Love him or loathe him, there's no denying Olivier's huge stage presence, and never more so than in his stunning portrayal of Othello. Whether his grandiose performance in John Dexter's National Theatre production translates well to the screen is quite another matter. A film of a theatrical production. find out more...

A triumph of artistic imagination and resourcefulness over limited budget since this was shot, in Morocco and Italy, on a shoestring; when an actor didn't turn up he used a stand-in and changed the camera angle, when the costumes didn't show up, he filmed in a Turkish bath! This is the Bard filmed with love and enthusiasm, but never with reverence. The visual imagery is matched to the words, they hit sensory overload together. Also this is a credit to celluloid restoration, the film was mislaid find out more...

Richard's military skills have helped to put his older brother Edward on the throne of England, but jealousy and resentment cause Richard to seek the crown for himself, and he conceives a lengthy and carefully calculated plan using deception, manipulation, and outright murder to achieve his goal. His plotting soon has tumultuous consequences, both for himself and for England. find out more...

At the turn of the 20th century, the film industry sought to elevate its lowbrow status by imitating the theatre. While cinemas decked themselves out like theatres, filmmakers signed up stage stars and turned to the classics. Shakespeare provided the greatest challenge, especially since many of the films made before the First World War were only one or two reels long. Plays included on this compilation are The Tempest (1908), King Lear (1910), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1909), Twelfth Night (191 find out more...

Baptista has two daughters: Kate and Bianca. Everyone wants to wed the fair Bianca, but nobody's much interested in problem child, Kate. Baptista declares that he won't give Bianca away in a marriage until he's found a husband for Kate, so all the suitors begin busily hunting out a madman who's willing to do it, and they find Petruchio who marries Kate with a plan to tame her, while everybody else begins scheming to win Bianca's hand. Their courting is a war of wit and determination in this send find out more...

One of the world's greatest filmmakers, Kurosawa, adapts Shakespeare's Macbeth to 16th Century Japan - the loss in language being more than compensated for by the misty and forbidding locations and the clever incursions of Japanese culture. find out more...