Rave Reviews For MACBETH As It Opens At Cannes 2015; New Clips Feature Michael Fassbender And Marion Cotillard

#Redcarpet MACBETH by Justin Kurzel #Cannes2015 pic.twitter.com/Lwz4dMT3Wc

— Festival de Cannes (@Festival_Cannes) May 23, 2015

Of all of William Shakespeare’s classic works, Macbeth must surely be amongst his most famous.

Certainly, in the more than 400 years since its first publication, it has been one of the most frequently adapted; revived regularly on stage and re-envisioned time and again in the age of cinema and television.

Now comes a bold and daring version starring Academy-Award nominee Michael Fassbender (12 Years A Slave) and Academy-Award winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie En Rose).

Directed by Justin Kurzel (Snowtown), MACBETH had its World Premiere at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival and was the final movie to screen in Competition.

In his review, Guy Lodge (Variety) praises the director’s “thrillingly elemental new adaptation. Fearsomely visceral and impeccably performed, it’s a brisk, bracing update, even as it remains exquisitely in period.”

The tragic tale of a Scottish general haunted by his own ambition, and a prophecy that he will one day become King of Scotland, has long fascinated actors, directors and audiences, and on the big screen has led to adaptations by directors from Orson Welles (the 1948 version features Orson Welles as Macbeth, Jeanette Nolan as Lady Macbeth, Dan O’Herlihy as Macduff and Roddy McDowall as Malcolm) to Akira Kurosawa (Throne of Blood, 1957) to Roman Polanski (the 1971 movie stars Jon Finch as Macbeth and Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth).

With a screenplay by Jacob Koskoff & Todd Louiso and Michael Lesslie, MACBETH (2015) also stars Paddy Considine (The Bourne Ultimatum), David Thewlis (the Harry Potter series), Sean Harris (Prometheus), Jack Reynor (What Richard Did) and Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby).

MACBETH is the story of a fearless warrior and inspiring leader brought low by ambition and desire.

A thrilling interpretation of the dramatic realities of the times and a reimagining of what wartime must have been like for one of Shakespeare’s most famous and compelling characters, a story of all-consuming passion and ambition, set in war torn Scottish landscape.

Preserving Shakespeare’s language was always key to the making of the film. “We approached it with simplicity,” says Michael Fassbender, cast in the role of Macbeth. “We never tried to work against the verse or just disregard it, but we kept things simple and tangible, and the idea Justin had from the beginning was to be a lot more intimate with the text than we’ve seen before, but always truthful. As with any script, you don’t set out to sabotage this tremendous writing but you work with it and ground yourself within it.”

“We had to really work at it because Shakespeare can be hard to understand, even for English people,” notes French actress Marion Cotillard, cast in the role of Lady Macbeth. “But it created an energy that carried us the whole way.”

Shot entirely on location, the film’s director of photography was Adam Arkapaw (True Detective, Snowtown) and production designer was Fiona Crombie (Snowtown, Top of the Lake). Costumes were designed by Academy Award winner Jacqueline Durran (Atonement, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) with make-up and hair designed by Academy-Award winner Jenny Shircore (The Invisible Woman, My Week With Marilyn). The score is from Jed Kurzel (THE BABADOOK, SLOW WEST).

Academy Award winners Iain Canning and Emile Sherman of See-Saw Films (Shame, Tracks, Mr Holmes) produce with Laura Hastings-Smith (Hunger). See-Saw developed the project alongside Film4. STUDIOCANAL majority financed with Film4.

MACBETH opens in UK cinemas on October 2, 2015; The Weinstein Company will release the movie in the US.