Shakespeare's Macbeth: Differences Between The Play And The Movie

Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is a classic tragedy that has been performed for centuries and has had many adaptations. The 2015 movie adaptation directed by Justin Kurzel and starring Michael Fassbender as the Scottish lord Macbeth and Marion Cotillard as Lady Macbeth. While the movie states true to the basic plot and characters of the play, there are some differences in how the story is presented. The first difference between the movie and the play is the visual style. Kurzel’s Macbeth is a dark and gritty film with desaturated colours which creates a bleak and oppressive atmosphere. In contrast, Shakespeare uses language to create the sense of foreboding and doom that permeates the story. In Act 1, scene 1, the three witches speak in rhyming

In the play, Macbeth is a complex and conflicted character whose descent into madness is gradual. Shakespeare’s language allows readers or viewers of the original play to see inside the mind of Macbeth and understand his motivations. In Act 1, Scene 7, Macbeth struggles with his conscience as he contemplates killing King Duncan. “If it were done when ‘tis done, then ‘twere well, it were done quickly (1.7.1-2).” In the 2015 movie, Fassbender’s Macbeth is a brooding and intense figure whose inner turmoil is conveyed through his physical presence. There are several scenes where Macbeth is shown alone, staring into the distance or pacing as if wrestling with some internal demon. Lady Macbeth is another who is portrayed differently. In the play, Lady Macbeth is a powerful and manipulative figure who goads her husband into committing murder then she herself covers it up. Her famous soliloquy in Act 1, Scene 5 in which she calls on spirits to “unsex” her and fill her with “direst cruelty” is a chilling portrayal of a woman who is willing to sacrifice her own humanity for the sake of ambition. “Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty (1.5.47-50).” In the movie, Cotillard’s Lady Macbeth is a more sympathetic character who seems to love her husband and is haunted by his