Peter Greenaway taking on Shakespeare is as odd, exhausting, and spectacular as you'd expect. It's a bold reworking of The Tempest, which is one of Shakespeare's plays I'm not familiar with. Trying to follow even a straightforward adaptation of a Shakespeare play can be difficult at times, what with the distinct language and all, so watching an avant-garde take on a Shakespeare play I wasn't knowledgeable about made for an expectedly overwhelming experience.
I'm happy to say that I at least admired Prospero's Books, and was okay with not really following it in a traditional sense, for the most part. There are some amazingly assembled moments here, visually speaking, with plenty of long takes, inventive production design, and remarkable costumes (or lack thereof... it is a Greenaway film, after all). I also really liked the music by Michael Nyman, though this is unfortunately the last time he and Greenaway collaborated on a film. It's not too surprising that two bold artists in their respective fields clashed inevitably, and in a way where their partnership seemingly couldn't rebound.
This also feels like a one-man show for John Gielgud much of the time, and yeah, it's an understatement to say that guy was a pro. I'm more used to seeing him in supporting roles, which made Prospero's Books a novelty. I think he was in just about every scene, and much of the time, he's narrating the dialogue or thoughts of other characters, too.
For all the good here, it definitely wasn't an easy film to watch, and I found the last 40 minutes or so particularly trying. It's a lot to take in, but I also feel like you get out of it what you put in, and I guess I put in enough effort to come away largely impressed. In the end, I liked but didn't quite love the film overall, and would only recommend it to people in the mood for something very different.
I'm happy to say that I at least admired Prospero's Books, and was okay with not really following it in a traditional sense, for the most part. There are some amazingly assembled moments here, visually speaking, with plenty of long takes, inventive production design, and remarkable costumes (or lack thereof... it is a Greenaway film, after all). I also really liked the music by Michael Nyman, though this is unfortunately the last time he and Greenaway collaborated on a film. It's not too surprising that two bold artists in their respective fields clashed inevitably, and in a way where their partnership seemingly couldn't rebound.
This also feels like a one-man show for John Gielgud much of the time, and yeah, it's an understatement to say that guy was a pro. I'm more used to seeing him in supporting roles, which made Prospero's Books a novelty. I think he was in just about every scene, and much of the time, he's narrating the dialogue or thoughts of other characters, too.
For all the good here, it definitely wasn't an easy film to watch, and I found the last 40 minutes or so particularly trying. It's a lot to take in, but I also feel like you get out of it what you put in, and I guess I put in enough effort to come away largely impressed. In the end, I liked but didn't quite love the film overall, and would only recommend it to people in the mood for something very different.