Worth seeing but the text is stripped to the bone

Rating: 6/10 (7 February 2013)

I wasn't sure what to expect of this modern adaptation of one of Shakespeare's lesser known tragedies. The opening with much running around with modern weapons like a scene out of an action movie did not augur well but it got much better as fighting gave way to talking and at least some of Shakespeare's fine original text came to the fore. The play is severely cut to get it into a film of just under 2 hours but there is just about enough left to make it work. The leads, Fiennes and Butler, are good with some excellent support from the likes of Vanessa Redgrave. There are many flaws in this film but it is worth seeing and there are thought-provoking resonances with the modern politics of war-torn countries and the hubris of warriors and leaders.