THE TEMPEST
UK/US, 2010, 115 minutes. Colour.
Helen Mirren, Russell Brand, Reeve Carney, Tom Conti, Chris Cooper, Alan Cumming, Djimon Hounsou, Felicity Jones, Alfred Molina, David Strathairn, Ben Whishaw.
Directed by Julie Taymor.
While The Tempest receives a lot of attention from Shakespearean scholars and aficionados, it is stil overshadowed by the tragedies and some of the histories. It comes from Shakespeare’s later career, a period of some melancholy and winter’s tales.
For many, Julie Taymor’s adaptation of the text and imaginative presentation will bring The Tempest alive. She did it quite spectacularly and frighteningly for her version of Titus Andronicus, Titus. The world of The Tempest is a more magical world, a world of tragic-comedy.
Julie Taymore has done another innovative thing. She has turned Prospero into Prospera – with comparatively little change to the text. This offers an opportunity for Helen Mirren to take on a traditional male role. And she performs magnificently. She is a dominating screen presence. She articulates the verse both clearly and emotionally. She communicates the meaning of her character and the play, the experience of her being deposed in and exiled from Milan, he r life on the remote island where she is able to perfect her magician’s arts as well as care for her daughter, Miranda.
As the film opens, there is a huge, literal tempest – and one listened in dismaying anticipation because it was very difficult to hear and discern what they were saying. Would the whole film be like this? Fortunately, not. Once Prospera begins to speak, it is clear and meaningful.
The other advantage of a screen version is the possibility of special effects. The tempest is an obvious one, but there are moments when Prospera conjures up a mysterious sky with diagrams of stars and constellations, which means that we are in a magical world, not to be observed as naturalism or realism. But, the device of having Ariel as a fey white, naked creature who can be a will o’ the wisp and dart around the island, be larger than the ship on which he is blowing and arrive with the speed of light, makes the magic world more credible. Ariel is played by the rather ethereal Ben Whishaw.
The cast for the nobility washed ashore is electic but effective: David Strathairn as the King, grieving for his drowned son, Chris Cooper as Ontonio, Prospera’s treacherous brother, Alan Cumming as the disloyal brother of the king – and an opportunity to relish the presence of Tom Conti and his distinctive voice as old Gonzalo, the sage.
And Caliban? This Caliban has been harshly dealt with by Prospera and is her slave. But this Caliban elicits some sympathy and some pity, played in a combination of the monstrous and the human by Djimon Hounsou.
We are not as fond of the humour in Shakespeare’s plays of the comic figures who are introduced to entertain the ‘groundlings’. They are rather good here, even if the humour sometimes seems quaint and silly. Russell Brand simply does his thing, accent, intonations, faces and all. And it works. Alfred Molina is also very good in bringing this comedy to life.
Felicity Jones is nice as Miranda but Reeve Carney seems too boyish (with a rather thin and reedy voice for his song) as Ferdinand.
One wonders where the film-makers found such varied landscapes of barren rock, craters and crevices, crags and shorelines. The answer is Hawaii.
Shakespeare’s principal themes are all here: the state, power usurped and restored; romantic love and hope; and a figure who could be tragic but who draws on her heart as well as her mind, relinquishes her magical control and comes back to ordinary life after forgiving the wrongs against her.
This version of The Tempest opens up the play – and would be worth seeing (and listening to) again.
1. The reputation of The Tempest, for Shakespearean audiences, for Shakespearean scholars? Coming at the end of Shakespeare’s career, elegiac? Poetic?
2. The text, its poetry, imagination, the blend of realism and magic, romance, politics? Ageing, self-acceptance, freedom? The lyrics of the song during the final credits and the emphasis on freedom?
3. Julie Taymor’s adaptation of the text for the screen? The focus on Prospera, her life history, her plans, magic abilities, Miranda and Ferdinand and their marriage, the tempest and political revenge, the sailors and the groundling comedy, Caliban and Ariel?
4. The Hawaiian location photography, mountains, the barren areas, the desert, the cliffs and ravines, the cliffs and the sea? The location for a magic world?
5. The interiors, Prospera’s cell, her cave and the clothes, Caliban’s cave?
6. The special effects, Ariel and his appearance, white face, the multi-Ariels, the speed of movement, the geometric designs, especially for Ariel’s freedom at the end? The face, larger than the ship, blowing the ship...? The tempest, the visuals of the heavens and the various diagrams of the heavens? The magic world?
7. Costumes and decor, Prospera and Miranda, the nobles, the comic characters, Caliban and his makeup and design?
8. The tempest as real, Prospera in control, her wand, Miranda and her plea for the people on board? Prospera moved, stopping the tempest, bringing everyone to safety?
9. Prospera and the change of gender for this film? Its effect? Helen Mirren and her performance, appearance, her diction, recitation of the poetry, bringing to life the meanings of her words, of the themes of the play? Prospera in herself, remembering her history, the visuals, her ruling in Milan, the death of her husband, her being deposed, exiled with Miranda, Gonzalo and his kindness, giving her the books? Her setting up her cell on the island? Her experiments in studies? Her plan for Miranda, Ferdinand and his courtship? The hostility to Caliban, the memories of his mother the witch, the history of hostility? Caliban as a slave? Ariel and Ariel’s history, the visuals of his being imprisoned in the tree? His wanting his freedom, serving Prospera? Her will and control? The end, gathering all the characters together, happy with Miranda and Ferdinand, drawing the circle of fire, accusing her brother and the king, offering forgiveness, freeing Ariel, the final confrontation with Caliban? The contrast between the ordinary world, the magic world, the exercise of power? Prospera challenged, throwing her wand into the sea and its smashing? Her returning to being a normal human being, happiness?
10. Miranda and her innocence, her relationship with her mother, life on the island, not remembering her life in Milan? Seeing Ferdinand and his beauty, falling in love? Her not having seen so many humans? Ferdinand and his work with the wood and Prospera watching, the song together, playing chess, the final happiness and marriage?
11. The four members of the court, the shipwreck, wandering the island, the differing terrains, the king and his dignity, his grief about his son, the memories of his past, going into the deep sleep? Antonio as Prospera’s brother, his past plots, combining with Sebastian to kill the king? The temptations? And yet Prospera forgiving?
12. Gonzalo, the wise old man, kind, his incessant talking, a happy man, happy at the end, the words of marriage?
13. Caliban and his origins, appearance, Prospera’s treatment, his work, his fear and hiding, his encounter with Trinculo, Trinculo hiding under his cloak? The meeting with Stephano, thinking him a God? The drinking? Kissing his foot? Following? The two comics and their treating him as a monster? His final banishment?
14. Trinulo and Stephano, the groundling comedy, the humour, the double meanings? The actors and their performance, words, accents, mime? As characters? With Prospera’s clothes? Being challenged at the end?
15. The place of The Tempest in Shakespeare’s career? The histories and tragedies of the past? The past comedies? The final group of Shakespeare’s plays, the touch of Winter’s Tales?
