I don't know of any other performer today who can convey so much just by sitting still and staring ahead silently as Florence Pugh does. Whether it's in Midsommer or here, she reveals so much just with her eyes and face. We can always tell what she's thinking and feeling, whether it's fear and shattered sanity in Midsommer or ruthless cunning and calculation in Lady Macbeth.
Despite what the title suggests, Lady Macbeth is not an adaptation, traditional or otherwise, of Shakespeare's play. When I sat down to watch it, I assumed it was based on the historical novel by Susan Fraser King, a gritty take reworking of Macbeth told from the point of view of Lady Macbeth. That novel is worth a read and certainly would make for an interesting movie as well.
This movie is based on an 1865 novella by Nikolai Leskov. While it draws on the themes and a few other ideas from Shakespeare, it is its own beast and not a direct parallel to the original story. There are no witches, no prophecies on the Moors, no clashing armies, no phantasmic visions. In fact, nothing supernatural seems to occur or is even suggested.
This is the story of a young woman, forced into a loveless marriage, who will do anything to secure her wealth, position, and status, whether that's lie, cheat, steal, exploit racial attitudes of the day, or even murder.
Unlike the King novel, we are not asked to sympathize with Katherine. Early on, we can feel bad for her situation - the boredom, the loneliness, the lack of options for a woman of this time period - but as the movie progresses, we are not asked to excuse or accept her actions as they become indefensible. Cheating on a husband who doesn't love her is one thing, but not everyone caught in her path is so vile. Innocent people suffer because of what she does, but to Katherine, they are acceptable collateral damage, not worthy of being mourned.
Anna, the housemaid, is one such victim. Unlike Katherine, Anna is both lower class and black. Regardless of the truth, Katherine as a rich, white woman will be believed on a matter of principle before anyone takes a word of what Anna says seriously, and Katherine uses this cruelly to her advantage.
The film is gorgeous, rich in period details and sinister, repressed atmosphere. The estate has a twisted, at times claustrophobic nature that we feel Katherine's earlier boredom and frustration and her later sense of entrapment.
Lady Macbeth is not shy about sex and nudity, although more is suggested than shown. The sex scenes have a fierce sense of release and rebellion. Katherine sleeps with Sebastian because of what he is and what he represents - a spirit of defiance - and less out of love and affection. These aren't tender lovers; they tear at each in wild ecstasy (Roger Ebert would say it's the kind of sex where you hope no one got hurt).
Lady Macbeth, the character, is ruthless and manipulative, but ultimately, she goes mad, unable to live with what she and her husband do. Katherine, if anything, becomes harder and colder. One crime leads to more crimes. She accepts being the villain of her story, and if she can't live happily with that fact, she can at least live with what it's gotten her.
No comments:
Post a Comment