Shakespearean Tragedies return to the Big Screen

With 2004's the "The Merchant of Venice" and last year's "The Tempest" Shakespeare's comedies have become done more often than his critically acclaimed tragedies. "Hamlet" has been performed on camera many times in addition to it's numerous stage production. In 1948, Sir Laurence Olivier's portrayal of the classic tale was the only Shakespeare movie to win best picture, unless you count "West Side Story," which is loosely based on "Romeo and Juliet."

In 2012, we will see young Oscar nominee for "True Grit," Hailee Steinfeld portray Juliet in a new version of "Romeo and Juliet" also starring academy award winner, Holly Hunter as the nurse. But before the classics are done again, this Friday comes Coriolanus. The buzz here is that Ralph Fiennes, a well known British stage and film actor, is on his way to becoming a legendary Shakespearean director, much like Sir Olivier and Kenneth Branagh, who in 1996 did a four hour film adaptation of "Hamlet", my personal favorite version.

"Coriolanus" was originally a Roman epic, but has been re-imagined in modern times and filmed Serbia. Ralph Fiennes spent three years working with "Gladiator" screenwriter John Logan on perfecting the adaptation. As someone who has written feature length screenplays in one semester for classes, I find it amazing the challenges faced in bringing Shakespeare to the screen. All Shakespeare's plays are dialogue heavy with little stage directions, unlike screenplays.

The trailer for "Coriolanus" makes an epic appearance. Mr. Fiennes says that he plans to do "Antony and Cleopatra" next, which will have to compete with another "Cleopatra" movie starring Angelina Jolie, whom I think of as a modern Elizabeth Taylor. The success of Coriolanus will determine the outcome of Shakespeare's continued box office success. It opens this friday in New York and Los Angeles and expands nationwide on January 12th. I can't wait to see. "Make you a blockbuster of Shakespeare."