The ShakespeareFlix List of Shakespeare Movies on DVD



We hope to make this the web's most complete list of Shakespeare films on DVD. Please help us by adding a comment, telling us what we've got wrong or missed. (A couple of films may have been accidentally deleted from the last list.)

FILMS OF THE PLAYS

Antony and Cleopatra (1606)
  • Jon Scoffield's 1974 television film with Richard Jonson as Antony, Janet Suzman as Cleopatra, and Patrick Stewart as Enobarbus.
As You Like It (1599-1600)
  • Kenneth Branagh's 2006 film with Kevin Kline as Jacques, Brian Blessed as Duke Frederick and Duke Senior, Alfred Molina as Touchstone, Janet McTeer as Audrey, Adrian Lester as Oliver, Romola Garai as Celia, David Oyelowo as Orlando, and Bryce Dallas Howard as Rosalind.
Hamlet (1600-01)
  • Michael Almereyda's 2000 film with Ethan Hawke as Hamlet, Kyle MacLachlan as Claudius, Diane Venora as Gertrude, Julia Stiles as Ophelia, Bill Murray as Polonius, and Sam Shepard as the Ghost.
  • Kenneth Branagh's 1996 film with Branagh as Hamlet, Derek Jacobi as Claudius, Julie Christie as Gertrude, and Kate Winslet as Ophelia.
  • Kevin Kline directs and stars in a 1990 PBS television production.
  • Franco Zeffirelli's 1985 film with Mel Gibson as Hamlet, Glenn Close as Gertrude, Alan Bates as Claudius, and Helena Bonham-Carter as Ophelia.
  • Grigori Kozintsev's 1964 film with Innokenty Smoktunovsky as Hamlet. Translation by Boris Pasternak and music by Dmitri Shostakovich.
  • Bill Colleran and John Gielgud direct Richard Burton in a 1964 stage production.
  • Laurence Olivier's 1948 version with Olivier as Hamlet, Basil Sydney as Claudius, Eileen Herlie as Gertrude, and Jean Simmons as Ophelia.
Henry IV, Part One (1596-97); Henry IV, Part Two (1597-98); Henry V (1598-99)
  • Orson Welles's The Chimes at Midnight (1965), with John Gielgud as Henry IV, Keith Baxter as Prince Hal/Henry V, and Welles as Falstaff. Available as a Brazilian import.
Henry V (1598-99)
  • Kenneth Branagh's 1989 film with Branagh as Henry, Derek Jacobi as the Chorus, and Emma Thompson as Catherine.
  • Laurence Olivier's 1944 film with Olivier as Henry, Leslie Banks as the Chorus, and Renée Asherson as Catherine.
Julius Caesar (1599)
  • Joseph L. Mankiewicz's 1953 film, with James Mason as Brutus, John Gielgud as Cassius, Louis Calhern as Caesar, and Marlon Brando as Antony.
(1 hr. 44 min) tell 6:05, start 6:06. No subtitles; use closed caption. Widescreen s(2 hr, 40 min [162 min]); start 5:08 Skip through annoying previews. Subtitles

King Lear (1604-05)

  • Michael Elliott directs Laurence Olivier in a 1983 television film.
  • Edwin Sherin directs James Earl Jones in a 1974 New York Shakespeare Festival production.
  • Orson Welles's 1953 television production. Available on a DVD with Welles's The Stranger.
Love's Labour's Lost (1594-95)
  • Kenneth Branagh's 2000 musical version, with Alessandro Nivola as the King of Navarre, Alicia Silverstone as the Princess of France, Natascha McElhone as Rosaline, Branagh as Berowne, Timothy Spall as Don Armado, and Nathan Lane as Costard.

Macbeth (1605-06)
  • Geoffrey Wright's 2006 Australian gangster version.
  • Philip Casson directing Trevor Nunn's 1979 television version, with Ian McKellen as Macbeth and Judi Dench as Lady Macbeth.
  • Roman Polanski's 1971 film with Jon Finch as Macbeth and Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth.
  • Orson Welles's 1948 film. Available as a South Korean import.
The Merchant of Venice (1596-97)
  • Michael Radford’s 2004 film starring Al Pacino as Shylock, Jeremy Irons as Antonio, Joseph Fiennes as Bassanio, and Lynn Collins as Portia.
  • Trevor Nunn's 2001 Royal National Theatre production with Henry Goodman as Shylock.
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595)
  • Bo Bergstrom directs the Virus Theater, from Silver City, New Mexico, in a 2010 film.
  • Michael Hoffman's 1999 film with Calista Flockhart as Helena, Michelle Pfeiffer as Titania, and Kevin Kline as Bottom.
  • Adrian Noble's 1996 film derived from his Royal Shakespeare Company stage production.
  • Peter Hall's 1968 film with Diana Rigg as Helena, Helen Mirren as Hermia, and Paul Rogers as Bottom.
  • Max Reinhart's 1935 film with Mickey Rooney as Puck and Jimmy Cagney as Bottom.
Much Ado About Nothing (1598)
  • Kenneth Branagh's 1993 film with Emma Thompson as Beatrice and Branagh as Benedick.
  • Nick Havinga's 1972 television production, with Sam Waterston as Benedick and Kathleen Widdoes as Beatrice.
Othello (1603-04)
  • The 2008 Globe Theatre production with Eamonn Walker as Othello, Tim McInnerny as Iago, and Zoe Tapper as Desdemona.
  • Oliver Parker's 1995 film with Laurence Fishburne as Othello, Irène Jacob as Desdemona, and Kenneth Branagh as Iago.
  • Trevor Nunn's 1990 Royal Shakespeare Company production with Willard White as Othello, Imogen Stubbs as Desdemona, and Ian McKellan as Iago.
  • A 1988 South African stage production directed by Janet Suzman.
  • Stuart Burge directs Laurence Olivier in the 1965 film.
  • Orson Welles's 1952 film with Welles as Othello, Michael MacLiammoir as Iago, and Suzanne Cloutier as Desdemona. Available as a South Korean import.
ago, heart on his sleeve, Oth on wooing, (121 minutes, start 5:49)
Richard III (1592-93)
  • Richard Loncraine's 1995 film of the play with Ian McKellan as Richard, Nigel Hawthorne as Clarence, Kristin Scott Thomas as Anne, Maggie Smith as the Duchess of York (with lines from Margaret of Anjou), Annette Benning as Elizabeth, and Robert Downey, Jr. as Rivers.
  • Laurence Olivier's 1955 film with Olivier as Richard, John Gielgud as Clarence, and Claire Bloom as Anne.
Romeo and Juliet (1595)
  • Baz Luhrman's 1997 Romeo + Juliet, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.
  • Joan Kemp-Welch directs Christopher Neame and Ann Hasson in a 1976 television film.
  • Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 film with Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey.
  • The 1936 film directed by George Cukor, with Leslie Howard as Romeo, Norma Shearer as Juliet, and John Barrymore as Mercutio.
The Taming of the Shrew (1592)
  • American Conservatory Theater's 1976 stage production.
  • Franco Zeffirelli's 1967 film with Richard Burton as Petruchio and Elizabeth Taylor as Katharina.
The Tempest (1611)
  • Julie Taymor's 2011 film with Helen Mirren as Prospera will be out in September.
  • William Woodman's 1983 television film with Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. as Prospero.
Titus Andronicus (1592)
  • Julie Taymor's Titus (2000), with Anthony Hopkins as Titus Andronicus, Jessica Lange as Tamora, and Harry J. Lennix as Aaron.
Twelfth Night, or What You Will (1601-2)
  • Trevor Nunn's 1996 film, with Imogen Stubbs as Viola, Ben Kingsley as Feste, and Helena Bonham-Carter as Olivia.

The Winter's Tale (1609)

  • The Royal Shakespeare Company's 1999 stage production, directed by Robin Lough, with Anthony Sher as Leontes.
COLLECTIONS
  • BBC Shakespeare Comedies: Television productions of As You Like It, The Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and The Merchant of Venice.
  • BBC Shakespeare Histories: Television productions of Richard II; Henry IV, Part One; Henry IV, Part Two; Henry V; Richard III.
  • BBC Shakespeare Tragedies I: Television productions of Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Julius Caesar, and Othello.
  • BBC Shakespeare Tragedies II: Television productions of Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, King Lear, Timon of Athens, and Titus Andronicus.
  • Silent Shakespeare: Silent films of King John, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night's Dream, King Lear, Twelfth Night, The Merchant of Venice, and Richard III. Collected and restored by the British Film Institute.
  • The Thames Shakespeare Collection: Television productions of Macbeth, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet, and Twelfth Night.
LOOSE ADAPTATIONS AND OTHER FILMS OF INTEREST TO SHAKESPEARE LOVERS
  • Elizabeth I (2006): A television series directed by Tom Hooper, with Helen Mirren as Elizabeth and Jeremy Irons as Robert Dudley.
  • Forbidden Planet (1956): A science-fiction version of The Tempest directed by Fred M. Wilcox, with Walter Pidgeon as the Prospero-like Dr. Morbius, Anne Francis as the Miranda-like Altaira, and Leslie Nielsen as the Ferdinand-like Commander John J. Adams. Dr. Morbius's servant Robby the Robot has the Ariel role.
  • The Hobart Shakespeareans (2005): Documentary about a fantastically talented teacher and his students in a Los Angeles elementary school.
  • In Search of Shakespeare (2004): Michael Wood narrates a television documentary on Shakespeare's life and times.
  • Kiss Me Kate (1953): Cole Porter's musical of The Taming of the Shrew.
  • The Legend of the Black Scorpion (2006): Feng Xiaogang's martial-arts adaptation of Hamlet, with Danien Wu as the Hamlet-like Wu Luan and Zhang Ziyi as the Gertrude-like Empress Wan.
  • Looking for Richard (1996): Al Pacino in a documentary about producing Richard III. Available in a three-DVD package called Pacino: An Actor's Vision.
  • O (2001): Tim Blake Nelson's modern adaptation of Othello, with Mekhi Phifer as the Othello/Odin, Josh Hartnett as the Iago/Hugo, and Julia Stiles as the Desdeomona/Desi.
  • Otello (1986): Franco Zeffirelli directs Plácido Domingo and Katia Ricciarelli in Giuseppe Verdi's opera.
  • Othello (2001): A loose television adaptation directed by Geoffrey Sax, with Eamonn Walker as John Othello and Keeley Hawes as Dessie Brabrant.
  • Prospero's Books (1991): Peter Greenaway's adaptation of The Tempest with John Gielgud as Prospero.
  • Ran (1985): Akira Kurosawa's adaptation of King Lear, with Tatsuya Nakadai as Lord Hidetora Ichimonji (Lear), Shinnosuke Ikehata as Kyoami (the Fool) and Mieko Harada as Lady Kaede (Edmund).
  • The Reduced Shakespeare Company (2000): "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)."
  • Renaissance Man (1994): Penny Marshall directs Danny DeVito teaching Shakespeare in a boot camp.
  • The Revenger's Tragedy (2004): Alex Cox directs Christopher Eccleston, Derek Jacobi, and Eddie Izzard in a version of Thomas Middleton's play.
  • Romeo and Juliet Got Married (2005): Bruno Barreto directs a Brazilian comedy with the Romeo and Juliet setup.
  • Scotland, PA (2001): Billy Morrissette directs James LeGros and Maura Tierney in an adaptation of Macbeth.
  • Shakespeare: The Animated Tales (1992-94): Stop-action and cartoon versions.
  • Shakespeare in Love (1998): Tom Stoppard and Marc Norman's screenplay, directed by John Madden, with Rupert Everett as Christopher Marlowe, Gwyneth Paltrow as Viola De Lesseps, and Joseph Fiennes as Shakespeare. Numerous allusions to the plays, scenes from Romeo and Juliet and The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and a recitation of Sonnet 18.
  • Shakespeare Behind Bars (2006): A documentary about prisoners putting on a production of The Tempest. Directed by Hank Rogerson.
  • Shakespeare Retold (2005): Modern adaptations of Macbeth, The Taming of the Shrew, Much Ado About Nothing, and A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream.
  • Shakespeare Wallah (1965): Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's screenplay. James Ivory directs this film about a Shakespeare troupe in India.
  • She's the Man (2006): Directed by Andy Flickman, with Amanda Bynes as Viola Hastings. The cross-dressing setup from Twelfth Night.
  • Slings and Arrows (2003-2006): TV series about a fictional Shakespeare festival.
  • Tempest (1982): Paul Mazursky's loose adaptation of The Tempest, with John Cassavetes in the Prospero role, Molly Ringwald in the Miranda role, Susan Sarandan in the Ariel role, and Raul Julia in the Caliban role.
  • The Tempest (1998): An adaptation set in the Civil War with Peter Fonda as the Prospero character and Harold (Waaalt!) Perrineau as Ariel. (In the U.S., this is only available on VHS.)
  • Throne of Blood (1957): Akira Kurosawa's adaptation of Macbeth, with Toshiro Mifune as Washizu (Macbeth) and Isuzu Yamada as Asaji (Lady Macbeth).
  • West Side Story (1961): Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood in a musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Hey there, I just noticed you didn't have Grigori Kozinstev's 1971 Korol Lir under the King Lear section, or the Great Performances version directed by Trevor Nunn, starring Ian McKellan, from 2009. Just thought I'd give you a heads up!
Anonymous said…
Add Joss Whedon's modern-dress Much Ado to your list of DVD's, as the 2013 production is now available.