen techniques. See the uncut version if you can. |
| Othello (1952) |
| Directed by and starring: Orson Welles |
Description: Made over several years on a shoestring budget. The soundtrack was completely reconstructed forty years later. Top |
| Richard III (1955) |
| Directed by and starring: Lawrence Olivier |
Description: Olivier, now in Technicolor! |
| Falstaff / Chimes at Midnight (1965) |
| Directed by and starring: Orson Welles |
Description: Cobbled together from the five plays featuring Falstaff: Henry IV Parts I and II, Richard II, Henry V, and The Merry Wives of Windsor. |
| Othello (1965) |
Directed by: Stuart Burge
Starring: Lawrence Olivier |
Description: A staged version of the play recorded on film. Disconcertingly, Olivier performs wearing blackface.Top |
| Romeo and Juliet (1968) |
| Directed by: Franco Zeffirelli |
Description: Has teenaged actors in the leading roles, as written. |
| Macbeth (1971) |
| Directed by: Roman Polanski |
Description: Cinematically rich. Absorbing, bleak, and drenched in blood and gore. |
| Henry V (1989) |
| Directed by and starring: Kenneth Branagh |
Description: The first of Branagh's Shakespearean films, this is a dark film with realistic scenes of war. |
| Much Ado About Nothing (1993) |
Directed by and starring: Kenneth Branagh
Also starring: Emma Thompson |
Description: This screwball comedy is fun for all, whether or not they're fans of Shakespeare.Top |
| Othello (1995) |
Directed by: Oliver Parker
Starring: Lawrence Fishburne & Kenneth Branagh |
Description: The Moor of Venice is finally portrayed on film by a person of color. |
| Richard III (1995) |
Directed by: Richard Loncraine
Starring: Ian McKellen |
Description: Transposes the play to a 1930s England that never was. |
| Hamlet (1996) |
| Directed by and starring: Kenneth Branagh |
Description: The definitive film version is an unabridged 4-hour epic. |
| A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999) |
Directed by: Michael Hoffman
Starring: Kevin Kline & Michelle Pfeiffer |
Description: Set in late 19th-century Italy and has characters on bicycles, but retains Shakespeare's dialogue.Top |
| Titus (1999) |
| Directed by: Julie Taymor |
Description: Visually eclectic adaptation of Titus Andronicus, Shakespeare's goriest play. |
| The Merchant of Venice (2004) |
Directed by: Michael Radford
Starring: Al Pacino & Jeremy Irons |
Description: Places the controversial play in historical and geographical context. |
| Kiss Me Kate (1953)Top |
| Directed by: George Sidney |
Description: About a divorced couple asked to put on a musical production of The Taming of the Shrew, with songs by Cole Porter. |
| Kumonosu Jo / Throne of Blood (1957) |
| Directed by: Akira Kurosawa |
Description: Japanese version of Macbeth in which samurai take the place of Scots. |
| West Side Story (1961) |
| Directed by: Jerome Robbins & Robert Wise |
Description: Romeo and Juliet re-envisioned as a New York City turf war, with frequent dance numbers. |
| Strange Brew (1983) |
| Directed by and starring: Rick Moranis & Dave Thomas |
Description: Hamlet in a Canadian brewery, featuring Bob and Doug McKenzie. Beauty, eh?Top |
| Ran (1985) |
| Directed by: Akira Kurosawa |
Description: Japanese version of King Lear which also draws on samurai legends. The title means "Chaos." |
| My Own Private Idaho (1991) |
Directed by: Gus van Sant
Starring: River Phoenix |
Description: A road movie that's a loose adaptation of Henry IV. |
| Green Eggs and Hamlet (1995) |
| Directed by: Mike O'Neal |
Description: Spoken almost entirely in Dr. Seuss style couplets. (It's lots of fun when you begin / But very soon the joke wears thin.) |
| Romeo + Juliet (1996) |
Directed by: Baz Luhrmann
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio |
Description: Moves the action to contemporary "Verona Beach," using music-video cinematography.Top |
| 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) |
Directed by: Gil Junger
Starring: Heath Ledger & Julia Styles |
Description: Romantic teen comedy with a great soundtrack, loosely based on The Taming of the Shrew. |
| Hamlet (2000) |
Directed by: Michael Almereyda
Starring: Ethan Hawke |
Description: Sets the play in contemporary New York, with CEOs taking the place of kings. |
| Romeo Must Die (2000) |
Directed by: Andrzej Bartkowiak
Starring: Jet Li & Aaliyah |
Description: Romeo and Juliet as a martial-arts action film, with the rival houses becoming Asian and African American gangs on the Oakland waterfront.Top |
| My Kingdom (2001) |
Directed by: Don Boyd
Starring: Richard Harris & Lynn Redgrave |
Description: King Lear involving a crime boss and his family in contemporary Liverpool. |
| O (2001) |
Directed by: Tim Blake Nelson
Starring: Mekhi Phifer |
Description: Othello moved onto a basketball court. |
| Macbeth: The Comedy (2001) |
| Directed by: Allison L. LiCalsi |
Description: Features a lesbian couple as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, and three gay men as the Weird Sisters. |
| Scotland, PA (2001) |
Directed by: Billy Morrissette
Starring: James Legros & Christopher Walken |
Description: This parodic adaptation sets Macbeth at a burger stand. Really. Duncan gets killed using a deep fryer. |
| She's the Man (2006) |
Directed by: Andy Fickman
Starring: Amanda Bynes |
Description: Twelfth Night at a British prep school. |
| Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) |
| Directed by: Tom Stoppard |
Description: Focuses on two minor characters from Hamlet. What do you do when you're not the star of your own life?Top |
| Looking for Richard (1996) |
| Directed by: Al Pacino |
Description: A documentary about the challenges of producing, performing, and enjoying Richard III. |
| Shakespeare in Love (1998) |
| Directed by: John Madden |
Description: A clever and anachronistic tale of Shakespeare being inspired to write Romeo and Juliet. |
| The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (2000) |
| Directed by: Paul Kafno |
Description: The Reduced Shakespeare Company's hilarious presentation of 37 plays in 88 minutes.Top |
