Film Adaptations

For the past three weeks or so, my coursemates and I have been watching film adaptations of plays as a part of EDU 3217. So far, we have only watched four plays, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Oedipus Rex, Roman Polanski’s version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth as well as King Lear. I enjoyed these sessions very much though I find the film adaptation of Macbeth and Oedipus Rex lacking oomph. I hate to admit it, but I find this version of Macbeth a tad too boring for my liking. I have watched another version of it and found it to be more interesting. The visual quality for Oedipus Rex was poor so I had trouble making sense of the visuals shown. I enjoyed both Elizabeth: The Golden Age as well as King Lear tremendously.











I find it beneficial though, since watching these films actually help me make sense of what theatre is all about. Watching these film adaptations give me a better understanding of the historical, geographical and social setting, as well as the characters and other elements of the plays. It also gives me an idea of how the play should be enacted. In fact, I had my King Lear text with me which I read silently in-sync with the film. I also find these film sessions beneficial for students with visual-spatial learning styles. Studies have shown that students learn more when they are exposed to audio and visual materials apart from texts. Using films in literature lessons is an added advantage since it enables students to evaluate verbal and non-verbal clues in the film as well as pay attention to the details.

If I were to teach literature in school, I will definitely encourage my students to watch film adaptations of the text which they will learn. I believe that it will give them a different perspective and attitude that learning literature can be cool and fun after all!