Commentary On a Production Of Othello

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Chosen production: Film – ‘O’ (2001) ‘An update of Shakespeare's 'Othello' with a young cast set in a high school centred around basketball player Odin.’ Director: Tim Blake Nelson Writers: William Shakespeare (play), Brad Kaaya (screenplay) Stars: Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles and Josh Hartnett Critical view chosen: ‘Solid but lacks the depth and complexity in the characters that their actions demand but the script doesn't provide’ 12 July 2007 by Bob the moo http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0184791/usercomments?filter=prolific Commentary: The author of this critique has deemed ‘O’ (2001) to be a good film but lacks the complexity of the original play and is too superficial in the conveyance of the characters. His view is that the narrative is too simplified and the setting, having been modernised to take place in a high school, limits the effect of the ultimate conclusion. The young actors are said to be “flat” and “lacking” in their portrayal of Shakespeare’s roles. However, the storyline is said to flow well and the characters to have acted well, despite their shortcomings in properly conveying complex roles such as Desdemona and Iago. For example, the character of Iago – Hugo – is said take ‘too sudden a jump into murder and betrayal without the depth behind it to make it convincing’. From this, we can infer that a tragedy such as Othello which involves murder, betrayal and sex isn’t most appropriately seen through students attending high-school as their actions cannot be easily justified through things such as jealously of the MVP of the school’s basketball team. Many other critics have praised ‘O’ for its seamless and robust storytelling yet the story itself can be seen as too extreme and unbelievable for some. All in all, ‘O’ (2001) has been critiqued by this author as an ‘OK modern version in regards the basic narrative flow, however the lack of
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