I watched Titus, Julie Taymor's 1999 film reworking of Shakespeare's play, Titus Andronicus, last night.
Returning from war against the Goths, Titus offers up the eldest son of on of his hostages, Tamara, queen of the Goths, as a traditional appeasement to the Roman dead. He then refuses the emperor's throne and nominates the venal Saturninus for the role, thinking it will avoid more problems for Rome. The new emperor then demands the hand of Lavinia, Titus's daughter, in marriage, largely to spite his brother, Bassanius, who is in love with Lavinia (and she with him). Titus, torn though he is, agrees. When Bassanius and Lavinia run away, with help from Titus's sons, he stands against them and kills one of his own. Saturninus then marries Tamara, who starts to enact her bloody revenge.
The play is an early one and is classed as a revenge tragedy. But this film employs fascist iconography to give it a modern resonance.
For instance, a number of scenes are set against the backdrop of the Museum of Roman Civilisation in Rome, which, although it was designed along classical lines, was actually built between 1939 and '40, on Mussolini's orders for his abortive exhibition, while Saturninus's costumes clearly echo fascist leaders of that era.
What this emphasises is that Titus is an honourable man, who is following orders and tradition, and trying to do what is best for his state/nation. In this he differs from, say, Macbeth - Titus does nothing wrong. That is his tragedy. The film presents us, therefore, with the idea of decent people caught up in evil times/acts, but of themselves not necessarily bad. And Tamara's early speech to Titus, saying that the Goths have done nothing different to that which Titus and his troops have done, except to be on the defeated side at the end, points up the fine line between winners and losers - history is written by the former and they declare what is morally acceptable in war and what is not.
In this, Titus is reminiscent of the magnificent Oberst Redl (1985): quashing your individuality in service of the state - treating the state as though it is an entity that is deserving of that - is a short-cut to tragedy.
Anthony Hopkins is magnificent in the title role. Jessica Lange is a revelation as Tamara and Alan Cumming does a super job of making Saturninus deeply disturbing.
This really is a magnificent film - possibly the best celluloid adaptation of a Shakespeare play that I have seen.
3/5.
