This week one of my favorite adaptations of Shakespeare's great work
Macbeth;
Scotland, PA. It is set in the mid 70's with Macbeth named Joe Mcbeth(James Legros); working in a diner for it's owner Norm Duncan(James Rebhorn). "Lady" Mcbeth is played very convincingly by Maura Tierney with Christopher Walken rounding out the excellent cast as Lt Ernie Mcduff.
While you would think such a setting would reduce the drama of such a great play it does not. While it is written more as a dark comedy it is still very dark particularly Tierney's Lady Macbeth. The Mcbeth's have become increasingly tired of not receiving recognition for what they do for Duncan. After an encounter with "the three witches" here portrayed amusingly as hippies Joe gets a glimpse of the future which involves a Drive Thru. The following day Duncan reveals his plans for a drive thru to the couple and Joe realizes that he has been given the opportunity to change his fate. With the prodding of his "lady" they decide to kill Duncan and move forward with his idea. Though there are a few false starts they achieve their goal not without Pat getting burnt on her hand by some oil from the deep fryer; hence the famous "Damn spot".
Everything seems to be going great for the Mcbeth's as Duncan's sons have no interest in the diner and are eager to sell it to their father's loyal workers. Joe and Pat build the drive thru and business begins to boom. That is until Lt Mcduff starts to investigate the murder. Walken is perfect for the role seemingly confused but knows more than he lets on. Out of fear Pat once again manipulates Joe into killing the fry cook "Banko" whom she suspects knows the real story and may go to Mcduff.
As Mcduff continues to sniff around the diner Pat and Joe become more and more desperate and decide they must do something with him as well. It all spirals down to an very 70's climax that is fitting to the play. Overall it is very well acted from the leads to the supporting roles. It also boasts an excellent soundtrack for an indy film. All the elements seem so strange to use for
Macbeth but they are all crafted together perfectly in
Scotland, PA.
By far the best performance was Tierney's as Pat Mcbeth. As with any version of
Macbeth you must have a strong actress portraying the most famous manipulator in history or the adaptation will fail. I was skeptical of how well she would be in the role having only seen her on ER but she blew me away. I could see myself easily doing what she asked had I been in Joe's shoes. I only wish she had gotten some better roles after this but have not seen anything yet that approaches her level in this movie. So if you are in the mood for some Shakespeare and aren't looking to decipher his prose check out this somewhat modern version of one of, if not the best of his plays.
This week one of my favorite adaptations of Shakespeare's great work Macbeth; Scotland, PA. It is set in the mid 70's with Macbeth named Joe Mcbeth(James Legros); working in a diner for it's owner Norm Duncan(James Rebhorn). "Lady" Mcbeth is played very convincingly by Maura Tierney with Christopher Walken rounding out the excellent cast as Lt Ernie Mcduff.
While you would think such a setting would reduce the drama of such a great play it does not. While it is written more as a dark comedy it is still very dark particularly Tierney's Lady Macbeth. The Mcbeth's have become increasingly tired of not receiving recognition for what they do for Duncan. After an encounter with "the three witches" here portrayed amusingly as hippies Joe gets a glimpse of the future which involves a Drive Thru. The following day Duncan reveals his plans for a drive thru to the couple and Joe realizes that he has been given the opportunity to change his fate. With the prodding of his "lady" they decide to kill Duncan and move forward with his idea. Though there are a few false starts they achieve their goal not without Pat getting burnt on her hand by some oil from the deep fryer; hence the famous "Damn spot".
Everything seems to be going great for the Mcbeth's as Duncan's sons have no interest in the diner and are eager to sell it to their father's loyal workers. Joe and Pat build the drive thru and business begins to boom. That is until Lt Mcduff starts to investigate the murder. Walken is perfect for the role seemingly confused but knows more than he lets on. Out of fear Pat once again manipulates Joe into killing the fry cook "Banko" whom she suspects knows the real story and may go to Mcduff.
As Mcduff continues to sniff around the diner Pat and Joe become more and more desperate and decide they must do something with him as well. It all spirals down to an very 70's climax that is fitting to the play. Overall it is very well acted from the leads to the supporting roles. It also boasts an excellent soundtrack for an indy film. All the elements seem so strange to use for Macbeth but they are all crafted together perfectly in Scotland, PA.
By far the best performance was Tierney's as Pat Mcbeth. As with any version of Macbeth you must have a strong actress portraying the most famous manipulator in history or the adaptation will fail. I was skeptical of how well she would be in the role having only seen her on ER but she blew me away. I could see myself easily doing what she asked had I been in Joe's shoes. I only wish she had gotten some better roles after this but have not seen anything yet that approaches her level in this movie. So if you are in the mood for some Shakespeare and aren't looking to decipher his prose check out this somewhat modern version of one of, if not the best of his plays.
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