MORE SHAKESPEARE ON FILM

Besides the traditional re-enactments of the plays and the versions set in different time periods, there are also films with contemporary stories based on the plays. Obviously, the first to come to mind is the musical,West Side Story. Based on Romeo and Juliet, it was originally a Broadway musical (1957), then it was made into a film (1961) with Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer. The Elk Grove Library has copies of the movie on both VHS and DVD under "WEST". A more recent movie (not a musical) based on Romeo and Juliet is Romeo Must Die (2000), starring Jet Li and the late Aaliyah. This film is also available in both VHS and DVD format under "ROME".

The library also has:
Forbidden Planet (VP FORB & DVD FORB) (1956) (based on The Tempest--starring Anne Francis and Leslie Neilsen)
Kiss Me Kate (VP KISS) (1953) (musical based on The Taming of the Shrew--starring Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel)
10 Things I Hate About You (DVD TENT) (1999) (based on The Taming of the Shrew-- starring Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger)
"O" (DVD O)(2001) (based on Othello--starring Julia Stiles, Josh Hartnett, and Mehki Phifer)
Ran (Foreign VP RAN JPN & DVD RAN JPN)(1985) (based on King Lear--directed by Akira Kurosawa)

We also have the film Shakespeare in Love (VP SHAK & DVD SHAK) (1998) (starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes).

A very different presentation of "all" of the plays can be found on The Reduced Shakespeare Company (VP 822.33 SHA) (2000) ("37 plays in two hours")

There is also a 4-episode documentary called In Search of Shakespeare (VP 822.33 INS) (2003).