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Irčne Jacob, Kenneth Branagh, Laurence Fishburne

The evil Iago pretends to be friend of Othello in order to manipulate him to serve his own end in the film version of this Shakespeare classic.

Flixster Users

68% liked it

7,470 ratings

Critics

66% liked it

38 critics

R, 125 min.

Directed by: Oliver Parker

Release Date: December 22, 1995

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DVD Release Date: January 18, 2000

Stats: 351 reviews

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Othello Kenneth Branagh in Othello Irene Jacob & Kenneth Branagh in Othello Laurence Fishburne & Kenneth Branagh in Othello Othello Othello Othello
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Flixster Reviews (351)

  • sanjurosamurai
    December 3, 2007
    sanjurosamurai
    this was a great film. not quite the entire original story, but a great film with good acting. the themes in this sory are powerful and the degredation of the likeable othello is dissapointing but interesting to watch.
  • sapphirechaos05
    July 27, 2007
    sapphirechaos05
    this was good, i read the play so this was..what i had i expected
  • BiologyBabe2012
    March 15, 2007
    BiologyBabe2012
    An "R" rating is not necessary for this film ... so you see a flash of tits ... so? Anyway, good take on Shakespeare's play.
  • flynnparadox
    September 18, 2006
    flynnparadox
    Not the best adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy but Branagh's conniving, brilliant performance is worth it. Fishburne has been accused of being wooden but he's actually pretty good. I'd like to see Andre Brauer take on the role one of these days.
  • RashHunt
    March 3, 2006
    RashHunt
    Fishburne tries to act and Branagh kind of just trails along,,, oh yes, he's "Evil". Not that impressive in comparison to Parker's other efforts with Wilde instead of Shakespeare.
  • Rossjm
    November 21, 2009
    Rossjm
    The difficult thing with a Shakespeare adaption is that it is often hard to tell what it is you really love.The fantastic dialogue or the film itself. Although I'd say this is a pretty good mix, I believe the reason why I am rating it slightly higher is because of the Shakespeare...( read more)'s script. However, the actors are cast finely and they speak the hard lines almost fluently.

    Othello is one of the most famous stories and tragedies of all time, that is as relvent today as it was 400 years ago. Although the actual context may not be clear for everyone today, since the story is set in a conflict between Cyrpus, Turkey and Venice (then not Italy) that happened in the mid/late 16th Century, the gist is easy enough to follow. Besides, this is very much belittled by the powerful tragedy that unfolds.

    The relevence may have changed slightly. Some may view the story as portraying racism and the effects it has. Yes, this works today but back in the 1600's it was not as rife and therefore I doubt that was the main point. This is very much second nature to how the classes are portrayed. Othello is not turned against for skin colour but because he is of a different class, especially compared to his rich and younger wife, Desdemona (the age difference seems to have been overlooked in this version, instead focusing more on jealousy). Although his age is dismissed for the other, more prominant themes (he and his wife could be the same age for all we know), Othello's insercurities at his class status are still adressed and from this we see how easily he can be manipulated, which all appears very clearly in the film, avoiding much confusion that often comes with Shakespeare adaptions.

    The centre villain, Iago, a cold man who acts nice to fool everyone close to him to continue his plan to bring down Othello, is portrayed in this way perfectly by Kenneth Branagh and is the way Shakespeare probably envisioned him. This unpleasent two faced mixture of personalities makes Iago seem even more hatable and a heightens sense of dramtic irony is effectivly achieved through this portrayal as we get to see both sides and how manipulative he can be by constantly changing his person; he is nice to the characters but evil when he has soliloquies, giving hints to the audience that his character is not what he is or as he famously quotes "I am not what I am".

    The rich dialogue and fantastic story is what makes this film. The directing is above average but is nothing spectacular and some of the performances aren't that noteworthy. Only Fishburne and Branagh stand out amongst the main cast and some people in minor roles (Michael Sheen is Lodovico is fantastic) and Michael Maloney as Roderigo is great.

    The high rating is for the script adaption, some well cast actors, intense editing (when Othello has a fit is highly memorable in this aspect) and a score that suits every scene from calm to loud and menacing. A great adaption for many reasons and a poorer one for others but definitely worth a watch for the story alone, of which it stays mostly faithful and does good justice.
  • ashleyandtiana
    November 9, 2009
    ashleyandtiana
    LF was fabulous in this movie
  • caiojeremy
    October 18, 2009
    caiojeremy
    Boa adaptaçăo para a maior história sobre o ciúme.
  • uc2me2003
    July 26, 2009
    uc2me2003
    nice movie, i love it
  • SheWhoMustNotBeNamed934
    July 14, 2009
    SheWhoMustNotBeNamed934
    LMAO desdemona's dance is freaking hilarious!

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Critic Reviews

January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

... Will not give its viewers much of an idea of the Shakespeare play, and may inadvertently give them other ideas, about interracial love, that were not much on Shakespeare's mind. full review

January 1, 2000
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The real question is, could director Oliver Parker have done worse? full review

View more Othello reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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Othello Trivia

  • What movie was Oliver Parker's directorial debut?  Answer »
  • In the prostitute scene from 'Interview with the Vampire,' what Shakespearean play does Lestat quote, "Once put out thy light, I can never give thee vital breath again."   Answer »
  • Who played Shakespeare's Othello in 1995? He also did Cotton Club(1984), Biker Boyz(2003), Assault on Precinct 13(2005), and won Oscar for playing Ike Turner in What Has Love Got to Do with It?  Answer »
  • The version of Othello that was made in 1995 has all of the Shakespeare play's line?  Answer »
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