The Taming of the Shrew

loved this movie

Along with "The Comedy of Errors," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and "The Merry Wives of Windsor," I always liked this comedy of Shakespeare's. As usual, Director Franco Zeffirelli brings the written material to the screen better than any of us could have expected. Some people complained that it was a bit overdone and rompish, but remember, this is a comedy, so you can get away that. Basically, this story involves 2 subplots that the master Shakespeare cleverly intertwines. Lucentio (Michael York, whom you may recall as Tybalt in "Romeo and Juliet), along with 2 rivals (Hortensio and Gremio) are in love with Bianca. But the problem is, Bianca's father Baptista will not allow Bianca to marry until her older and more shrewish sister Kate (Elizabeth Taylor) marries. Financial negotiations are of course mandatory in the cases of marriage here, (and if we think that is in the past, we are only kidding ourselves). Well, moving on Kate's shrewish nature makes the prospect of this unlikely. So, Bianca's suitors team up to at least resolve the matter of Kate first. Some people feel this is a sexist play, but if we look at Isaac Asimov's views, we find the play is not so. Asimov convincingly explains in his book "Asimov's Guide To Shakespeare" the hidden picture. Bianca is not exactly so sweet. Rather, she is manipulative and has learned to monopolize her father's love, as well as the love of other people. We can also infer that Kate is not really a bad person. Rather, she is tired of the fact that her father virtually ignores her, and she is so scarred from this neglect, that she can't even see love when it is given (even though she so desperately wants it). And of course, the people who taunt her and tease her don't help the situation! Director Franco Zeffirelli does kind of hint at this. Moving on, in comes Petruchio (Richard Burton and Elizabeth's at the time husband). It may appear that Petruchio is only after the financial benefit of marrying Kate, but later situations prove otherwise. One charming bonus is that while Shakespeare has their wedding off stage, and explained, Mr. Zeffirelli shows the comical wedding for us to see. At first, it may seem that Petruchio is also cruel to Kate, but in reality, he is using a form of behavior modification, and if he did not love her, he wouldn't be going through the trouble that he does. In some ways, a more appropriate title to the play would be "The Rehabilitative Therapy of A Neglected Daughter." To be sure, Baptista is not exactly cruel to Kate, but he made no secret of the fact that he liked Bianca better. (Some parents try to at least hide the fact that they have a favorite child.) Well, Shakespeare switches back to the other plot, and Lucentio and Bianca can marry IF, Lucentio can prove he has the fortunes he says he does. Well, to do this, Lucentio hires someone to impersonate his father and negotiate. And all seems happy UNTIL, Lucentio's REAL FATHER comes for a visit, and runs into the man who is impersonating him! But leave it to Shakespeare to resolve everything, gives us a happy ending to both subplots, and bring everyone together for a feast and celebration.

I sure wish more people would see this and erase the tepid impression so many other films of Shakespeare's work have left on them. This is certainly one of the best of all those put on film. Taming of the Shrew is a funny work but hard to perform. Without the exactly correct actor, it loses half it's punch as it relies on the facial expressions that will translate the words into feeling. Hard to do from a centuries old work that has very little in the way of director's notes!This masterpiece has the three main elements to greatness locked up: Franco Zeffirelli as the director and Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton as the two main characters. Really, given the visual talent of Zeffirelli and the magnetic passion between Taylor and Burton, everything else is bound to fall into place.Like many others, I found the performances of some of the secondary characters not to my exact liking but I think, in retrospect, that it was simply that they were overwhelmed by the talents of the main characters and specifically directed in a way that would create this feeling in the audience. We should feel annoyed by some of those characters and adding a certain tone of voice helps to ensure the audience feels that way. So, I'm not taking anything from the film for that.Taylor as Kate the Shrew and Burton as the wild and unsavory Petruchio are perfect. Burton often has that slightly dirty look to him and his booze roughened voice just adds sauce to the mix. Taylor is at her most beautiful in this movie; no longer so young she is lushly filled out, has character in her face and confidence in her work. The sexual tension between this legendary couple is like over-cooked dynamite, ready to blow in this movie and it lends the final touch to their explosive scenes. You just have to see it to truly appreciate it.The costuming in this film is a notch above superlative with Taylor positively sewn into her bodices and yet still athletic as she races across a roof from her sarcastically effusive husband-to-be. Burton is a slovenly, yet manly and handsome, mess in his well designed dags and pouffy sleeves. The musical score is also exceptional so it is just as much a feast for the ears as the eyes.You don't have to be a fan of Shakespeare to enjoy this movie. You don't have to be a fan of older "classic" movies either. You just have to enjoy a good movie experience overall to really love this film. It's an excellent way to introduce Shakespeare to those who might shy away from it also.

for teen interest in the Shakespeare story. Even being an old version. Dramatic action conveys meaning well. Hoping for another less sexier version sometime. Provokes discussion in classes.

Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor are at each others throats in this film. Watched it twice. So Good. Delivered very fast.

As expected good copy.

I originally saw this movie as a theatrical production when it first came out, and have seen it on TV, VHS, and DVD several times since. The magic of pairing Taylor and Burton in Shakespeare's comedy is easy to see from the very beginning of the movie, and the enjoyment simply grows. No, I am neither a literature nor English major, nor an ardent play-goer, but I know fun and enjoyment when I see it, and there's plenty to see here!