Everything else credited to al pacino, who in all honesty actually made a pretty good film. The film was shot over four years during and around al pacinos filming schedule, also while he was not working on any major film projects. The eminent film critic robin wood once classified looking for mr. Looking for richard is inspiring, funny, moving, powerful and if you want to move a modern audience to read shakespeare or go and see one of his plays at the rsc in stratford, this is the film to give them.
His goal is to make shakespeares richard iii easier for the common person to understand. Pacino makes looking for richard a great adventure and outrageous fun. Pacino tries to make shakespeares gripping drama of power, lust and betrayal become accessible to a broader audience. Cameras follow al pacino as he wanders new york, sometimes on foot, but more often in the back of a limousine. Watch looking for richard online stream full movie directv. Other articles where looking for richard is discussed.
Pacinos first film as writerdirector is a marvellously intelligent, witty and imaginative exploration of the problems faced by anyone wishing to act in shakes. Looking for richard frames the essential postmodern question in its own terms. New york film locations from the movie looking for richard starring al pacino. Throughout the course of looking for richard which was shot over a period of two years. Looking for richard study guide contains a biography of al pacino, film essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Purchase looking for richard on digital and stream instantly or download offline. Shaped by richard barsams more than twenty years of classroom experience, looking at movies uses students natural enthusiasm for the subject as a foundation for going beyond enjoyment toward intelligent, analytical understanding of movies. Looking for richard is a documentary about the making of a film, and provides many insights into the mechanics of creating a film. Each of these directorial choices serves a different purpose. King richard iii and looking for richard freebook summaries.
For the majority of pacinos fans looking for richard will seem a big departure. So the looking for richard project began on the shore of the firth of forth at the cramond inn, edinburgh. Bring on that justdiscovered 1912 silentfilm version of the play. The story moved away from cramond to leicester and on 25th august 2012 philippa and the project team achieved their objective richard iii had been found. This docudrama consists of casting choices, onstreet and academic interviews, vox populi street interviews, dress rehearsals, screenreadings and film production. He talks to english and american actors and directors, interviews shakespearean scholars and asks the average man on the street about both shakespeare and richard. Watch looking for richard starring al pacino in this documentary on directv. Obviously, the genre of this film is deliberately chosen because it serves pacinos purpose. Looking for richard 1996 letterboxd your life in film. Looking for richard is a 1996 film directed by oscarwinning hollywood actor al pacino. That the film is a must for pacino fans goes without saying. The 1996 histrionic film, looking for richard, composed by al pacino, follows the journey of an american actor and director in attempting to adapt king richard iii to a desensitised, postmodern audience.
Looking for richard keeps the original historical context intact using american scenes and medieval abbeys and european scenes to create a realistic atmosphere. Looking for richard comparative studies hsc english. Al pacino is looking to better understand william shakespeares richard iii. It suggests their search for the most effective way to bring the world of king richard to life for a contemporary audience. Al pacinos deeplyfelt rumination on shakespeares significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an indepth analysis of richard iii. Richard brookss lfmg is a straight fwd story with a fascinating character played by keaton and good supporting roles by richard gere and tuesday weld and tom beranger. When it comes to issues of sexuality and gender, as are brought up in richard brooks hardhitting film, i dont think anybody needs to hear any more opinions from straight white men. Looking for richard is a smart, fascinating behindthescenes look at.
Richard iii and looking for richard quotes and analysis. The third edition of looking at movies is as visually engaging and fun to read as previous editions, and now contains new material on film history, film genre, and cultural contexts, and even more help with film analysis. It is an exploration of pacinos love for shakespeare, particularly shakespeares richard iii, and it playfully intersperses documentarystyle interviews with scholars, theater professionals, and people on the street with dramatizations of some of the plays pivotal scenes. Looking for richard is a 1996 american documentary film directed by al pacino. In telling us of a story of a man, who wants so badly to become king as to betray. It develops students understanding of the effects of context. I found much irony in this simple effort, which made the film all the more enjoyable. From its very first chapter, looking at movies provides students with all the tools they need to become perceptive viewers of film, including the most sophisticated and seamlessly integrated media resources that are rich with comprehensive analysis.
The film features extracts from rehearsals and performances of richard iii, a. Looking for richard part 3 summary and analysis gradesaver. This is visible during the film because he is seen growing a beard and hair cut for the film carlitos way 1993 as one example. The many characters in richard iii would have been roughly as familiar to the groundlings in shakespeares globe theater as the figures in. Looking for answers in looking for richard al pacinos looking for richard is an unusual film. The film looking for richard is designed to get students to reflect on their attitudes to shakespeare and on the ways in which film can liberate his plays and his language. Looking for richard 1996 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. This means that is filmed in a documentary style everything is staged. In this post we will take a close look at the two hsc texts. Pacinos fascinating foray into the world of shakespeare, charting his attempts to translate the bards richard iii into film. Goodbar is a 1977 american crime drama film, based on judith rossners bestselling novel of the same name, which was inspired by the 1973 murder of new york city schoolteacher roseann quinn, who led something of a double life. Looking for richard a film by al pacino 1251 words.
Wes folkerth, by the way, is a professor at mcgill. For that, you can consult laurence oliviers 1955 version, or ian mckellens 1995 film that transposed the action to a neonazi 1930s england. Looking at movies is the most effective, engaging, and widely adopted introduction to film analysis available. Is this a film about richard iii, or is this a film about a film about richard iii. Looking for richard is not a film version of the play about shakespeares hunchbacked villain. Alec baldwin provides a fine and nuanced performance of richards brother clarence, but thats about it. A critical, comparative analysis of the texts king richard iii and looking for richard has revealed the significance of the context of the time period in which each text was written. It is a documentary about the complexities of shakespeare, the performing of the play richard iii, and the ignorance of the average american regarding shakespeare. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay andor viewings of looking for richard. Though a noteworthy cast of stage actors and hollywood stars including kevin spacey, winona ryder, and alec baldwin gathers to work on the play, looking for richard does not present a. How has your understanding of ambition and identity been informed by exploring the connections between richard iii and looking for richard. Shakespeares play king richard iii and al pacinos drama documentary looking for richard.
Looking at movies, third edition is an accessible and visually dynamic introduction to film studies that offers more media support and a lower price than all of its competitors. Its available to watch on tv, online, tablets, phone. We will take a closer look at the contexts of these two texts, along with some quotes, techniques and analysis from each. The result earned pacino a directors guild of america award. Through its multiple layers of meaning, the title of the film looking for richard reinforces the goals of the films creators. Clearly a labor of love for pacino, the film benefits from his passionate. This is a fascinating documentarystyle film about academy awardwinning. Ambition and identity are two contextually transcendent facets of the human condition. In shakespeares play king richard iii, the centrality of power is communicated through characters and their pursuit for power while in looking for richard, al pacinos docudrama exploring richard as a character, his struggle for power is portrayed as well as pacinos struggle as he produces the film. The film was written and directed by richard brooks, and stars diane keaton, tuesday weld, william atherton, richard kiley, and richard gere. Through the introduction of morality in richard iii and the reshaping of the value in looking for richard, the constructs of morality from the two distinctive contexts are accentuated and we are able to gain a deeper understanding of richard. Celebrated actor al pacino here tries to find a new way of looking at shakespeare.
Al pacino uses the fact the richard iii is a play full of irony, so the film is also full of irony. Finally, the looking for richard script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the al pacino movie about the making of richard iii. For me the high point of his portrayal of richard is the soliloquy piece to camera before the battle of bosworth, which is quite stunning. Explicate the power and importance of studying shakespeare in general, and richard iii in. Goodbar 1977 about a single woman whose virtuous profession shes a. How has your understanding of ambition and identity been. Al pacino has a documentary film crew follow him as he works on a production of shakespeares richard iii. So, why exactly did pacino choose a docudrama instead of the usual drama adaptation. The trouble with it is, that its basically a two hour making of featurette. Al pacino, aidan quinn, winona ryder, kevin spacey, alec baldwin. The religious and philosophical paradigms that fabricate society change over time.
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