Brilliant and infuriating in almost equal measure, this production is always watchable.
Olivier's Othello is part charlatan and part champion, and his portrayal of a Moor has been attacked as racist and praised as perfection. Olivier lowered his voice, lifted weights, and invented a rolling walk for the performance, but he says the walk was designed to keep his big toes from standing straight up, not as any sort of African stride. Ultimately, this Othello is a large reading, less noble, more passionate, and sooner jealous than most.
Maggie Smith's Desdemona is charismatic if not especially innocent, and Frank Finlay's Iago (criticized for underacting in the National Theatre production from which the film came) has the right mix of restraint and villainy.
Olivier's Othello is part charlatan and part champion, and his portrayal of a Moor has been attacked as racist and praised as perfection. Olivier lowered his voice, lifted weights, and invented a rolling walk for the performance, but he says the walk was designed to keep his big toes from standing straight up, not as any sort of African stride. Ultimately, this Othello is a large reading, less noble, more passionate, and sooner jealous than most.
Maggie Smith's Desdemona is charismatic if not especially innocent, and Frank Finlay's Iago (criticized for underacting in the National Theatre production from which the film came) has the right mix of restraint and villainy.