Pop Shakespeare
6 Episodes
Every era gets its own Shakespeare, from the genius championed by the Romantics to the Bard who inspired Orson Welles and Laurence Olivier—and the age of MTV is no exception. Beginning in the late 1970s, modern-dress adaptations on both sides of the Atlantic spliced Shakespeare’s plays with the shiny trappings of contemporary pop culture. From indie luminaries (Gus Van Sant) and exploitation artists (Abel Ferrara) to stage-trained specialists (Kenneth Branagh) and superhero showmen (Joss Whedon), everyone wanted a crack at the English language’s greatest poet and dramatist. With their earworm-packed soundtracks, razzle-dazzle anachronisms, and dreamy casts, these ecstatically inspired films are such stuff as dreams are made on.
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1:44:15Episode 1
My Own Private Idaho
Episode 1
Directed by Gus Van Sant • 1991 • United States
Starring River Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, William RichertRiver Phoenix and Keanu Reeves star in this haunting tale from Gus Van Sant about two young street hustlers: Mike Waters, a sensitive narcoleptic who dreams of the mother who abandoned him, and ...
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1:35:21Episode 2
The Tempest
Episode 2
Directed by Derek Jarman • 1979 • United Kingdom
Starring Peter Bull, David Meyer, Neil CunninghamDerek Jarman transforms William Shakespeare’s final great play—about the magician Prospero (Heathcote Williams), who lives on an enchanted island with his daughter, Miranda (Toyah Willcox), and exa...
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1:30:33Episode 3
China Girl
Episode 3
Directed by Abel Ferrara • 1987 • United States Starring James Russo, Richard Panebianco, Sari Chang
Auteur of sin and sleaze Abel Ferrara brings his inimitable brand of pulp poetry to this gritty,...
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Tempest
Episode 4
Directed by Paul Mazursky • 1982 • United States
Starring John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Susan SarandonPaul Mazursky updates the Bard in this loose, modern-day interpretation of Shakespeare’s THE TEMPEST. After he discovers that his wife (Gena Rowlands) is having an affair, New York architect ...
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1:34:03Episode 5
Love’s Labour’s Lost
Episode 5
Directed by Kenneth Branagh • 2000 • United Kingdom
Starring Kenneth Branagh, Alessandro Nivola, Adrian Lester, Matthew Lillard, Alicia SilverstoneA Y2K-era adaptation of Shakespeare’s sixteenth-century romantic comedy done in the style of a classic 1930s musical? Celebrated Shakespearean Sir K...
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1:48:58Episode 6
Much Ado About Nothing
Episode 6
Directed by Joss Whedon • 2012 • United States Starring Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Nathan Fillion
Joss Whedon brings a feisty screwball energy to this sly and sexy modern update of Shakespeare’s cla...