Merchant of Venice - Radford vs. Nunn
The story Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare is a timeless classic that many people know and love. It is a comical yet moving text that touches on many relatable topics including love, friendship, loss, confliction, and hatred. Although there are undoubtedly many film version of this piece, there are two that are often debated on. The first is the version created by Michael Radford in 2004, and the second is the version created by Trevor Nunn in 2001. Overall, the Michael Radford version of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is better because the acting was of a higher quality, there was a better use of production elements such as costumes and set, and the setting of the story stayed true to the original Shakespeare script.
After watching just the first 10 minutes of both Nunn and Radford’s films, it is made incredibly clear that the actors in Radford’s film have had much more experience than those in Nunn’s film, due to the simple fact that Radford’s actors have an obvious understanding of the material they are reciting and are able to …show more content…
One of the most important themes in Merchant of Venice is the tension between Shylock, a Jew, and Antonio, a Christian. The story talks about the specific trials that Shylock goes through as a Jew, and the interactions between Antonio and Shylock depend on that vital point. By changing the time period that the story takes place in, you lose the poignancy of Shylock’s struggle, because the religious and social circumstances in the 1920s (the time period in which Trevor Nunn’s film takes place), are drastically different than those in the 16th century (when both Shakespeare’s original text and the Michael Radford film take
The story Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare is a timeless classic that many people know and love. It is a comical yet moving text that touches on many relatable topics including love, friendship, loss, confliction, and hatred. Although there are undoubtedly many film version of this piece, there are two that are often debated on. The first is the version created by Michael Radford in 2004, and the second is the version created by Trevor Nunn in 2001. Overall, the Michael Radford version of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is better because the acting was of a higher quality, there was a better use of production elements such as costumes and set, and the setting of the story stayed true to the original Shakespeare script.
After watching just the first 10 minutes of both Nunn and Radford’s films, it is made incredibly clear that the actors in Radford’s film have had much more experience than those in Nunn’s film, due to the simple fact that Radford’s actors have an obvious understanding of the material they are reciting and are able to …show more content…
One of the most important themes in Merchant of Venice is the tension between Shylock, a Jew, and Antonio, a Christian. The story talks about the specific trials that Shylock goes through as a Jew, and the interactions between Antonio and Shylock depend on that vital point. By changing the time period that the story takes place in, you lose the poignancy of Shylock’s struggle, because the religious and social circumstances in the 1920s (the time period in which Trevor Nunn’s film takes place), are drastically different than those in the 16th century (when both Shakespeare’s original text and the Michael Radford film take