Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice is one of William Shakespeare's best-known plays, written sometime between 1594 and 1597. Although it is sometimes classified as a comedy and shares certain aspects with the other romantic comedies, it is perhaps more remembered for its dramatic scenes (particularly the trial scene) and is best known for its portrayal of the Jew Shylock, which has raised questions of anti-semitism.

The title character is the merchant Antonio, not the more famous villain, the Jewish moneylender Shylock, who is the play's chief antagonist. Though Shylock is a tormented character, he is also a tormentor, so whether he is to be viewed with disdain or sympathy is up to the audience. The play is accordingly sometimes classified as one of Shakespeare's problem plays.

 

The Merchant of Venice (2004 film)

The Merchant of Venice is a 2004 movie based on Shakespeare's play with the same name.

It follows the text very closely, only missing lines here and there. The director, Michael Radford, believed that Shylock was Shakespeare's first tragic hero, who reaches a catastrophe due to his own flaws: thus the film does not show Shylock purely as a villain, but partly also as a victim. It begins with text and a montage of how the Jewish community is cruelly abused by the bigoted Christian population of Venice. One of the last shots of the film also brings attention to the fact that, as a convert, Shylock would have been cast out of the Jewish community in Venice, no longer allowed to live in the ghetto.

Profile
Directed by Michael Radford
Produced by Cary Brokaw, Michael Cowan
Written by Michael Radford
Starring Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, Joseph Fiennes, Lynn Collins
Music by Jocelyn Pook
Cinematography Benoît Delhomme
Editing by Lucia Zucchetti
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Running time 138 min.

 

Film adaptations

The Shakespeare play has inspired several movies. The following are the best known:

• 2007(?)— The Merchant of Venice (2007 film) written by John Logan (writer)
  • The cast will include Sir Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart and be set in a Las Vegas casino.
  • Filming to start in late 2006.
• 2004—The Merchant of Venice (2004 film) directed by Michael Radford.
  • The cast included Al Pacino as Shylock, Jeremy Irons as Antonio, Joseph Fiennes as Bassanio, Lynn Collins as Portia, Zuleikha Robinson as Jessica.
  • The Merchant of Venice at the Internet Movie Database
• 2001—A BBC television film directed by Trevor Nunn
  • Royal National Theatre production starring Henry Goodman as Shylock
  • The Merchant of Venice at the Internet Movie Database
• 1980—A BBC television film directed by Jack Gold
  • The cast included Warren Mitchell as Shylock and John Rhys-Davies as Salerio
  • The Merchant of Venice at the Internet Movie Database
• 1973—television film directed by John Sichel
  • The cast included Laurence Olivier as Shylock, Anthony Nicholls as Antonio, Jeremy Brett as Bassanio, Joan Plowright as Portia, Louise Purnell as Jessica.
  • The Merchant of Venice at the Internet Movie Database
• 1914—silent movie directed by Lois Weber
  • Weber, who also stars as Portia, became the first woman to direct a full-length feature film with this film.
  • The Merchant of Venice at the Internet Movie Database

 

See also the section Venice in movies...

 

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It uses material from the Wikipedia article "The Merchant of Venice"