- EIFF 2019: ANIARA is a Deeply Haunting Sci-Fi Experience [Review]
- Darkstar Pictures Announces Free Online Film Festival!
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- SKYLINES Is Coming! [Poster Premiere]
- Who Hunts Who in HUNTER HUNTER? [Trailer]
- MONSTER HUNTER Coming for Christmas [Trailer]
- Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival Returns with In-Person Event [Line Up]
- LUNATIQUE Director Returns with WASTELAND 3 Promo [Short Film]
- Re: Occupation, Australian Sci Fi movie
- Slice of Life, Blade Runner inspired short
- Is Snowpeircer a sequel to Willy Wonka?
- Re: Yesterday
- Re: Yesterday
- Yesterday
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- BERLINALE 2021: TIDES Comes After Hell [Trailer]
- LUNATIQUE Director Returns with WASTELAND 3 Promo [Short Film]
- A Comet Destoys Earth in GREENLAND Trailer
- Interactive WAR OF THE WORLDS Adaptation Out Now!
- 8K Trailer for Train to Busan Sequel PENINSULA Drops Hard!
- Making a Bomb Shelter in a Funhouse is a Bad Idea in IMPACT EVENT [Trailer]
- Retro Slave: FOX's Post-Apocalyptic Sitcom WOOPS!
- TRAIN TO BUSAN Sequel PENINSULA Gets a Teaser Trailer
- New on Blu-ray and DVD for March 11, 2020
- The Apocalypse Kills Women in ONLY [Trailer]
- Trailer for TheWalking Dead: World Beyond Spin-Off Series
- SATOR is a Welcome Addition to the Folk Horror Canon [Review]
- Women in Horror Month: NEAR DARK
- SOUTHLAND TALES: The Cannes Cut [Review]
- A Woman's Mind Unravels in BIGHT HILL ROAD [Review]
- TIFF 2020: Vanlife Gets a Reality Check in NOMADLAND [Review]
- TIFF 2020: APPLES, THE WAY I SEE IT, PIECES OF A WOMAN & ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2020: The Truth Tellers Return with THE NEW CORPORATION: THE UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY SEQUEL [Review]
- TIFF 2020: NEW ORDER is Brutal, Violent & a Must-See [Review]
- TIFF 2020: ENEMIES OF THE STATE, Or Are They? [Review]
- TIFF 2020: HOLLER Explores Life in a Dying Town [Review]
- 2067 Director Talks Inspiration, Environment & Time Travel [Interview]
- THE STRANGERS Director Returns with THE DARK AND THE WICKED [Trailer]
- Michael Shannon is Crime Boss in ECHO BOOMERS [Trailer]
- Hair Extensions Get Horrific in BAD HAIR [Trailer]
- TIFF 2020: Vanlife Gets a Reality Check in NOMADLAND [Review]
- VIFF 2020: Sobriety, Reintegration & Telekinesis Come Together in THE CURSE OF WILLOW SONG [Interview]
- VIFF 2020: Revenge Thriller Re-Examined in VIOLATION [Interview]
- VIFF2020: Director Loretta Todd on the Making of Her Debut Feature MONKEY BEACH [Interview]
- TIFF 2020: APPLES, THE WAY I SEE IT, PIECES OF A WOMAN & ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2020: The Truth Tellers Return with THE NEW CORPORATION: THE UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY SEQUEL [Review]
- TIFF 2020: NEW ORDER is Brutal, Violent & a Must-See [Review]
- TIFF 2020: ENEMIES OF THE STATE, Or Are They? [Review]
- NO ESCAPE Director Talks Influencers, Escape Rooms & Writing [Interview]
- TIFF 2020: HOLLER Explores Life in a Dying Town [Review]
- The Funny Side of Alien Invasions: You have to SAVE YOURSELVES! [Trailer]
- Kodi Smit-McPhee Goes to the Future to Save the Present in 2067 [Trailer]
- First Look at Denis Villeneuve's DUNE [Trailer]
- Fantasia 2020: LAPSIS, THE COLUMNIST, MINOR PREMISE, FEELS GOOD MAN & HAIL TO THE DEADITES [Capsule Reviews]
- BUNRAKU Writer/Director Returns with LX 2048 [Trailer]
- BLOOD QUANTUM Writer/Director Talks Inspiration, Zombies & Representation [Interview]
Jack In
Latest Comments
Latest Forum Posts
PA News
Latest Reviews
Older News
Crew
Marina Antunes
Editor in Chief
Vancouver, British Columbia
Christopher Webster
Managing Editor
Edmonton, Alberta
DN aka quietearth
Founder / Asst. Managing Editor
Denver, Colorado
Simon Read
UK Correspondent
Edinburgh, Scotland
Rick McGrath
Toronto Correspondent
Toronto, Ontario
Manuel de Layet
France Correspondent
Paris, France
rochefort
Austin Correspondent
Austin, Texas
Daniel Olmos
Corrispondente in Italia
Italy
Griffith Maloney aka Griffith Maloney
New York Correspondent
New York, NY
Stephanie O
Floating Correspondent
Quiet Earth Bunker
Jason Widgington
Montreal Correspondent
Montreal, Quebec
Carlos Prime
Austin Correspondent
Austin, TX
Latest news








Year: 2011
Director: Ralph Fiennes
Writers: John Logan, William Shakespeare (play)
IMDB: link
Trailer: link
Review by: Marina Antunes
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
It's little surprise that Shakespeare's "Coriolanus" has seen fewer adaptations than some of the Bard's other tragedies: it's a particularly dark and unmerciful tale of a man with too much pride.
The tale of a military leader returned from war victorious, Ralph Fiennes' directorial debut Coriolanus looks at one man's ambition, pride and his eventual downfall. The style of the film suggests that while on set of The Hurt Locker, Fiennes picked up more than Kathryn Bigelow's cinematographer Barry Ackroyd. The two films don't only share similar visuals styles, they also share similar approaches to very different lead characters; both are aloof and somewhat removed from the real world.
What's particularly interesting about Coriolanus is that we see how the character has become who he is - not through flashbacks but through dialogue. Via a number of exchanges we see how from youth, Coriolanus has been moulded by his mother Volumnia into a fierce warrior who is proud of his accomplishments. It's interesting that her push is also what leads to Coriolanus' fall from grace. She's the one that encourages him to run for public office which leads to his eventual banishment from Rome and into the arms of the Volscian army led by Tullus Aufidius, Coriolanus' blood enemy. It's almost as if she's running the show with her son as a puppet, dispensable if necessary to keep the family in the City's good graces (the look on her face after the signing of the peace accord certainly suggests as much).
It's interesting, and also a little disconcerting, that Coriolanus, a man feared and revered by those around him, would be brought to his knees by his mother. Coriolanus eventually rips at the seams and shows that he possess some degree of humanity and love by agreeing, at his mother's request, to peace with Rome. His show of mercy and humanity is vilified and shown as weak by being the direct cause of his death at the hands of Aufidius' army. I found it interesting that Coriolanus, rather than humanizing a military leader, shows that any sign of humanity is detrimental when it comes to war.
Fiennes is fierce as Coriolanus and he carries the intensity of the performance to the bitter end but when he agrees to peace, some of his strength disappears to the point where he physically seems to shrink; a fantastic performance. Though everyone manages quite well with the language, including Gerard Butler whose accent adds an unexpected strength to his performance, Vanessa Redgrave is particularly memorable as Volumnia. She's both doting and fierce and there's a sense that behind her warm exterior is a tiger whose path you don't want to cross.
Coriolanus isn't an easy sell. Not only does the language make it less accessible to the masses, the film itself doesn't shy away from the violence and terror of war, the hunger for revenge and the weakness of the human condition. There are some complicated themes at play, some of which are more successfully explored than others, but it's wonderful to see that Fiennes isn't afraid to tackle a difficult project which explores so many ideas. This is a notable first film from an actor who shows great promise behind the camera.
You might also like






