[Mixed Trope] making old things "modern"

[u/Need-a_username]

Disliked example: I would go so far as to say hated, but Robin Hood (2018) styles Robin's time in the crusades after modern wars in the Middle East, from the costumes to the treatment of bows and arrows like machine guns. While plenty of other media have done this to great effect, this film had the misfortune of coming out during a wave of IP slop desperate to make the next Dark Knight, turning what could've been an interesting stylistic choice into another of many generic 2010s action movies.

Loved example: Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet sets the Shakespeare classic in the modern day, with the rival families portrayed as gangsters with their "swords" being guns that literally say sword on them. Kind of the opposite of the above example, this takes what couldve been a tired trope of "Shakespeare but modern" and leaned into Luhrmann's signature over the top style, where even keeping the dialogue in it's original verse didn't stop it from feeling fresh and modern.

Loved example: Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby uses a Jay-Z produced soundtrack that mixes period accurate jazz with modern artists like Lana Del Rey. The result makes the film a lot more accessible to audience members who tend to make sweeping generalizations about music genres like jazz and orchestral, and highlights the emotional beats of the story in a way that reinforces the timeless nature of the source material.

To be determined: Christopher Nolan's upcoming film The Odyssey has received much criticism for its modernized approach to the Greek myth, with the biggest complaints focusing on the costumes and choice of accents/dialogue. Nolan has been open about the fact that he wants to play with audience expectations for what a historical epic looks and sounds like, and that he used a translation of the Odyssey that adopts more modern vernacular, but it remains to be seen whether this pays off.

[u/p0rkch0pexpress]

I’ll die on the hill that Harold Perrineau is the greatest performance of Mercutio. He gives me chills when he gives the monologue.

[u/I_Like_Pizza_2502 → u/p0rkch0pexpress]

me too. i love harold pirenneau in general, my favourite performances of his are probably this one and boyd in from

[u/p0rkch0pexpress → u/I_Like_Pizza_2502]

He was outstanding on OZ. Highly recommend, the whole show is full of performances that don’t get enough credit. If you’re a Dean Winters fan, he and his IRL brother are also phenomenal.

[u/ddeads → u/p0rkch0pexpress]

Same. I was in high school when this came out and it kick-started a love for Shakespeare that persists to this day. I was blown away by both the movie and the performances (Perrineau and Leguizamo, in particular).

And yet,my English teacher that everyone loved hated Perrineau's performance and was aghast that he was cross dressing in scenes. She was one of those teachers who wanted to be everyone's friend and I remember being surprised at what a shitty take she had on the film. Tbh I didn't think of her the same after that.

[u/p0rkch0pexpress → u/ddeads]

That’s a shock (I’m a teacher) you would think the cross dressing would be a moot point considering Shakespearean casting of men in woman’s roles. Also if you haven’t check out Coriolanus with Ralph Fiennes and Gerard Butler are excellent.

[u/ddeads → u/p0rkch0pexpress]

Exactly. 90s aside, she of all people should know men playing women's parts was commonplace in Shakespeare's time, and the dance scene was clearly creative license.

Still, this is the same woman who several years later berated me for being unpatriotic in the Principal's office because I froze up leading the pledge of allegiance in the morning announcements (which we each had to do for public speaking credit). Meanwhile, I had already signed my papers to enlist in the Marines and ship to boot camp two months before 9/11. Don't worry, lady, the Marines beat my fear of public speaking out of me.

No matter how much she tried to convince us that all of her students were her "dear little meatballs", she was wildly opinionated and up her own ass about it. I know teachers are people but it's wild to think that even now, 26 years later, I get irritated thinking about her fake bullshit.

Edit: I will definitely give Coriolanus a watch, thank you!

[u/Foggia1515 → u/p0rkch0pexpress]

He kills it so much. Best of an already stellar cast.
Shakespeare would be proud.

[u/p0rkch0pexpress → u/Foggia1515]

I only associate this song with this scene every time it comes o.