Macbeth: Polanski Vs. Kurosawa

Macbeth: Polanski vs. Kurosawa The story of Macbeth was written by William Shakespeare in the 17th century and it is one of the classic tragedies in the modern day. The story is unfold and starts with the main character Macbeth. Macbeth is a general under King Duncan’s army. He later is told three prophecies by witches that come true, Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor, and King of Scotland. First two prophecies were very easy to accomplish but to become king of Scotland was a challenge. He had to kill King Duncan to become king. After the tragedy, he is pronounced king and a changed man. Macbeth’s new personality is destroyed by his arrogance and is turned greedy and avarice. His old altruistic and brave-like characteristics self has been
Nothing in his life
Became him like the leaving it. He died
As one that had been studied in his death
To throw away the dearest thing he owed
As ‘twere a careless trifle.
(Open Source Shakespeare)

In Polanski’s film, the scene of his execution was shown in him on a platform in a trap. His final words were “Long live the King” and he jumps off, instantly dying. The showing of his death had made the film in a darker tone and a foreshadow to the next Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth. Another example is the murder of King Duncan. In the original text of the play, the murder of King Duncan was set offstage because in Shakespearean times, anything bad done to a higher power, like the king, in an act of entertainment is considered a sin-like act. In Polanski’s film, the murder of King Duncan was onstage and was a brutal scene. In this scene, Macbeth vigorously assassinates King Duncan with no hesitation (after Duncan wakes up). King Duncan had been brutally stabbed several times and the wounds with the blood show the darkness of the film. (Bardorama)

This picture above is the scene where Macbeth is assassinating King Duncan to fulfill the prophecy given by the
Roger Manvell comments that “Kurosawa’s transmutation of Macbeth is a radical one; he relies only on Shakespeare as a scenarist whose vision is constant with his aim, and never as a master of parameter, which can only too easily become ludicrous on the screen” (106). When the film made its debut in the United States in 1961, critics from The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Films in Review failed to see the film’s full potential as they all measured it against Macbeth; it was not until December of that year that the Time magazine recognized the film as a true work of art (Suzuki 93). Undoubtedly, Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood is very unconventional as it makes drastic changes to the original text; however, it is one of the few adaptations that can stand on its own as a cinematic masterpiece due to the rich imagery and