- Actors: Laurence Olivier, Frank Finlay, Maggie Smith, Joyce Redman, Derek Jacobi
- Directors: Stuart Burge
- Writers: William Shakespeare
- Producers: Anthony Havelock-Allan, John Brabourne, Richard B. Goodwin
- Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Original recording remastered, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English, French
- Region: (US and Canada This DVD will probably NOT be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Number of discs: 1
- MPAA Rating:
- Studio: Warner
- Release Date: Aug 14 2007
- Run Time: 165 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- ASIN: B000QGE8IS
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #17,573 in DVD (See Top 100 in DVD)
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Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very impressive,
By
This review is from: Othello (VHS Tape)
At first you are impressed at the list of actors that appear (Maggie Smith, Derek Jacobi, and others). Then you are impressed with Olivier (makeup and acting style). Later you notice the great camera work that gives you the feel of the play and focuses in just the right place and time. The set gives us the feel we are watching the play (not some epic movie).After the initial thrill you are so mesmerized by the play that all you see is the characters and the story augmented with Shakespeare's wit. Othello and Desdemona are the perfect husband and wife. They love and trust each other implicitly. It seems that many other people especially men love Desdemona also. However, his most trusted and "honest" friend decides to act on this by treachery and deceit to convince Othello of Desdemona's alleged unfaithfulness. "The best laid plans..." Even if you have and like other versions this is a must see and have.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.3 out of 5 stars (30 customer reviews) 29 of 29 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Olivier's politically incorrect masterpiece,
By Clifford Mack "disgruntled scripter" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Othello (DVD)
True, you have to get past the blackface make-up, the bright red lips, the false eyelashes; but once that surface is accepted, a great performance is there to be appreciated. Olivier is the blackest Othello I've ever seen, the most 'African', in his movements, the wilds of his emotion, the warrior-like curses and threats as he beats his chest and curses his fate. Many thought it was a ham acting, excruciatingly over the top; for me it was a courageous, dangerous performance, walking the line between terror and pity throughout. His voice is astonishing and his delivery unique and musical and frightening and tender. I thought it was his bravest, and greatest, performance. I'm glad it was recorded as a filmed play and not 'opened up' as a movie, which would have diluted the intensity of the performance. Highly recommended, with the above caveats about the makeup.
29 of 32 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Moor Of Venice,
By Marlina "Neena" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Othello (DVD)
I wrote my AP English essay junior year in high school about the Moor of Venice. I have seen every version of this play that has ever been committed to film, which is no small feat for a woman who adores the Bard as I do. I am an African American woman and I have heard about the fact that some think that his portrayal of the moor to be stereotypical, well, I don't think so. I think that there is nothing so sweeping as the way that he brings this play to life, Othello is not my favorite Shakespeare play, possibly the third favorite but there is something in the truth of Othello that I think is deeply stirring, it is the truth of self-esteem. He thinks himself a lowly creature, despite the fact that he is a great general and is acclaimed by many even the trials that he has been through in his life. Olivier makes you feel that, he wrung tears from me the frist time that I saw him in this performance, like a floodgate, I wanted to hold this wounded man to my heart, he was flawless and seamless, I lost Olivier in this movie, he was purely the character. I think that if I were trying to get someone to understand the subtle nature of Othello this would be the performance that I would suggest, I am so glad that I saw it one night on cable when I could sleep. He outshines all others who have attempted this part, ALL OTHERS. I mean I have seen the Laurence Fishburne portrayal and its good and it has its moments but this one is amazing. I didn't notice his lips being red really, but when you are that dark, the inner part of your lips are redder by contrast. When I saw it I was floored, his voice,the sheer emotion, glorious.I am going to buy this version because I think it belongs on the shelf with my four and a half hour version of Hamlet. 16 of 17 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnificent Pinnacle of Drama,
By blockhed "blockhed" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Othello (VHS Tape)
This is Olivier's finest performance, although Archie Rice runs it close. Anyone even minimally familiar with Shakespeare criticism knows that, as the play is written, the Moor's tragic flaw is not that he is prone to jealousy, but that he over-dramatizes his self-image. He exaggerates his role in life as a great military commander, with excessive rhetorical relish, and sees himself as a man for whom personal honour and glory are of greater intrinsic importance than anything else, including love, loyalty and forgiveness. This is why and how Iago succeeds in making such a fool of him.The role itself is therefore ideally suited to Olivier's over-the-top theatrical style. To complain that this is a filmed stage play is idiotic, since it never pretends to be anything else. That is exactly what it sets out to be: a permanent record on film of a stage production. It is also idiotic to protest that Olivier is a white man playing the part in black make-up: that is how Shakespeare wrote it, 400 years ago, and there is nothing that can now be done to alter it, like it or not. Olivier's performance is utterly compelling. Only the semi-literate, or those with the aesthetic sensitivity of a rhinoceros, can fail to be gripped and transfixed by this superb interpretation of one of the most diabolically well-written masterpieces of European theatre. It is interesting to note that such is Shakespeare's genius for stage-craft that even modern ten-year-old American kids (of normal intelligence) can easily follow the development of the drama, in spite of the apparently archaic language. Finlay's Iago and Redman's Emilia match Olivier. Maggie Smith's Desdemona is very fine, although I see the role played by someone just a touch more delicate and vulnerable. The stage direction is masterly, and the few simple sets are also excellently conceived. Shakespeare's tragedies are, by their very nature, overpowering works: Olivier understands the timing and significance of every word, and delivers the lines in a manner entirely appropriate to their original creation. I haven't seen all the other Othellos by the many other actors, but can only suspect that their performances, whether by white players or black, must fade and pale by comparison. These comments relate to the BHE dvd version, digitally remastered by Warner, which also includes a fragmentary interview with Anthony Hopkins, cast profiles, as well as a brief account of Shakespeare's sources for the play, and its theatrical history. |
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