THE MERCHANT OF VENICE - AL PACINO, JEREMY IRONS

I bought this new and watched it once. I got really tired of the director sacrificing everything to make the frames look Italian Renaissance. It get distracting after a while. Jeremy Irons is good doing what he does quite well (and a few too many times), Portia is good and actually is credible in the trial scene - the Quality of Mercy speech is well done and she is likable. The director attempt to bring life to the two young men who are shallow and not very nice. Pacino gives a very good performance as Shylock and the director makes clear the plight of the Jews in renaissance Venice and gives real motivation to Shylock's behaviour - which is usually problematical... Well worth a watch, however, it gets wearisome in places. Read more