Is There a Shakespeare Play in This Film Somewhere? by Danielle Moran

There’s a lot to love about Shakespeare’s and Mazursky’s Tempest. The play and the movie are based on a storm that sets the tone. The theme of reality vs. appearance is highlighted through the use of magic in the play and film. In the play, Prospero and his daughter Miranda were force into exile, but in the film Phillip is willing travel to the remote island. Suffering from much grief and sorrow, his exile causeds him to grow angry and want revenge. The attitude and actions of the major characters in the play and movie, specifically Prospero, illustrate that there is little, if any, true forgiveness and reconciliation in The Tempest. The drama of Williams Shakespeare’ s Tempest, and Mazursky’s Tempest is about forgiveness, reconciliation, and faith. However it is clear that the theme of forgiveness is at the heart of the drama. What is up for debate is to what extent the playwright and director realize forgiveness in the production. The Tempest is Shakespeare’s insight on political ideas and religious ideas concerning the state. It was common to marry across nations. Miranda’s marriage to Ferdinand is a political move to seal Prospero’s regaining of the royal throne.

Shakespeare was a remarkable storyteller, therefore his plays transcend in time and culture. It is quite confusing and not clear in the play or movie where the audience’s sympathies should lie. Therefore, the human experience that Shakespeare and Mazursky present to their audience ranges in human emotions. In the play, Prospero is difficult to sympathize with because he has been treated so badly and wants to seek revenge. For example, Prospero’s title in Milan was usurped, yet he did the same thing to Caliban and Ariel by taking control over their island. Also, Prospero uses his magic as a form of power and control to get his own way in every situation. Miranda is Prospero’s daughter, and although she does not play a major role, her character is unforgettable.

In Mazursky’s film, Miranda seem like the main focus instead of her father Phillip. Although the play and film have common characteristics, I believe Mazursky’s film adapted Shakespeare’s Tempest to suit the modern world. Mazursky’s interpretation is successful because he found ways to shift the basic elements of the setting and tone by using flashbacks. In the flashbacks, we learn the circumstance that prompt Philip (Prospero) to quit his job, end his marriage, and travel to a Greek island. Although Mazursky does explore some concepts relevant in The Tempest, the film switches narrative form from one scene to the next. The plots are very different. Therefore, the connection between the play and movie is very slight. All the elements, and the main magic that gives the play its power, are ignored, and are replaced with a plot of a man going through a midlife crisis.