This entry was posted in Main Page, Movies, Orson Welles by Lloydville. Welles’s original version is now available in a decent Blu-ray edition from Olive Films - well worth a look. In fact, it’s a more than respectable work, with many fine things it. Released October 1st, 1948, 'Macbeth' stars Orson Welles, Jeanette Nolan, Dan O'Herlihy, Roddy McDowall The movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 47 min, and received a user score of 74 (out of 100) on. Republic later re-released the film in a shortened version with the dialogue re-dubbed without the accents, and made its money back, but the film’s reputation never fully recovered. Welles hoped it would encourage Hollywood to take chances on similarly adventuresome projects that could be made cheaply, but it didn’t help that the film was a critical and commercial flop on its initial release, with many people complaining that the thick Scottish burrs Welles had the cast use made the dialogue incomprehensible. The film is really quite impressive considering the time and budget he did have for it. There are a couple of long scenes involving complex movement by the actors that play out in single shots - something Welles loved to do when he had the time and resources for it. Many of the shots, and the choreography of camera and performers within them, display Welles’s bravura style, and many of the images are boldly and beautifully lit. She conveys a furious sexuality and an erotic rage that chill the blood. She was a radio actress who’d never worked before on stage or screen, but she’s brilliant here. There’s even more magic in Jeanette Nolan’s Lady Macbeth. The magic comes from Welles’s performance - a corking rendition of the doomed Scot, very theatrical but inventive and well considered. Focus is not always precise, and there are a number of optical zooms to create shots that Welles wanted but didn’t have in the can. There are obvious lapses in continuity between shots, and lines have been looped in for actors who are obviously not speaking those particular words. The sets look cheesy - many of them were left over from Westerns made at the studio - as do the many process shots. ![]() It was shot in 23 days on a shoestring budget, and it shows. It’s a magic, however, that comes and goes. He makes sure you watch everyone's reactions to Macbeth's madness. Welles directed Macbeth with an acute eye for the most scary vibe and carefully framed shots with all characters in view. Orson Welles’s adaptation of the Scottish play is a fascinating film, not one of his greatest but full of magic. Macbeth (1948) is Orson Welles' dark and grim take on William Shakespeare's play about treachery, guilt, and paranoia.
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