Hailed as one of the most successful adaptations of Shakespeare Derek Jarman's 'The Tempest' is also unsurprisingly one of the most unconventional. Though keeping the essence of the text the films greatness lies in Jarman's skill at creating a visually stunning erotically charged world of haunting imagery. Flamboyant highly atmospheric and full of Jarman's punk era attitude the famous finale in which Elizabeth Welch sings `Stormy Weather' surrounded by sailors is one of th
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Derek Jarman's interpretation of Shakespeare's final play is a tale of colonialism, revenge, retribution and reconciliation. Prospero, the former Duke of Milan, and his daughter Miranda were abandoned on a remote island by the Duke's evil brother Antonio. Twelve years later, Prospero has learnt the 'liberal arts', and engineers a tempest to shipwreck Antonio's ship on the mysterious island. He plans for Antonio's travelling companion, Ferdinand the Prince of Naples, to marry his daughter and restore peace between Milan and Naples.
Despite being radically unconventional, late auteur Derek Jarman's 1979 film has been hailed as one of the most successful adaptations of the Bard's works by several Shakespeare scholars. Jarman removes much of the dialogue, instead carrying the story with his trademark haunting images, lit mostly by fire and the moon. Using the prevalent English punk sensibility of the time, he also employs undertones of closeted gay society. Poet Heathcote Williams plays the banished Prospero with a frustrated intensity, while Karl Johnson is the sprite-like Ariel. Together on a remote island, they become prisoners of a dark fantasy realm filled with secret signs and codes, where they attempt to use magic to turn the world into a more spiritually satisfying place. Meanwhile, Prospero's daughter, Miranda (Toyah Willcox), wanders the halls of his foreboding fortress, outrageously costumed in a stunning combination of period and punk tatters as she draws strangers into her home while longing for freedom. Shot on location at Stoneleigh Abbey, Jarman's film creates a dreamlike world within each room that is lushly lit and decadent in its wasteful decay. As the tale progresses, Prospero's illusions become false realities, culminating in a sumptuous wedding feast that features a Busby Berkeley-like performance of sailors dancing as Elisabeth Welch sings "Stormy Weather."
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