Brendan Gleeson Archives

Review: ‘Joker: Folie à Deux,’ starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga

October 2, 2024

by Carla Hay

Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in “Joker: Folie à Deux” (Photo by Niko Tavernise/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Directed by Todd Phillips

Culture Representation: Taking place in 1983, in the fictional U.S. city Gotham City, the musical film “Joker: Folie à Deux” (a sequel to 2019’s “Joker” and based on DC Comics) features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some African Americans, Asians and Latinos) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: Two years after the events depicted in “Joker,” Arthur Fleck goes on trial for murdering five people, and he meets and falls in love with Lee Quinzel, an anarchist who is a resident at the same lockdown psychiatric facility.

Culture Audience: “Joker: Folie à Deux” will appeal primarily to fans of stars Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga; the 2019 “Joker” film; movies based on comic-book characters; and unconventional musicals.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” is a stylish, uneven, and fairly provocative musical that takes bold risks that don’t always work but the lead performances are top-notch. The movie is a dark fairy tale about obsession, celebrity fame and criminal justice. Fans of the 2019 movie “Joker” will have strong opinions on whether or not this sequel should have been a musical. However, if the movie’s purpose was to take viewers further down the rabbit hole of the title character’s mental illness and emotional fragility, by having large sections of the movie devoted to fantasy-like musical sequences, then “Joker: Folie à Deux” succeeds in that purpose. (“Folie à deux” means “madness for two” in French.)

Directed by Todd Phillips, “Joker: Folie à Deux” was co-written by Phillips and Scott Silver, who had the same creative duties for “Joker.” “Joker: Folie à Deux” had its world premiere at the 2024 Venice International Film Festival. “Joker” was a bit of phenomenon, in terms of movies based on comic-book characters. It received widespread accolades, including 11 Oscar nominations (ultimately winning two Oscars) and the Golden Lion (top prize) at the 2019 Venice International Film Festival. It was also the first movie with an adult-recommended age-restriction rating to gross more than $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. The movie was also controversial, with many critics saying that the movie glorified Arthur/Joker’s murder spree.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” takes place in 1983, two years after the events of “Joker,” in the fictional Gotham City, which is DC Comics’ version of New York City. (“Joker: Folie à Deux” was actually filmed mostly in New Jersey.) In the beginning of “Joker: Folie à Deux,” Arthur Fleck (played by Joaquin Phoenix), the mentally ill loner with the alter ego Joker, is a resident of Arkham State Hospital, a psychiatric facility for people who have been convicted or are facing charges in the criminal justice system.

Before he was arrested in “Joker,” Arthur was an aspiring stand-up comedian who had a day job working as a clown. Arthur is going on trial for murdering five people in a multiple-day rampage, which culminated with Arthur going on a live TV talk show hosted by Murray Franklin (played by Robert De Niro) and shooting Murray to death in front of a studio audience and in front of everyone watching the show on TV. The end of “Joker” showed that immediately following this horrific crime, Arthur became a folk hero of sorts to people who feel exploited, abused or ignored by society.

Phoenix, who won an Oscar for Best Actor for “Joker,” portrays this character not as the evil egomaniac that has been the persona of previous depictions of the Joker. Instead, Phoenix’s Joker is a survivor of child abuse who feels beaten down by life and is often powerless to control his urges because he is mentally ill. Arthur Fleck is also not a criminal mastermind who leads a gang and wants to take over the world, as has been the portrayal of Joker in DC Comics and in other movies and TV shows.

In “Joker,” Arthur was looking for respect. In “Joker: Folie à Deux,” Arthur is looking for true love. He thinks he’s found it when he meets Lee Quinzel (played by Lady Gaga), who lives in another ward at Arkham. (Lee’s alter ego is supposed to be Harley Quinn, but the name Harley Quinn is never said in “Joker: Folie à Deux.”) Arthur and Lee first see each other when Arthur is being escorted by prison guards down a hallway. The prison guard who interacts with Arthur the most is a bully named Jackie Sullivan (played by Brendan Gleeson), who likes to taunt Arthur and has resentment over Arthur’s fame.

When Arthur first see Lee, she is in the B Ward, a minimum security wing on Arkham, where there is a group of Arkham residents in a singing class. They are all singing “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” Arthur and Lee lock eyes in the way that people in movies do when you know they’re going to fall in love. Because he has good behavior, Arthur is sent to the singing class, where the classmates are told that music and singing are part of their therapy. Arthur and Lee get to know each other. And it doesn’t take long for Lee to tell him her life story and show that she’s been infatuated with Arthur, even since she saw him kill Murray Franklin.

In a private conversation, Lee confesses to Arthur that when she watched him on Murray Franklin’s show, she thought to herself that she wished Arthur would blow Murray Franklin’s brains out. And when Arthur did just that, she didn’t feel alone in the world anymore. Lee also says that she’s in Arkham because she was involuntarily committed after burning down her parents’ apartment building. She also says that her biological father abused her and died in a car accident.

A TV-movie was made about Arthur, which further adds to his notoriety. This fame has attracted many disturbed people who consider Joker to be their idol. Lee admits up front that she is one of those fans. She tells Arthur that she’s willing to devote herself to him and convinces him that when his legal troubles are all over, they can make a life together.

Lee and Arthur then have the closest thing that you could call a romance between two very emotionally damaged people. Arthur’s defense attorney Maryanne Stewart (played by Catherne Keener), who wants Arthur to be found not guilty by reason of insanity, is very suspicious of Lee and tells Arthur that Lee is playing Arthur for a fool. It’s too late because Arthur has fallen deeply in love with Lee, who has convinced Arthur that they are like two sides of the same coin.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” ends up showing what happens during the trial, which doesn’t end entirely like many people would expect. The musical numbers in the movie are presented as fantasies in the mind of Arthur. The filmmakers of “Joker: Folie à Deux” wisely chose classic tunes to be the songs in these musical sequences, including “Get Happy,” “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” “For Once in My Life,” “If My Friends Could See Me Now,” “”When You’re Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You),” “Bewitched,” “To Love Somebody,” “”(They Long To Be) Close To You,” and “Gonna Build a Mountain,” “That’s Life” and “True Love Will Find You in the End.”

The cinematography, costume design, makeup and production design all make “Joker: Folie à Deux” a visual feast. Phoenix and Lady Gaga also bring depth to their performances in their dialogue and musical numbers. “Joker: Folie à Deux” has more empathy to crime victims than “Joker” did and makes Arthur face the damage he did in his murderous rampage. The final scene in “Joker: Folie à Deux” continues what was foreshadowed about how more than one person can take on the Joker persona. (There are no mid-credits or end-credits in “Joker: Folie à Deux.”)

Phoenix and Lady Gaga capably handle the movie’s drama and the musical sequences. Are they convincing as a couple that will stay together? Of course not. Everything about the relationship between Arthur and Lee screams “doomed.” However, in the time they do spend together, Lee and Arthur have a dynamic that is different from other narratives about Joker, where Joker was the master manipulator, and Harley was the more vulnerable one in the couple. Viewers of “Joker: Folie à Deux” will either like or dislike this change.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” has some questionable choices in how it chooses to depict certain issues. Queerness and homophobia while incarcerated are given very short recognition when a socially awkward inmate in his 20s named Ricky Meline (played by Jacob Lofland) approaches Arthur in the prison yard and asks Arthur to kiss him because Ricky has never been kissed, and the prison guards told Ricky that Arthur would be willing to kiss him. In full view of other people, Arthur gives Ricky a platonic peck on the lips. But for the rest of the time that Ricky is on screen, he’s an obvious target because he’s now been branded as possibly queer.

The movie is also inconsistent in what it come the violence it chooses to show and not show. There’s a police brutality scene where someone dies, but that death is never shown on camera. Meanwhile, Arthur’s homicidal tendencies are on full display, such as when he has a fantasy about murdering his trial judge Herman Rothwax (played by Bill Smitrovich) by bludgeoning the judge to death. That murder is shown in sickening detail.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” doesn’t do much with the psychiatrist characters in the film. Dr. Louise Beatty (played by June Carryl) is Arthur’s psychiatrist while he’s incarcerated. She asks him basic and generic questions about his childhood. During the trial, two psychiatrists who evaluated Arthur in the past are among the witnesses who testify. Dr. Victor Liu (played by Ken Leung) gets criticism from the defense for making an evaluation of Arthur based on an 89-minute interview.

Some of the characters from “Joker” return as trial witnesses in “Joker: Folie à Deux,” such as social worker Debra Kane (played by Sharon Washington); Arthur’s former co-worker Gary Puddles (played by Leigh Gill); and Sophie Dumond (played by Zazie Beetz), Arthur’s former neighbor who was the object of his obsessive crush. New to “Joker: Folie à Deux” are the characters of assistant district attorney Harvey Dent (played by Harrry Lawtey); TV reporter Paddy Myers (played by Steve Coogan), who interviews Arthur in his Arkam cell before the trial; and an unnamed young Arkham resident (played by Connor Storrie), who seems to have an interest in Arthur, based on the way this young man stares at Arthur.

Where the “Joker: Folie à Deux” stumbles the most is in the editing and pacing of this 139-minute movie. Some of the musical sequences begin and end abruptly, while others flow smoothly with the rest of the story. A few sections of the movie also drag with monotony. “Joker: Folie à Deux” is unlikely to get the widespread accolades that “Joker” did because it’s generally tough for a sequel to surpass a highly acclaimed original movie. But for anyone who doesn’t mind watching musicals, “Joker: Folie à Deux” is a unique experience that can hold most viewers’ interest in seeing how this compelling story is going to end.

Warner Bros. Pictures will release “Joker: Folie à Deux” in U.S. cinemas on October 4, 2024.

Review: ‘The Banshees of Inisherin,’ starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson

October 21, 2022

by Carla Hay

“The Banshees of Inisherin”

Directed by Martin McDonagh

Culture Representation: Taking place in 1923, on the fictional Irish island of Inisherin, the comedy/drama film “The Banshees of Inisherin” features an all-white cast of characters representing the working-class.

Culture Clash: Two men who have been best friends—a farmer in his 40s and a musician in his 60s—have their emotional stability tested when the musician abruptly ends the friendship and goes to extreme lengths to get his former friend to stop communicating with him.

Culture Audience: “The Banshees of Inisherin” will appeal mainly to people who are fans of stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson; filmmaker Martin McDonagh; and movies that make darkly comedic and emotionally incisive commentaries about the highs and lows of human nature.

Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan in “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Photo courtesy of Searchlight Pictures)

“The Banshees of Inisherin” offers a bittersweet exploration of the heartbreak, loneliness, hope, and bizarre unpredictability of life with two estranged friends in a rural Irish town. Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson give magnetic performances as two former friends who want very different things in existing together in this small, tight-knit and gossipy community. This comedy/drama movie reunites Farrell, Gleeson, and writer/director Martin McDonagh, who previously worked together on the 2008 assassin dramedy “In Bruges,” a very different movie from “The Banshees of Inisherin.”

McDonagh should be given a lot of credit for not wanting to copy “In Bruges” in this reteaming with the dynamic duo of Farrell and Gleeson, who played bickering hit men in the movie, which was set in Bruges, Belgium, in late 2000s. “In Bruges” had a madcap energy and some wacky plot developments that bordered on the absurd. “The Banshees of Inisherin” is often bleak, dreary and carries the emotional weight of characters wallowing in personal despair, but not having the words or resources to cope well with their personal problems. “The Banshees of Inisherin” had its world premiere at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival, where Farrell won the award for Best Actor, and McDonagh won the prize for Best Screenplay.

Set in 1925 on the fictional island of Inisherin (off of the coast of Ireland), “The Banshees of Inisherin” shows how the unraveling of a friendship spirals out of control into madness and tragedy. The movie is about more than some of the outlandish things that happen during the course of the story. It’s also about the mundanity of being stuck and stifled by a life of drudgery and limited options. It’s also about the need for people to feel loved and accepted by those whom they love and accept.

Viewers never get to see how the friendship developed between longtime Inisherin residents Pádraic Súilleabháin (played by Farrell) and Colm Doherty (played by Gleeson), because “The Banshees of Inisherin” begins on the day that Pádraic finds out that Colm not only wants to end the friendship, but Colm also wants Pádraic to stop communicating with him. Pádraic is a farmer in his 40s. Colm is a musician in his 60s. Both are bachelors with no children. Up until their estrangement, they were constant companions.

It’s unknown if Colm ever got married, but it’s made clear that Pádraic has never been married and is generally inexperienced and uninterested about a lot of things outside of Inisherin and his farm life. The movie doesn’t go into details about their sexualities or their love lives, but it’s implied that Colm and Pádraic have an older brother/younger brother type of relationship.

Somehow, their friendship became the center of their social lives. Colm lives alone, while Pádraic lives with his sister Siobhan Súilleabháin (played by Kerry Condon), who is a never-married bachelorette in her 40s with no children. Siobhan and Colm are the most important people in Pádraic’s life. Pádraic and Siobhan, whose parents died seven years earlier, are the only Súilleabháin family members who live on the island of Inisherin.

Pádraic and Colm each has a beloved pet that plays a pivotal role in the story. Padraic’s favorite animal on the farm is a miniature donkey named Jenny, whom he treats like a child. (Jenny has some adorable animal scenes in the movie.) Pádraic and Siobhan sometimes argue because Pádraic wants to let Jenny stay in their house, while Siobhan refuses and insists that Jenny stay in the area where the rest of the farm animals are kept. Colm’s only pet is his devoted male Border Collie named Sammy, who is Colm’s only constant companion in the story.

Pádraic is an uncomplicated person who places a high value on honesty and being nice to other people. He is the type of person who will say exactly what he’s thinking, even if it comes out in a way that might be awkward or not very tactful. Colm is much more complicated and someone who doesn’t always say what he’s thinking. Viewers will soon see that Colm has a dark side and how disturbed that dark side can be.

The unnamed rural town where Colm and Pádraic live has a very small population, so everyone in the community seems to know each other. (“The Banshees of Inisherin” was actually filmed in Inishmore and Achill Island in Ireland.) It’s the type of working-class town where no one can afford to have a car, so the usual form of vehicle transportation is a wheel cart.

The opening scene shows Pádraic walking to Colm’s house to meet him for their usual 2 p.m. visit to the local pub, which is called J.J. Devine Public House. Pádraic peeks in the front window and sees that Colm is sitting on a chair, smoking a cigarette, and looking lost in his thoughts. Pádraic taps on the window and calls out Colm’s name loud enough for Colm to hear, but Colm acts like he doesn’t hear anything and stares straight ahead.

Pádraic assumes that his friend will join him in the pub later, so he goes to the pub by himself. When Pádraic arrives, the pub’s owner/bartender Jonjo Devine (played by Pat Shortt) immediately asks Pádraic where Colm is, because Jonjo is so accustomed to seeing Pádraic and Colm together. “Are you rowing [arguing]?” Jonjo asks Pádraic, who says no. Pádraic tells Jonjo about Colm’s strange non-reaction when Pádraic went to visit him.

Colm is a no-show for their usual pub meet-up. A confused Pádraic goes home and tells Siobhan, who asks the same question: “Are you rowing?” Pádraic says no, and he’s not aware of anything that could’ve happened that would cause Colm to avoid him. Pádraic later goes back to the pub, where he sees Colm acting friendly and in good spirits with Jonjo and some of the customers.

When Colm sees Pádraic, the smile leaves Colm’s face, and Colm looks like he’s just seen someone whom he dislikes immensely. Pádraic, who is completely baffled, approaches Colm and asks him what’s going on and why Colm is acting this way. Pádraic also says that he’s sorry if he did anything to offend Colm. And that’s when Colm bluntly tells Pádraic that he doesn’t want to be Pádraic’s friend anymore because Colm thinks Pádraic is too dull and he’s become completely bored with their friendship. Colm also says that he doesn’t want Pádraic to talk to him anymore.

Colm, who is a fiddler, goes on to say that he’s getting old and wants to write great musical pieces before he dies. He cruelly tells Pádraic that Pádraic just drains time and energy from Colm, who wants to put that time and energy into writing music. Colm tells Pádraic that he’s “trying not to listen to the dull things you have to say.” Colm adds that he “has time not for aimless chatting but normal chatting.”

As an example of something that Pádraic does that Colm says is annoying, Colm mentions a recent conversation where Pádraic talked to Colm for two hours about the things he found in the feces of Pádraic’s donkey. Pádraic corrects Colm and said that the conversation about feces was actually about a pony, not a donkey. It’s an example of some of the dark comedy in this movie.

Pádraic is in shock and denial over this abrupt end to this friendship. The next day, he wakes up and sees on his calender that the day that Colm told him that their friendship was over also happened to be April Fool’s Day. Pádraic goes back to the pub and talks to Colm again, because he thinks that the conversation they had the night before was all a big April Fool’s Day joke. But to Pádraic’s dismay, Colm tells him in no uncertain terms that it’s not a joke.

And then, Colm makes this ominous threat: If Pádraic communicates with Colm again, Colm will cut off one of Colm’s own fingers every time it happens. It’s a threat that several people in the pub hear. And since this is a small town, word quickly spreads in the community about the alarming way that Colm wants to keep Pádraic out of Colm’s life.

Pádraic is naturally very distressed by this turn of events. He turns to Siobhan for emotional support, and she has to constantly deny it when Pádraic asks her if he’s dimwitted and dull. “You’re nice!” she finally yells in frustration. “Move on!” But Pádraic can’t move on. He’s still mystified over why Colm no longer wants to be his friend, and he wants them to be friends again.

Pádraic and Siobhan eventually come to the conclusion that Colm might be depressed. However, Pádraic being Pádraic, his nature is to want to be the one to help lift Colm out of Colm’s apparent depression. And the only way Pádraic knows how to do that is to talk to Colm.

While Pádraic is still reeling from being rejected by his best friend, a local guy in his 20s named Dominic Kearney (played by Barry Keoghan) has been tagging along with Pádraic very chance that he can get. Dominic, who appears to have learning disabilities, is a social outcast in this community. Padraic is the person in the community who is the kindest to Dominic. Just like Pádraic looks up to Colm like an older brother, Dominic seems to have a similar admiration for Pádraic.

Dominic also wants to spend a lot of time with Pádraic because Dominic comes from a very abusive home. It’s revealed fairly early on in the movie that Dominic’s widowed, alcoholic father Peadar Kearney (played by Gary Lydon) physically and emotionally abuses Dominic. The abuse goes beyond beatings and includes sexual abuse.

Peader happens to be the only police officer that this very small town has, so he gets away with these crimes. Peader also dislikes Pádraic and Siobhan, for past reasons that aren’t fully explained. However, it probably has a lot to do with the fact that Pádraic knows all about the abuse, and Dominic seems to want to be a part of the Súilleabháin more than Dominic wants to be part of his own family. The animosity between Peader and Pádraic increases when Peader and Colm start to become friendlier with each other after Colm ends his friendship with Pádraic.

Meanwhile, Dominic has a crush on Siobhan, but because he’s socially awkward, he doesn’t quite know how to express his feelings. Pádraic is too absorbed with trying to mend his friendship with Colm, so Pádraic doesn’t notice the significance of why Dominic asks him about Siobhan’s dating history and what kind of men Siobhan tends to like. Pádraic isn’t very helpful and gives vague answers. Just like her brother, Siobhan doesn’t have an active love life.

One evening, Dominic is invited over for dinner at Pádraic and Siobhan’s home. When Dominic asks Siobhan why she’s never been married, she gets angry and offended and tells him that it’s none of his business. She’s so insulted by this question, Siobhan tells Dominic to leave. Siobhan also doesn’t pick up on Dominic’s infatuation with her, so she doesn’t understand that Dominic asked that question as a way to flirt with her.

Some other characters in the movie have supporting roles as people who know a lot of the personal business of the people in this community. Mrs. McCormick (played by Sheila Flitton), an elderly woman who is an occasional visitor to the Súilleabháin home, looks and acts like someone who knows a lot of community secrets. Mrs. Reardon (played by Bríd Ní Neachtain), a middle-aged woman who runs the local convenience store/post office, is a very nosy gossip and doesn’t hestitate to open other people’s mail, in order to snoop. And then there’s the obligatory Catholic priest (played by David Pearse), a man in his late 20s or early 30s, who doesn’t have a name in the movie, but he hears people’s confessions.

The personal turmoil between Pádraic and Colm escalates when Pádraic just can’t accept that Colm wants Pádraic to leave Colm alone. Pádraic’s desperation is also affected when Siobhan gets a job offer to work at a library on the mainland of Ireland. The movie shows whether or not she takes that offer. It’s also shown if Colm follows through on his threat to cut off any of his own fingers after Pádraic continues to contact Colm.

“The Banshees of Inisherin” is not a big, flashy movie with elaborate scenes of drama. It’s a movie that authentically shows the quiet desperation that people feel but they suppress, in order not to be labeled as unstable, troublemakers or whiners. Pádraic shows a lot of emotional vulnerability that makes some members of the community more uncomfortable than Colm’s declaration of violent self-harm. It’s the movie’s way of showing how unnecessary violence is often more accepted in society as a way to cope with problems, rather than expressing emotional vulnerability.

Of course, in a movie about former friends who end up feuding with each other, there are some showdown scenes that are among the best in the movie. However, there are scenes where Pádraic or Colm is alone in a room, and those scenes are just as powerful. Farrell and Gleason handle their respective characters with a level of authenticity that resonates, even when some unhinged things start to happen. Condon and Keoghan are also quite good in their roles, although the characters of Siobhan and Dominic are ultimately overshadowed by what goes on between Pádraic and Colm.

McDonagh’s movies and plays often show human nature at its worst and its best. His movies and plays also depict aspects of life that can be depressing or joyful. It’s a dichotomous balance that isn’t easy to achieve, but McDonagh’s sharp talent in writing and directing, as well as his ability to make great decisions with a top-notch cast, result in “The Banshees of Inisherin” being a sometimes uncomfortable but definitely a memorable and emotionally moving ride.

Searchlight Pictures released “The Banshees of Inisherin” in select U.S. cinemas on October 21, 2022. The movie will be released on digital and VOD on December 13, 2022, and on Blu-ray and DVD on December 20, 2022.

Review: ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth,’ starring Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand

September 24, 2021

by Carla Hay

“The Tragedy of Macbeth”

Directed by Joel Coen

Culture Representation: Taking place in Scotland and England in the 1600s, the dramatic film “The Tragedy of Macbeth” features a cast of white and black people representing the working-class, middle-class and royalty.

Culture Clash: A ruthlessly ambitious husband and wife lie, cheat and murder their way into becoming king and queen of Scotland, but their sins eventually catch up to them with deadly consequences.

Culture Audience: Besides the obvious target audience of fans of William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” play, “The Tragedy of Macbeth” will appeal primarily to fans of Oscar winners Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand and Joel Coen.

Denzel Washington in “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (Photo by Alison Cohen Rosa/A24/Apple TV+)

“The Tragedy of Macbeth” gives William Shakespeare’s play “Macbeth” the minimalist treatment, laying bare the raw intensity of the story, which is masterfully channeled via powerhouse performances from Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand. Joel Coen (McDormand’s husband and longtime artistic collaborator) wrote and directed “The Tragedy of Macbeth” as a striking hybrid of an observational filmed stage play and an immersive cinematic experience. At a relatively brisk run time of 105 minutes, the movie defies the notion that movies made from Shakespeare’s work have to be pompous, self-indulgent bores. “The Tragedy of Macbeth” had its world premiere at the 2021 New York Film Festival.

Filmed in black and white, “The Tragedy of Macbeth” stays faithful to the source material but rolls out as a more streamlined piece of art that makes this version of the Macbeth story more accessible to people with short attention spans. People interested in watching the movie probably have some familiarity already with Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” a tragic play that was first performed in 1606 and first published in 1623. Most people would agree that “Macbeth”—with its timeless themes of how a corrupt pursuit of power can destroy lives—remains among the top three of Shakespeare’s best and most well-known work.

There’s really no need to rehash a plot that a lot of viewers will know before seeing this movie. The story is essentially about a married power couple who want to rule over Scotland as king and queen, no matter what the cost. Washington portrays the title character as a man on a mission to get what he feels is owed to him after years of feeling unappreciated as a loyal lord to Scotland’s King Duncan (played by Brendan Gleeson), who is about to be viciously murdered.

The mastermind of this assassination is Macbeth’s wife Lady Macbeth (played by Frances McDormand), whose power and intelligence is underestimated by most people because she is a woman. However, behind the scenes and behind closed doors, Lady Macbeth is a master manipulator who is in many ways more cold-hearted and single-minded in her ambition than her husband is. When he has doubts about any of the dastardly deeds that she has in mind, she pushes those doubts out of his mind and motivates him to follow through with her plans.

Clawing one’s way to the top of Scotland’s royal hierarchy, without being a blood relative of a royal, means that a lot of people will have to die. (The killing scenes aren’t too gory, but there are a few non-explicit scenes involving child murder that might be disturbing for very sensitive viewers.) King Duncan has two adult sons: elder son Malcolm (played by Harry Melling) and Donalbain (played by Matt Helm), who are dutiful but unprepared for the destruction inflicted by the Macbeth couple. As the body count piles up, false accusations will fly, paranoia reaches a fever point, and certain people face a reckoning that seems to ask the question: “Was all that backstabbing worth it in the end?”

Other characters in the play that are also in the movie include Banquo (played by Bertie Carvel), Macbeth’s close ally and a general in King Duncan’s army; Fleance (played by Lucas Barker) Banquo’s son, who’s about 10 or 11 years old in the movie; Macduff (played by Corey Hakwins), Thane of Fife; and Lady Macduff (played by Moses Ingram), Macduff’s wife. Macduff is the first one in the king’s inner circle to suspect that Macbeth and his wife might be up to no good.

Just like like in the “Macbeth” play, the catalyst for Macbeth thinking he has a right to take the throne comes early on in the story when he envisions three witches who tell him a prophecy that he will become the king. However, the introduction of these witches in the movie doesn’t follow standard convention. At first, there’s the appearance of one witch (played by Kathryn Hunter, who plays all three identical witches), who is first seen with her face down in a sandy and barren area, like a vulture who’s hunched over from dehydration.

This witch, just like her look-alikes, is dressed all in black has bird-like mannerisms and even caws like a crow. She contorts her body and flaps her arms, like an ave from hell. And later, when she is joined by the other two witches, they transform into large and menacing black birds.

Washington’s portrayal of Macbeth is as a hothead who is prone to losing control of his emotions and stomping around and shouting as a way to intimidate people. Macbeth is all about short-term gratification. McDormand’s depiction of Lady Macbeth is as someone who is more likely to think long-term and see the big picture.

The difference between Lady Macbeth and her husband is that Lady Macbeth knows when to keep her mouth shut and not give away too much information. Witness the brilliant facial expressions of McDormand as Lady Macbeth in a scene where her husband Macbeth is ranting about something to a group of people in the king’s court. Lady Macbeth thinks he might let some valuable information slip, but she says nothing in order to keep up a façade of ignorance. However, the look on her face shows a brief flash of alarm, as if she’s thinking, “He better not say anything stupid!”

Lady Macbeth has a temper too. She just doesn’t show it to people who could use this “unladylike” demeanor against her. And when McDormand’s Lady Macbeth gets angry, she bellows and barks in a voice that’s deep enough to sound like a man. McDormand’s interpretation of Lady Macbeth is that she knows her own power and strength. She’s not a fussy and frilly wife but one who’s willing to blur the lines of gender roles by showing a more masculine side than how other female actors might interpret this character.

“The Tragedy of Macbeth” has some recurring visual motifs that work well for a movie that was filmed in black and white and has a mild fascination with flight in open skies. First, there are multiple scenes that have a starry night as a backdrop. In a memorable moment, Lady Macbeth let’s go of a burning piece of paper, which flies out the window and into the night. And when the witches turn into birds, which happens more than once in the movie, it also exemplifies the type of flight that conjures of images of dark forces that hover and can’t be tamed.

Another effective visual technique that’s used in “The Tragedy of Macbeth” is conveying the feeling of being spied on and targeted. A scene with Banquo opens with what looks like a spotlight resembling a bullseye lens. The camera zooms up to show an aerial view of Banquo in this spotlight. It’s a foreshadowing of what happens later to Banquo, because he indeed becomes a target. And later in the movie, the three witches are perched on wooden square beams, as the witches look down like vultures ready to pounce.

Because there have been so many different adaptations of “Macbeth,” Coen succeeds in the intent to offer Macbeth through the lens of living in a world where generations of filmmakers and movie audiences have been influenced by the nightmarish lighting contrasts of German Expressionism. The movie’s cinematography (by Bruno Delbonnel), production design (by Stefan Dechant) and visual effects (supervised by Michael Huber and Alex Lemke) are stark and compelling, ranging from set pieces that look like they were made for a theater stage to the majestic simplicity of a cliff that becomes a pivotal location.

And when Lady Macbeth literally lets her hair down in private moments, she can be disheveled—more frump and happenstance than pomp and circumstance. Occasionally messy hair aside, Lady Macbeth’s wardrobe and the rest of the characters’ clothes are completely on point, thanks to stellar costume design by Mary Zophres. The costumes in “The Tragedy of Macbeth” might be the only reason to wish that this movie hadn’t been in black and white. However, the film’s monochromatic pallette is understandable, in order to reflect the dark despair that permeates throughout the story.

The members of this movie’s international cast use their natural accents. Most of the cast members are British. Washington, McDormand and Hawkins are American, while Gleeson is Irish. The varied accents are not a distraction, because the words of Shakespeare make everything sound very much of the era in which it was written. Accents just sound more classical when quoting Shakespeare.

All of the supporting actors in “The Tragedy of Macbeth” play their roles well, with Hawkins being a standout as the intuitive Macduff, a good man who loves his wife and kids and who finds himself in the crosshairs of death and betrayal. It’s hard to go wrong with a Shakespeare classic, a cast of this high level of talent, and a director who consistently makes films whose quality is above-average. The “Macbeth” story is a well-worn road for enthusiasts of performing arts, but “The Tragedy of Macbeth” makes this familiar ride very entertaining.

A24 will release “The Tragedy of Macbeth” in select U.S. cinemas on December 25, 2021. Apple TV+ will premiere the movie on January 14, 2022.