The Shakespeare Collection [DVD] [2020]

I loved watching all the DVDs 📀 it was great 😊

All round excellence in every department

Produced by the BBC in the 1980s. Excellent rendition of the dramas with noted actors. Includes plays rarely produced in our time and exposes viewers to the complete range of Shakespeare and his wide skill as a playwright. Recently I viewed "Cymbeline", a period drama which in a career of teaching English literature I had never read. Authentic and enjoyable production. I was intrigued to find Shakespeare using "egregius" referring to a character in its original Latin sense of "outstandingly bad". This word almost disappeared from use until recently, when it has been used simply for emphasis.

Although criticized at the time of broadcast in the seventies and eighties for being too conservative and "safe", in retrospect this BBC series deserves respect for its ambition, and praise for the quality of its realization. Good, clear productions with some exceptional actors : Patrick Stewart, Helen Mirren, Anthony Hopkins, Ben Kingsley, Judy Davis, Bob Hoskins, Derek Jacobi, Alan Rickman...plus many others, less well known internationally, but first rate performers, among the very best of contemporary British acting talent.

Note that these 38 DVDs are recorded in the European PAL format, so you’ll need a DVD player that can read that format. Get over that hurdle, and you can settle in for great entertainment with authentic English productions of the plays, and famous actors. I was impressed with the stagecraft, as even plays with outdoor settings, such as The Tempest, looked very realistic. Another great feature is optional subtitles, which you can turn on or off, depending on whether you want to follow the exact dialogue.