--- product_id: 4418940 title: "The Tempest" price: "₪164" currency: ILS in_stock: true reviews_count: 7 url: https://www.desertcart.co.il/products/4418940-the-tempest store_origin: IL region: Israel --- # The Tempest **Price:** ₪164 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Tempest - **How much does it cost?** ₪164 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.il](https://www.desertcart.co.il/products/4418940-the-tempest) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description This modern retelling of William Shakespeare's final masterpiece is an exciting, mystical and magical fantasy with Academy Award(R)-winner Helen Mirren (Best Actress, The Queen, 2006) leading a star-studded cast including Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek) and Alfred Molina (The Sorcerer s Apprentice). Exiled to a magical island, the sorceress Prospera (Mirren) conjures up a storm that shipwrecks her enemies, and then unleashes her powers for revenge. Directed by the visionary Julie Taymor -- and complete with exclusive bonus features and an Academy Award nomination for Best Costume Design (Sandy Powell, 2010) -- The Tempest, with its innovative twist, is a supernatural dramedy filled with Shakespearian villains, lovers and fools that will leave you spellbound. Review: Best filmed Tempest to date (though that's not saying much) - Let me say right off: I am a total Bardolator. I teach Shakespeare, I am obsessed with Shakespeare, I have read and seen all the plays, and my love affair with the Bard began with seeing a live performance of The Tempest in 1975. It was pure magic. I also love movies, and I believe that in the 21st century, filmed versions of Shakespeare's plays are probably the best way to reach the widest audience. The sneers and sniffs of snobs aside, I am convinced that if Will were alive today, he'd be writing movie screenplays (or even television), NOT stage plays, which today are aimed at a narrow, elite, theatre-going audience. As a literature professor who has been teaching The Tempest for a decade now, I have always been singularly bemused by the lack of a filmed version that really captures the magical spirit of the play. The old TV Richard Burton show is well-acted but silly, the BBC version has great actors but terrible, flat production values, Prospero's Books is brilliant but incomprehensible to all but those who know the play intimately, Derek Jarman's version is terribly dated and, despite being a good "film," just doesn't work as The Tempest, in my opinion. The other, "scholastic" releases are plagued by poor production and/or undistinguished acting. And I won't even bother with "adaptations" of the plot, such as Forbidden Planet or Cassavettes's Tempest. Until this version, the only truly excellent version of The Tempest was the HBO animated one, but at 25 minutes, not much of Shakespeare's story remained intact. Just last week I had the great pleasure of seeing Julie Taymor's The Tempest in London. It was absolutely amazing. The magic was there! The acting, for the most part, was brilliant. The script contained enough of the actual play's language that the minor tweakings to make it easier for contemporary audiences did not bother me a bit. The visuals were absolutely stunning. The movie was a joy from start to finish. I can't wait to see it again--repeatedly--to savor all the special moments over and again. My only regret is that my students will be unable to see it this year due to the late release date. [REVISION NOTE: This year's students had the opportunity to see this version, and they overwhelmingly LOVED it. It brought the play to life for them. At last, I no longer have to convince them that The Tempest really IS a great play! 01/19/12] If you love Shakespeare, and if you enjoy movie adaptations of the plays, DO NOT MISS THIS ONE! Review: A good film of Shakespeare's omnibus play - I have seen only one other filmed version of "The Tempest", the BBC version, and I agree with others who say that in spite of a good cast lead by great Shakespearean actor, Michael Hordern, it is flat and visually uninteresting. That is a good place to start when speaking of this film, shot on two Hawaiian islands, including the volcanic regions on the big island. The scenery is gorgeous and perfectly befitting the play. The landscape tends to put the humans in proper perspective. Little. The great background is enhanced by a touch of special effects, especially in the presentation of the spirit, Ariel. In the background piece, it was reported that Ben Whishaw, the actor who played Arial, would not be available when the company went to Hawaii. So, many of his parts are inserted by special effect, which has the benefit of giving him a very spectral quality. If the special effects and the landscape do anything unfortunate, it is to shrink Prospera in comparison. Either though direction, camera work, or acting, Prospera the magician simply does not come off with the gravitas of Gandalf in LOTR (even though he rarely uses magic.) Prospera's effects are spectacular. It almost seems as if Prospera were played by an even slighter actress, the contrast would have been so great as to make a strong impression. Caliban is Ariel's opposite, earthy in the extreme. In the BBC production, the Caliban character was covered with a stringy, weedy costume which tended to obscure his reactions to the camera. You can almost recognize Djimon Hounsou as the Nubian who played Russell Crowe's fellow gladiator in the movie of that name. Between his natural skin color and makeup, it appears he is caked with mud. Caliban's two henchmen from the storm-tossed ship are two of Shakespeare's great fool characters, Trinculo and Stefano, played to perfection by Russell Brand and Alfred Molina. It just may be that this trio steals the show from Mirren. But Mirren gives a great performance, outdoing Hordern easily. As director Julie Taymor notes, it was simple to change the male character Prospero to Prospera, as it was no more than changing a few pronouns. Far, far easier, for example, than changing King Lear or Hamlet to a woman. The love interest is played by Reeve Carney as Ferdinand, Alonso's son, who falls in love with Miranda, Prospera's daughter, played by felicity Jones. Like many of Shakespeare's romances, they tend to be less interesting than the fools and the perils of the plot. Neither seem accomplished actors, although they carry their parts reasonably well, in this, one of the Himalayas of English language theatre. The four noblemen are played well by Chris Cooper as Antonio, Prospera's brother and Miranda's uncle, Alan Cumming as Sebastian - Alonso's brother, Tom Conti as Gonzalo, a counselor to Alonso, who gave aid to Prospera and Miranda David Strathairn as Alonso, King of Naples, but I confess, Shakespeare has saved the best parts for the fools and the young lovers. The overall effect makes this possibly the only Tempest worth watching. One yearns to see what The Tempest would look like with Ian McKellen in the lead, after his long run as that most famous wizard, Gandalf. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | ASIN | B003Y5H5JM | | Actors | Helen Mirren, Russell Brand | | Aspect Ratio | 2.35:1 | | Best Sellers Rank | #46,650 in Movies & TV ( See Top 100 in Movies & TV ) #2,864 in Comedy (Movies & TV) | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars (955) | | Director | Julie Taymor | | Dubbed: | French, Spanish | | Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No | | Item model number | 3201 | | Language | English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) | | MPAA rating | PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned) | | Media Format | AC-3, Blu-ray, Dolby, Dubbed, Multiple Formats, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen | | Number of discs | 1 | | Product Dimensions | 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 3.2 ounces | | Release date | September 13, 2011 | | Run time | 1 hour and 50 minutes | | Studio | Touchstone Pictures | | Subtitles: | English, Spanish | ## Product Details - **Color:** Color - **Contributor:** Helen Mirren, Julie Taymor, Russell Brand - **Format:** AC-3, Blu-ray, Dolby, Dubbed, Multiple Formats, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen - **Language:** English, Spanish - **Runtime:** 1 hour and 50 minutes ## Images ![The Tempest - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/618ZtJMfV6L.jpg) ![The Tempest - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81LPFSX7g3L.jpg) ![The Tempest - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91Vwl-sUpFL.jpg) ![The Tempest - Image 4](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81PU38uITDL.jpg) ![The Tempest - Image 5](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81-LlI0UpvL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Best filmed Tempest to date (though that's not saying much) *by J***M on March 25, 2011* Let me say right off: I am a total Bardolator. I teach Shakespeare, I am obsessed with Shakespeare, I have read and seen all the plays, and my love affair with the Bard began with seeing a live performance of The Tempest in 1975. It was pure magic. I also love movies, and I believe that in the 21st century, filmed versions of Shakespeare's plays are probably the best way to reach the widest audience. The sneers and sniffs of snobs aside, I am convinced that if Will were alive today, he'd be writing movie screenplays (or even television), NOT stage plays, which today are aimed at a narrow, elite, theatre-going audience. As a literature professor who has been teaching The Tempest for a decade now, I have always been singularly bemused by the lack of a filmed version that really captures the magical spirit of the play. The old TV Richard Burton show is well-acted but silly, the BBC version has great actors but terrible, flat production values, Prospero's Books is brilliant but incomprehensible to all but those who know the play intimately, Derek Jarman's version is terribly dated and, despite being a good "film," just doesn't work as The Tempest, in my opinion. The other, "scholastic" releases are plagued by poor production and/or undistinguished acting. And I won't even bother with "adaptations" of the plot, such as Forbidden Planet or Cassavettes's Tempest. Until this version, the only truly excellent version of The Tempest was the HBO animated one, but at 25 minutes, not much of Shakespeare's story remained intact. Just last week I had the great pleasure of seeing Julie Taymor's The Tempest in London. It was absolutely amazing. The magic was there! The acting, for the most part, was brilliant. The script contained enough of the actual play's language that the minor tweakings to make it easier for contemporary audiences did not bother me a bit. The visuals were absolutely stunning. The movie was a joy from start to finish. I can't wait to see it again--repeatedly--to savor all the special moments over and again. My only regret is that my students will be unable to see it this year due to the late release date. [REVISION NOTE: This year's students had the opportunity to see this version, and they overwhelmingly LOVED it. It brought the play to life for them. At last, I no longer have to convince them that The Tempest really IS a great play! 01/19/12] If you love Shakespeare, and if you enjoy movie adaptations of the plays, DO NOT MISS THIS ONE! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A good film of Shakespeare's omnibus play *by B***D on July 12, 2013* I have seen only one other filmed version of "The Tempest", the BBC version, and I agree with others who say that in spite of a good cast lead by great Shakespearean actor, Michael Hordern, it is flat and visually uninteresting. That is a good place to start when speaking of this film, shot on two Hawaiian islands, including the volcanic regions on the big island. The scenery is gorgeous and perfectly befitting the play. The landscape tends to put the humans in proper perspective. Little. The great background is enhanced by a touch of special effects, especially in the presentation of the spirit, Ariel. In the background piece, it was reported that Ben Whishaw, the actor who played Arial, would not be available when the company went to Hawaii. So, many of his parts are inserted by special effect, which has the benefit of giving him a very spectral quality. If the special effects and the landscape do anything unfortunate, it is to shrink Prospera in comparison. Either though direction, camera work, or acting, Prospera the magician simply does not come off with the gravitas of Gandalf in LOTR (even though he rarely uses magic.) Prospera's effects are spectacular. It almost seems as if Prospera were played by an even slighter actress, the contrast would have been so great as to make a strong impression. Caliban is Ariel's opposite, earthy in the extreme. In the BBC production, the Caliban character was covered with a stringy, weedy costume which tended to obscure his reactions to the camera. You can almost recognize Djimon Hounsou as the Nubian who played Russell Crowe's fellow gladiator in the movie of that name. Between his natural skin color and makeup, it appears he is caked with mud. Caliban's two henchmen from the storm-tossed ship are two of Shakespeare's great fool characters, Trinculo and Stefano, played to perfection by Russell Brand and Alfred Molina. It just may be that this trio steals the show from Mirren. But Mirren gives a great performance, outdoing Hordern easily. As director Julie Taymor notes, it was simple to change the male character Prospero to Prospera, as it was no more than changing a few pronouns. Far, far easier, for example, than changing King Lear or Hamlet to a woman. The love interest is played by Reeve Carney as Ferdinand, Alonso's son, who falls in love with Miranda, Prospera's daughter, played by felicity Jones. Like many of Shakespeare's romances, they tend to be less interesting than the fools and the perils of the plot. Neither seem accomplished actors, although they carry their parts reasonably well, in this, one of the Himalayas of English language theatre. The four noblemen are played well by Chris Cooper as Antonio, Prospera's brother and Miranda's uncle, Alan Cumming as Sebastian - Alonso's brother, Tom Conti as Gonzalo, a counselor to Alonso, who gave aid to Prospera and Miranda David Strathairn as Alonso, King of Naples, but I confess, Shakespeare has saved the best parts for the fools and the young lovers. The overall effect makes this possibly the only Tempest worth watching. One yearns to see what The Tempest would look like with Ian McKellen in the lead, after his long run as that most famous wizard, Gandalf. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review *by D***E on April 26, 2026* Absolut zuverlässig --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co.il/products/4418940-the-tempest](https://www.desertcart.co.il/products/4418940-the-tempest) --- *Product available on Desertcart Israel* *Store origin: IL* *Last updated: 2026-05-17*