Moviola > Films > The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice  (PG)   138 mins

Michael Radford directs this sumptuous big screen adaptation of Shakespeare, filmed in Venice and starring Jeremy Irons as the merchant of the title and Al Pacino as the ill-used and vengeful Shylock.  This sparkling new adaptation makes no attempt to avoid the issue of anti-semitism: it is clear from the opening scenes that it will tackle the racist elements of the play head on. The first time we see Shylock he is spat upon by the merchant of the play's title before returning to his segregated Jewish ghetto. The cursory and commonplace way in which this racism is meted out pervades the film, and gives Shylock strong impetus to claim his pound of flesh.  Can it then be called a comedy, or is it more properly a tragedy, or somewhere in-between? The suitors' quest to decipher the code of Portia's caskets gives the play a frothy, comical air. But it is counter-balanced with a dark heart in the form of the brutal treatment handed out to Shylock. Radford's adaptation gives due weight to both.  

"Al Pacino is absolutely electric in the part, from the moment we zoom in on him at a local butcher’s. He is chopping a lump of meat out of a dead goat as if he was carving a diamond. He carefully wraps up his bloody purchase in a piece of sackcloth and then turns around, blanks the camera, and strikes his chilling bargain with Antonio with as much emotion as a machine punching out a Tube ticket."  James Christopher, The Times

"Al Pacino, with his deep, guttural voice and aggressive delivery, gets right that balance between wounded dignity and the bottled-up desire for revenge that makes for a successful Shylock"   Philip French, The Observer

"Michael Radford's fresh, lucid and unpretentious screen revival of The Merchant of Venice is raised above the commonplace by a brilliant performance from Al Pacino as Shylock"  Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

www.imdb.com/title/tt0379889/

Last modified: 10-Dec-2009

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