Macbeth
No matter how good a film is, it will never capture the raw emotion that theatre portrays. I knew going into this I would love David Tennant’s performance. I am no stranger to his work and his voyages into Shakespeare. His performance as Hamlet has inspired me since highschool. His performance as Macbeth will haunt me the rest of my life. He is able to show the mental decline of Macbeth without pushing the character into insanity.
His performance is well aided by the rest of this astounding cast. Cush Jumbo is a power house as Lady Macbeth. The costume designers choice to have her in stark white against the black and grey canvas of the rest of the cast is poignant. Though dressed as an angel, Jumbo is the driving force of the entire play.
The true stand out for me, was Noof Ousellam as Macduff. I have never found myself drawn to Macduff’s character. He was just another victim of Macbeth’s rampage, but Ousellam bring life to the character. In his smaller amount of stage time he is able to captivate the audience and hold their attention just as well as Tennant. His emotional displays are smaller, making them somehow more powerful. His single tear rolling down his cheek when he learns of his wife and children’s demise will stick with me