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Shakespeare and the Renaissance: Films

Research guide to help students find information about Shakespeare's works and life.

Finding Online or Streaming Films in the RCCC Library

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Films from Library's Database

William Shakespeare
This program tells the story of Shakespeare and his works. Featuring delightful dramatized extracts from some of Shakespeare’s best-known plays, the program also includes memorable depictions of life in Elizabethan times. The program also features expert commentary and critical analysis by Stanley Wells, Director of the Shakespeare Institute, and Robert Smallwood, Deputy Director of the Shakespeare Centre in Stratford-upon-Avon. The well-regarded Shakespearean actor Brian Blessed also makes a special appearance in this program.

Shakespeare on the Silver Screen
This movie combines clips from movie versions of Shakespeare's plays with interviews to demonstrate Shakespeare's influence on modern popular culture

Shakespeare: The Legacy
In celebration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, this program unlocks some of the mysteries surrounding Shakespeare’s life and the legacy of his work across the globe. John Nettles takes us on a journey through the dangerous and dynamic times of Shakespeare’s life and reveals something of the real man who transformed the London theatre and the English language, yet remained a Stratford man.

William Shakespeare: A Concise Biography
This introduction to William Shakespeare's life and works from the Famous Authors series begins at the author's childhood home in Stratford and tours the institutions of the town and country that would have been part of Shakespeare's life. The film follows the 23-year-old writer to London, providing a picture of the city in Elizabethan and Jacobean England when Shakespeare went to make his success in the theater. Tension between the Catholics and Protestants marked the time, and the film explores these conditions and the world of the theater, with all its major players, patrons, and buildings of the era.

Shakespeare's Legacy

How to Read and Understand Shakespeare

Video Series: How to Read and Understand Shakespeare - 24 Films in the Series

Shakespeare's plays are masterworks, but they can be hard to understand for a modern English speaker. Gain direct insight into Shakespeare's writing in this course which explains how to enter Shakespeare's world, how to grasp what's happening in his plays, and how to enjoy each play on both the page and the stage.

 

Intro to Shakespeare

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