I saw this movie when it was released, and my distaste for it has stuck with me all these years.
Here's why:
Greenaway's goal seems to be to take every literary image in the Tempest and make it literal. If a character were to say, "my heart takes flight," we'd be shown an actual human heart, with pigeon wings attached, flapping across the screen.
This process makes for some lush tableaux, but ultimately it's a facile exercise. And it becomes deadly boring.
I don't begrudge the pleasure other viewers found in this movie, but it's worth knowing that not everyone in the audience was enraptured.
Here's why:
Greenaway's goal seems to be to take every literary image in the Tempest and make it literal. If a character were to say, "my heart takes flight," we'd be shown an actual human heart, with pigeon wings attached, flapping across the screen.
This process makes for some lush tableaux, but ultimately it's a facile exercise. And it becomes deadly boring.
I don't begrudge the pleasure other viewers found in this movie, but it's worth knowing that not everyone in the audience was enraptured.