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Saw "Titus" today. A real cryin' shame. There was an
awful lot of potential for a thoughtful reappraisal of the
somewhat neglected (justly, most say, but I've always preferred
the more Jacobean stuff) play, but Taymor either had no clue as
to what she was doing at all, or just got too giddy at the
thought of shooting at Cinecitta. Ferretti and co. do an, um,
energetic job, to be sure, but the arbitrary self-consciousness (and
garishness) of the design detracts from any concrete
psychological examination of the characters; the material
metaphors are likewise poorly conceived. All the players spend a
great deal of dedicated effort with their characters. That this
generally manifests itself in a lot of spittle-spraying hysterics
and a lack of concern with their tonal surroundings or fellow
performers doesn't help things any (a spattering of cast members
do manage to generate sympathy, fewer can also boast
authenticity; the shared screentime of these, however, equal that
of the close-ups for individual others). Certain to curtail any
attempt at that thoughtful reappraisal anytime in the forseeable
future.
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