Titus [DVD]

William Shakespeare's tragedy "Titus Andronicus" gets something of a Baz Luhrmann "Romeo & Juliet" style treatment from director Julie Taymor, in her visionary film adaptation of the play, "Titus," starring Anthony Hopkins and Jessica Lange. It's one of the more brutal and disturbing offerings from the bard, who seeks to expose the myriad chambers of darkness that can be found within the human psyche, which Taymor (who also wrote the screenplay) ferrets out and presents to optimum-- if often disconcerting-- effect. It's a tale of revenge and madness; of revenge born of grief, and madness born of sorrows layered upon sorrows that are simply beyond the endurance of mortal man, the attendant emotions of which Taymor captures in a tapestry of images plaited throughout this blood stirring drama, making it-- for better or worse (as this is one that's definitely going to "stay" with you awhile)-- an altogether unforgettable motion picture experience.A soldier for forty years, General Titus Andronicus (Hopkins) has commanded the Roman legions to countless victories on the field of battle, and along with his army is just returned home from their latest conquest. Once in Rome, Titus will oversee the ceremonial salute to the fallen and the burial of those who died in battle; then he will attend to his prisoners, the Queen of the Goths, Tamora (Lange) and her three sons. For Titus, life is in order and all is well; but though he doesn't realize it yet, all of that is about to change.Titus has four sons, but it is his only daughter, the beautiful Lavinia (Laura Fraser), who will play a leading role in the drama that is about to unfold, which begins with the untimely death of Caesar. Though it is but an opinion, when Titus is asked which of Caesar's son's he favors for succession, Saturninus (Alan Cumming) or Bassianus (James Frain), his choice holds sway, and subsequently triggers an irreversible chain of events which ultimately beget the final tragedy of the story. Before the end, however, Titus Andronicus will suffer the agonies of hell; but into that dark night, he will not go quietly.Within the first few minutes of a film, a good director will let you know what you're in for, and Taymor succeeds in doing so here. The riveting opening sequence, in which Titus and his soldiers march in hypnotic cadence into Rome, sets the style and tone for all that follows. Taymor's staging and choreography are brilliant; orchestrated to draw in the audience and hold them, and she does, in absolutely mesmerizing fashion. Set in ancient Rome, Taymor nevertheless refuses to be bound by the parameters of "era," going "out of the box" to draw upon and blend time periods in an effort to realize her personal vision and bring her imaginative presentation of the play to fruition. There are microphones, for example, in front of the Capitol; and in procession through the streets of Rome, chariots are preceded and/or followed by automobiles and motorcycles. All of which is played out against a rhythm of excitement that effectively impacts the drama, bringing it all so vibrantly to life. To find the true pulse of the story, Taymor evokes a sense of Olivier/Welles/Branagh and fuses it with a combination of Luhrmann and "West Side Story," which makes her film not only emotionally involving and compelling, but visually stunning as well. And though she draws upon the best of the best to make her film all that it can be, what you see on the screen it pure Taymor; the expression of a unique and inimitable artistic genius.As Titus, Anthony Hopkins gives a solid, if not his best, performance. His portrayal is thoroughly convincing (which goes without saying, of course, with Hopkins), but the usual pure and resonant timbre of his voice occasionally and quite noticeably falters, though his elocution remains a study in perfection. An actor who can play any role, Hopkins may always be remembered as Hannibal in "Silence of the Lambs," but without question, he was born to play Shakespeare. One would think, in fact, that his resume would be filled with cinematic adaptations of such; curiously, however, it is not. And while his Titus may be comparatively sub-standard "Hopkins," in the end, he manages to make the role his own with yet another memorable performance.Initially, casting Jessica Lange as Tamora seems an odd choice, inasmuch as this is her first foray into the Shakespearian arena. In the final analysis, however, it is very much in keeping with the less than conventional approach Taymor employs here, and Lange comports herself well with her portrayal of the malevolent Queen of the Goths. She lends a definitive physical countenance to the role, and in her eyes you can discern the shadows that plague her soul and the fire that sparks her quest for revenge. It's a performance that goes far in demonstrating that Lange is, indeed, a consummate actor, with a range that substantiates her stature as an Oscar winner.Also turning in performances of note are Cumming, who is deliciously loathsome as Saturninus; Fraser, whose Lavinia is endearingly fragile and vulnerable; and Harry J. Lennix as the manipulative, despicable Moor, Aaron.The supporting cast includes Colm Feore (Marcus Andronicus), Angus MacFadyen (Lucius), Osheen Jones (Young Lucius), Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (Chiron), Matthew Rhys (Demetrius), Kenny Doughty (Quintus), Blake Ritson (Mutius), Colin Wells (Martius), Raz Degan (Alarbus), Ettore Geri (Priest) and Constantine Gregory (Aemelius). There's no escaping the fact that the story of "Titus" is gruesome, to say the least. Many will find it offensive, even insufferable, especially the ending, which is a sordid business no matter how you slice it. But the vigor and vision of Taymor's production makes it engrossing, stimulating entertainment that is entirely accessible and will appeal to an audience that transcends hard core Shakespeare aficionados. If not madness, there is definitely magic in her method, which is more than evident on the screen. And that's the magic of the movies.

The critics have historically rated Titus Andronicus as a weak early work of the great Shakespeare. Yet Julie Taymor's film interpretation is startling in its presentation, challenging the viewer with visually shocking scenes and superb acting so as to allow the viewer to reconsider this work. Even though I found the play to be blood thirsty and cruel with rash behaviors contrasted against devious and evil plots, the quality of the acting propels the film forward and the unique set designs and costumes continually keep the eye amused even when the plot becomes preposterous.The storyline is centered around the mindless violence that humans inflict upon other humans, the desire for revenge which can take on a drive like thirst or hunger, the nature of sarcastic cruelty that objectifies another human being and thus makes it permissible to torture them. It is about power, the consequences for rejecting power, and the consequences of confronting power.Titus is a man who makes many mistakes. He is superbly played by Anthony Hopkins. He makes a series of mistakes that set the world against him. He selects to make a human sacrifice of the eldest son of the Goth Queen Tamora, setting her on a path of vengeance that does not end. He kills one of his own sons for disobeying him when the sons were making decisions based on genuine regard for the wellbeing of their sister whereas Titus had begun to make decisions in the rare air of honorable loyalty to an Emperor who did not deserve the crown. He is offered the throne by the Senate and yet he gives it to the decadent eldest son of the emperor rather than to his upright younger brother and beloved of Titus' daughter Lavinia. He makes a series of terrible judgments and brings terrible ruin upon his family and himself. The emotions of Titus are not predictable or stereotypical. For he laughs at the death of his sons as he contemplates their severed heads. He is cold matter-of-fact when he encounters the vile tortures inflicted on his beloved daughter. He rashly trades one of his hands in a bad deal that he foolishly and emotionally falls into. But the redeeming aspect of the story is that finally Titus gets smart. He finally becomes cunning and acts like he has gone insane. He finally learns to control and hide his emotions and his revenge becomes as sweet and terrible upon Tamora as her cruelty had been to him. In his final scenes, Hopkins gleefully dances in his revenge as he watches Tamora eat a meat pie made from her two younger sons. And then we see the coldest of calculations as he breaks the neck of his poor tortured daughter whom he knows he can not longer protect.Jessica Lange is wonderful as Tamora, the Goth Queen, who rises from a poor and dirty political prisoner of Titus, to the wife of the Emperor and thus in a position to carefully plot and execute revenge on Titus and his family for the death of her elder son. Tamora is a wonderful character with an outstanding wide range of emotions displayed. She is the cunning advisor to the foolish young Emperor and seductress to the handsome black slave, Aaron the Moor. I found some of her strongest scenes to be when she begs for the life of her eldest son and when she must deny Lavinia assistance as Tamora's two younger sons rape Lavinia, cut out her tongue, and cut off her hands.Tamora's handsome black lover, Aaron the Moor, is a fascinating character for he is a slave taken from his people, and having a brilliant and wicked mind, he plots great evil deeds and pits the two warring families together like a master chess player. He finds most of the people in either family to be highly suggestible fools. Harry Lennix is a fantastic actor in a chilling role. I understand that this may be the first black character in English drama. How wonderful that he is a character of shrewd cunning cruelty. The scene where he tricks Titus into cutting off his hand, the scene where he kills the nurse who brings him his illegitimate newborn son, and the scene where he negotiates for his son's life by confessing all his deeds are all three totally superb chilling acting.All the cast were powerful. Laura Fraser is fragile and beautiful as Lavinia. Michael Gross was outstanding as Marcus, the brother of Titus. Angus McFadyen is masterful and believable as Lucius, the elder son of Titus. Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Matthew Rhys play the parts of the queen's two younger sons, totally wild and decadent and cruel. Alan Cumming's was good as he Emperor Saturnalis, but he screams many of his lines.This tale of dismemberment, torture, cannibalism, and revenge is blazing hot in this interpretation.

Titus is a strong, bloody, murderous play and who better to cast as the lead in a movie production than Anthony Hopkins. Hopkins brings the right amount of high drama, machismo and madness to the character of Titus. He's the right age for the part, he looks the part and, obviously, has the theatrical experience to lend a good deal of credibility to a hugely complicated character.Jessica Lang, Queen Goth Tamora, gives a good performance and finds the right balance of warrior, seductress, lover and grieving mother in her war of hate against Titus.This is a story of retribution, family loyalty and wicked deception featuring war weary Roman army officers, Roman and Goth nobility and those hostages, slaves, taken during battle. They're involved in scenes of human sacrifice and driven by a need for revenge so dreadful it leads to the assault and torture of a young woman. Those scenes are brutal but pivotal. It's here we're asked to decide whether or not Titus loses his mind to grief or; is he such a brilliant military strategist it's all part of a bigger plan?. Who will win this ultimate battle?. The Romans or the Goths?. Or is it that revenge so powerful will consume itself and everone in it's path?. The film concludes with a good deal of blood and a high body count.My negatives; I would have preferred a little more clarity into character motivation. Had I not read the play I wouldn't have understood much of Titus from the film. Queen Tamora is better presented. Her reasoning and need for blood are better shown but; what I really didn't care for were the opening scenes. They're set in current times and are just too random. Once they're done with and the 'real' Titus begins it's actually a decent performance.The film runs for 156 minutes, has English subtitles and an 18 certificate due to "..strong sex and violence and sexual violence theme..".

A truly wonderful production that leaves the awful “recent” I’ll judged RSC version standing in the dark. The brilliant actors and intelligent director elucidate a difficult play and show both its true quality and contemporary relevance. Highly recommended.

As soon as you see the name Sir Anthony Hopkins Hanibal Lecter springs to mind and this could have been his Great Uncle! Truly one of the most gruesome of Shakespeares plays this version was extremely convincing with a Stellar cast. I like the twist of mix between ancient and modern particularly the polling type rally for the top position. Politically Rome was very much like our modern voting systems so the blend mixed very well. If you are new to the story you will find it very harrowing with little love or compassion. The fight for power is absolute and the one upmanship over powers everything. The human body is a case for mutilation to make a moot point and the whole play has an abatoir essence to it. The violence is only topped with more violence and its very difficult to accept any one of the characters actions. Shakespeare produced a carnal horror and this version shows that fully.

A very bad version of the play, even by Hollywood standards. Amazed that Anthony Hopkins got involved with it. I could only watch for a short while before I switched off. Life is too short to see this rubbish.

A different take on one of Shakespeare's lesser known tragic characters. Great performances all round from Anthony Hopkins to Jessica Lange. Beaufifully shot and directored. Like all Shakespeare plays the story is good but for the audience that doesn't either understand his languge or doesn't like the language it would have been interesting if the language was translated to a modern audience. This might have given the film more of an audience and profile because unlike some of Shakespeare's more notable plays there is no 'quotable' dialogue. We must face the facts that some people enjoy Shakespeare stories but struggle to keep up with the language. Just a thought. As for me it was visually superb and enjoyable to watch.