Medea (1987), Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014), Electra (1962), Cycling With Moliere (2013), Looking for Richard (1996), Theatre of Blood (1973), Oh! What a Lovely War (1969), The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1991) ... Let's take a look at the ranked list of the best Theatrical Adaptation movies.
Storyline: Kreon (Henning Jensen), the King of Corinth, offers the hand of his daughter, Glauce (Ludmilla Glinska), to valiant adventurer Jason (Udo Kier). The catch is that Jason's present wife, Medea (Kirsten Olesen), and his two children must leave the kingdom. Jason tries to convince his wife that it is all for the better, guaranteeing her a life of wealth and ease. Medea, however, sensing that her family is being destroyed, descends into madness and commits a horrendous crime.
Plot Keywords: tragedy, mythology, revenge, betrayal, family, murder, theatrical adaptation ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Actor Riggan Thomson is most famous for his movie role from over twenty years ago of the comic book superhero Birdman in the blockbuster movie of the same name and its two equally popular sequels. His association with the role took over his life, where Birdman is more renowned than "Riggan Thomson" the actor. Now past middle age, Riggan is trying to establish himself as a true artist by writing, directing, starring in and co-producing with his best friend Jake what is his Broadway debut, an adaptation of Raymond Carver's story, What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. He is staking his name, what little artistic reputation that comes with that name and his life savings on the project, and as such will do anything needed to make the play a success. As he and Jake go through the process of the previews toward opening night, Riggan runs into several issues: needing to find a replacement for the integral supporting male role the night before the first preview; hiring the talented ...
Plot Keywords: black comedy, drama, psychological drama, surrealism, broadway, self-redemption, celebrity culture ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: A powerful rendering of the tragedy of Elektra by Euripides, second in a trilogy. The film begins with a summary treatment without dialogue of the action of the preceding play, The Agamemnon, in which the wicked Queen Clytemnestra and her lover Aesgisthes murder her husband Agamemnon upon his return from the Trojan War.—Paul Brians <brians@wsu.edu>
Plot Keywords: tragedy, revenge, adaptation, black and white, 1960s, italian cinema, theatrical adaptation ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Retired actor Serge (Fabrice Luchini) is approached by Gauthier (Lambert Wilson) to star in a play, but he plays hard to get. Serge's new lover, the play's producer, and his agent arrive on the same weekend to pressure him to make up his mind.
Plot Keywords: comedy, drama, french film, art, literature, friendship, dialogue-driven ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Director Al Pacino juxtaposes scenes from Richard III, scenes of rehearsals for Richard III, and sessions where parties involved discuss the play, the times that shaped the play, and the events that happened at the time the play is set. Interviews with mostly British actors are also included, attempting to explain why American actors have more problems performing Shakespearean plays than they do.—Ron Kerrigan <mvg@whidbey.com>
Plot Keywords: documentary, shakespeare, drama, film production, actors, american film, director ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Edward Kendal Sheridan Lionheart (Vincent Price) is a matinèe favorite Shakespearean actor of the old school, finding difficulty coping with new theater roles, who wreaks revenge on on the theater critics who give their annual Guild's "Best Actor" award to a new and upcoming actor rather than him. Incensed by their choice, he does this in the most ingenious and disturbing ways by imitating death scenes taken from his final repertoire of his beloved Bard's tales. Vincent Price is well supported by Dame Diana Rigg, as his dutiful daughter Edwina, and a bevy of the cream of British character actors, including; Ian Hendry, Sir Michael Hordern, Dennis Price, Robert Morley, and Arthur Lowe.—Brian Carruthers
Plot Keywords: horror, comedy, revenge, shakespeare, theatre, black comedy, murder ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: A movie about World War I based on a stage musical of the same name, portraying the "Game of War", and focusing mainly on the members of the Smith family who go off to war. Much of the action in the movie revolves around the words of the marching songs of the soldiers, and many scenes portray some of the more famous (and infamous) incidents of the war, including the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, the Christmas meeting between British and German soldiers in no-man's-land, and the wiping out by their own side of a force of Irish soldiers newly arrived at the front, after successfully capturing a ridge that had been contested for some time.—Sonya Roberts <sonya_roberts@geocities.com>
Plot Keywords: anti-war, historical, black comedy, musical, world war i, satire, british film ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: This filmed version of Lily Tomlin's successful one-woman performance piece is sometimes classified as a "documentary."
Plot Keywords: science fiction, comedy, philosophy, aliens, social satire, female perspective, existentialism ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Based on Molière's play. The children of Harpagon, Cléante and his sister Elise, are each in love but they still haven't spoken to their father yet. Harpagon is a miser who wants to choose the right man and the right woman for his children. When Cléante, at last, tries to speak to Harpagon, the old man informs the family that he wants to marry Marianne, the young girl loved by Cléante. Unaware of his son's sorrow, Harpagon doesn't understand why Cléante has become so angry with him.
Plot Keywords: comedy, french film, adaptation, classic literature, satire, greed, money ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: This is a movie based on the life of Gertrude Lawrence (Dame Julie Andrews), on and off-stage. It takes the opportunity to feature extravagant musical production numbers with Andrews acting, singing, and dancing.—Stewart M. Clamen <clamen@cs.cmu.edu>
Plot Keywords: musical, biography, hollywood, period drama, song and dance, theatrical adaptation, lavish costumes ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Dark comedy about a seaside Punch and Judy man driven to distraction by his social climbing wife and his hatred for the snobbery of local government. He is persuaded to go to the Mayor's gala evening but it's all too much for him.
Plot Keywords: comedy, british film, 1960s, black and white, seaside town, social satire, marital relationship ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: A man, his former mistress, his indifferent wife and a jealous suitor engage in a weekend of mate-swapping.
Plot Keywords: comedy, romance, drama, swedish film, 1950s, european cinema, classic film ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Spalding Gray weaves racy anecdotes from his life and time in Thailand as an actor in "The Killing Fields."
Plot Keywords: documentary, monologue, performance art, politics, history, war, social commentary ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Successful and married with children, paper-mill owner Jihei (Kirchiemon Nakamura) knows better than to contradict the strict social and moral codes of 18th-century Japan. But when he meets the lovely courtesan Koharu (Shima Iwashita), he becomes a man obsessed. Koharu returns his love, even foregoing other customers while Jihei schemes to somehow buy her freedom. His efforts yield ruinous consequences for his business and his family life, and Koharu is meanwhile purchased by another client.
Plot Keywords: love, tragedy, black and white, tradition, social pressure, fate, theatrical adaptation ...
Movie Details Click Here !