A Comparison of Shakespeares Macbeth and Rupert Goolds...

William Shakespeare’s masterpiece, Macbeth, is a tragedy brilliantly brought to the 21st Century by Rupert Goold. Although Shakespeare’s Macbeth is a play set in 16th Century Scotland, Rupert Goold modernizes the play by changing the setting to a Soviet-styled country and implementing modern elements into the characters and theme. Although Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Rupert Goold’s film adaptation share many ideologies and a general storyline, a difference exists in the setting, the characters, and the overall ambience of the story. In an effort to successfully relate the plot to his audience, Rupert Goold places the setting for Macbeth in a bleak, militaristic, Society-styled state, described by critic Ben Brantley as a â€Å"joyless, stark†¦show more content†¦Through the manipulation of gazes, viewers of Rupert Goold’s film are able to experience the thoughts and consciousness of Macbeth. As what critic Ben Brantley describes as â€Å"raw susceptibility,† Lady Macbeth foreshadows danger through Macbeth’s poses. Rupert Goold successfully effuses more fear into the film by implementing staging devices and symbolism. Through the croaking of a raven and haunting background music, Goold subjects his viewers to the same state of agitation and rage felt by the characters. Goold emphasizes symbolism by using physical instruments such as a figurine, suggestive of the former Thane of Cowder. Through the figurine, the characters and the viewers, alike, are fixated by the prophecies mad e by the witches. The presence of a state of Hell is evident in the film. Unlike the witches’ cave in Shakespeare’s cave, the nurses of the film reveal their prophecies in an industrial room, only accessible through a caged elevator. The area, described by critic Nicholas de Jongh is an â€Å"atmosphere of existential strangeness†¦ a murky limbo.† At the end of play, after the beheading of Macbeth, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are seen descending into the room, presumably entering the gates of Hell. By using the state of Hell, Rupert Goold makes his film more dramatic and frightening. The murder scenes of Rupert Goold’s film share similar elements ofShow MoreRelatedCompare And Contrast Rupert Goold And Macbeth Essay1225 Words   |  5 PagesShakespeare. Macbeth, was first performed in 1606. This play details a Scottish general named Macbeth who receives a prediction from a trio of witches that believes in the future he will become the king of Scotl and. Disbursed by political ambition and urged to action by his wife, Grouch, Macbeth murders king Duncan and takes over the throne himself. Yet, in return Macbeth then suffers from liability and paranoia. Copious amounts of adaptations have been made to modernise the 16th Century play. Rupert Goold’s