Othello

A film made from Shakespeare's play. Othello is Venice's general. He commands the army and the city needs him. He marries in secret. Desdemona is a senator's daughter and her father will not accept the marriage. The senate intervenes. An expedition to Cyprus is being organised and Othello is given the command; the marriage is approved. Iago is his ensign. He had expected promotion and Othello gave the post to Cassio. From there the film becomes a story of contrivance. Iago makes a plan and carries it out step by step. His method is talk. He lies to nobody; he only asks questions, leaves his sentences unfinished, and waits for the other man to draw his own conclusion. A handkerchief is the axis. A small object changes hands and all the evidence amounts to that. Othello believes it. What the narrative is interested in is not jealousy but isolation: the man is alone in this city and Iago uses exactly that gap. Iago speaks to the audience. Kenneth Branagh explains his plans directly to camera and makes the viewer an accomplice. Laurence Fishburne was not the first Black actor to play the part, but he was noted as the first to take it in a major studio production. The text is cut. The adaptation uses roughly half the play and answers some passages with images. It was shot in Italy. Laurence Fishburne, Irène Jacob, Kenneth Branagh and Nathaniel Parker are in the cast. Oliver Parker adapted and directed. Who it is for: anyone who likes Shakespeare adaptations and Branagh's acting. Who it is not for: anyone expecting the complete text; the cuts are large and some scenes are rushed.