Macbeth

"Entertainment Greatness … That Only Motion Picture Magic Can Bring!"

1948 1h 47m EN

👍

7.3

SOLID

🍅

86%

FRESH

⭐

7.4

IMDB

★7.3TMDB · 190🍅86%Rotten Tomatoes★7.4IMDB · 7,986

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth commits a treasonous act and takes the throne for himself.

“Entertainment Greatness … That Only Motion Picture Magic Can Bring!”

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Cast

Orson Welles
Macbeth
Jeanette Nolan
Lady Macbeth
Dan O'Herlihy
Macduff
Roddy McDowall
Malcolm
Edgar Barrier
Banquo
Alan Napier
A Holy Father
Erskine Sanford
Duncan
John Dierkes
Ross

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Orson Welles
Writers: Orson Welles
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 6

ERA

Did you know

78 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 6

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Orson Welles, shot by John L. Russell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 6

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Louis Lindsay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 6

CAST

Did you know

Orson Welles and Jeanette Nolan and Dan O'Herlihy carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 6

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Entertainment Greatness … That Only Motion Picture Magic Can Bring!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 6

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0040558 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Orson Welles directs. John L. Russell behind the camera. Louis Lindsay cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

178 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Orson Welles, shot by John L. Russell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Editor Louis Lindsay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
4Orson Welles and Jeanette Nolan and Dan O'Herlihy carry the top of the cast.
5Marketing tagline: "Entertainment Greatness … That Only Motion Picture Magic Can Bring!".
6IMDB entry: tt0040558 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: John L. Russell
Editing: Louis Lindsay
Costume design: Fred A. Ritter
Makeup / hair: Peggy Gray
Sound: Garry A. Harris
Runtime: 107 min · 1h 47m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Macbeth (1948)
Rotten Tomatoes: 86% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 7.4/10 · 7,986 votes
MPAA: Approved

Awards

1 nomination

Also by

Orson Welles

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-06-23
★ 7/10
Macbeth (Orson Welles) is travelling across a misty moor one evening when he encounters three mysterious women whom acclaim him Thane of Cawdor. His is surely Thane of Glamis, and Cawdor is another man altogether - or is he? Then they proclaim that he shall be King of Scotland - and remain so unless some seemingly impossible circumstances combine to bring about his downfall. Empowered by their prophecy, he returns to the castle of King Duncan (Erskine Sanford) where he divulges his secret to his ruthlessly ambitious wife (Jeanette Nolan) thus setting in motion some regicidal scheming that will install him on the throne - but at what cost to him, his wife and his kingdom. This is certainly my favourite Shakespeare play, full of darkness and mysticism; of betrayal, duplicity and as near to actual evil as I think the stage has ever got. Though maybe Welles ought not to have been costumed as a Mongolian warlord, his efforts otherwise to master some of the most powerful soliloquies in the English language are impressive. Nolan also contributes well as the devious, downright malevolent wife who cares for power and him and little else. The supporting cast do enough, but there is a paucity of actual Scots actors here. The eeriness and creepiness of the thing might have benefitted more from the likes of Finlay Currie and John Laurie rather than from Dan O'Herlihy; the really lacklustre efforts of Roddy McDowell as "Malcolm" - son of a murdered father, nor of Edgar Barrier's a-haunting "Banquo". John Russell's photography and Fred Ritter's art direction use the sound stage space well creating a plausible series of impressions of the near twenty year reign of this 11th century monarch. As ever with this bard, he uses approaching armies and battles effectively, but nowhere near as effectively as he uses the human psyche to generate fear, guilt and paranoia - and again, Welles delivers the role of the increasingly troubled man strongly. It is still better seen at a theatre, but as big screen adaptations go, this is a creatively menacing depiction that has held up well.

Production companies