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Shakespeare: The Animated Tales [DVD] [1992]

Alec McCowen (Actor), Michael Kitchen (Actor) Rated: Parental Guidance Format: DVD

21 customer reviews

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Shakespeare: The Animated Tales [DVD] [1992]

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Product details

Actors: Alec McCowen, Michael Kitchen, Suzanne Burden, Gerald James, John Warner
Producers: Jeff Morgan, Phil George
Format: PAL
Language: English
Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired: English
Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 4:3 - 1.33:1
Number of discs: 1
Classification:
Studio: Metrodome
DVD Release Date: 28 Mar. 2005
Run Time: 360 minutes
Average Customer Review: 21 customer reviews
ASIN: B0006V1FUC
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 41,243 in DVD & Blu-ray (See Top 100 in DVD & Blu-ray)
- #2592 in DVD & Blu-ray > Animation
- #4046 in DVD & Blu-ray > Children & Family

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Product description

Product Description

Renowned author and Shakespearian scholar Leon Garfield adapts 12 of the playwright's works into modern day animations. The adaptations use a variety of animation techniques and feature the vocal talents of Felicity Kendal, Alun Armstrong, Joss Ackland and Zoë Wanamaker. The plays are: 'Macbeth', 'Hamlet', 'Romeo and Juliet', 'Othello', 'Twelfth Night', 'As You Like It', 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', 'The Taming of the Shrew', 'A Winter's Tale', 'Richard III', 'Julius Caesar' and 'The Tempest'.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars

5 star		12
4 star		7
3 star		2
2 star		0
1 star		0

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Top customer reviews

Shakespeare - Economy Size!

ByMs. J. O'Reganon 8 March 2009

Format: DVD

A few weeks ago, I was browsing on YouTube and came across an excerpt from one of the Shakespeare Animated Tales, and was reminded of how enjoyable and clever they were when they were first broadcast by the BBC in the 1990s. I ordered the DVD boxset online from Amazon straight away, and was astonished to have it arrive by post within 3 days!

I love these animated tales - not only have the makers somehow captured the essence of each play in just 30 minutes, but also reflected the individual flavour of each piece with the style of animation used: dark, claustrophobic paintings on glass for the tragic Hamlet, and brightly coloured, fun stop-motion animation for comedies like Twelfth Night.

These little half-hour gems are not only edifying, but also entertaining, and - as has no doubt been demonstrated effectively during BBC's schools broadcasts over the last decade or so - are a perfect form of introduction for children to the rich literary tapestry and language of Shakespeare's works.

0Comment 49 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Excellent animation dvd

Byangelorlon 29 April 2009

Format: DVD

This is a fabulous dvd. I use it with children. They love it. It features animations of key parts of the plays with the language of Shakespeare. It is also subtitled so it gives the viewer a great insight into the scenes. Love it. A valuable classroom resource!

0Comment 25 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Excellent resource

Bycroft originalon 14 January 2011

Format: DVD

I teach teenagers with special needs and I have found this DVD an excellent introduction to Shakespeare's plays. My pupils have gained a good understanding of the plays before we begin acting out some of the scenes.

0Comment 5 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Brilliant

ByKimion 23 February 2010

Format: DVDVerified Purchase

Brought this boxset for my children after I remembered having watched it when it was originally broadcasted on the BBC when I was a child, particularly for my 9 year old but even my 4 year old loved it, all in all really enjoyable and highly recommended.

0Comment 4 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Decent animated version of Shakespeare's masterpiece.

ByLady Chatterboxon 5 March 2003

Format: VHS Tape

This may be a cartoon, but it's not for children exclusively. Contrary to what you may expect, this one doesn't totally dilute the violence or substitute Shakespeare's language for a simple-to-understand dialect; there are a few gory bits (although they are obviously no way near as shocking as some of the scenes featured in other adaptations, such as Roman Polanski's film) and the dialogue isn't changed, letting some of the most memorable, disturbing lines keep their edge.
This animation is about half an hour long, and that comes as a slight disappointment: quite a few chunks that the adults will remember have been cut down significantly or have gone completely. For example, the viewer isn't really shown Macbeth's real motives for the murders, so newcomers to the play may be slightly confused with what's actually going on.
Overall, this is worth your money if you either like the original play of Macbeth, or are looking for an alternative to the live action screen adaptations of the play. I don't see why they couldn't have made it a bit longer though, which is the cartoon's main weakness.

0Comment 35 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

A Little Masterpiece in Itself!

ByPhat Fayon 10 August 2010

Format: DVDVerified Purchase

Want an accessible student's introduction to twelve of Shakespeare's best-loved and most-studied plays? Look no further. Originally produced for the BBC and S4C, these shimmering animations are a tiny delight. Each play is compressed to a classroom-sized 30 minute duration apiece. The animations adopt wildly differing styles but are arresting and timeless. Most importantly, Leon Garfield's magnificent abridged texts capture the essence and narrative complexity of each play without ever becoming frustrating or simplistic. For a young student approaching Shakespeare for the first time, it is SO important that they get to taste and love the writer's original verse. This isn't a babyish bowdlerised Shakespeare, Garfield has completely embraced the power of the original texts without compromise. World-class actors provide the voice talents for an entrancing effect.

Flick on the encoded DVD subtitles, and you have a marvellous textual support for any student struggling with the complexity of the original poetry.

Not a miracle, but a concoction of twelve little miracles spread over three DVD discs! Worth every penny, you'll play these Shakespeare tales over and over.

0Comment 9 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Superb

ByHarrion 21 October 2010

Format: DVD

I love these animated tales. I remember watching them as boy, and they haven't lost their magic now. I hear they've also created a schools drama festival from them, the Shakespeare Schools Festival, where students perform the half hour plays in theatres.

0Comment 3 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

A useful teaching resource

ByAndrew Millaron 8 May 2004

Format: VHS Tape

A carefully considered adaptation, cut down to just 29 minutes by Leon Garfield, this is a great way of introducing the play to younger secondary school pupils - it held the attention of my Year 8s last thing on a Friday so it must be pretty good! This adaptation is particularly useful for helping pupils get to grips with the plot and atmosphere of the play. Rightly, the adaptation covers Acts 4 & 5 in far less detail than Acts 1-3, but many teachers will chose to end their studies of the play not long after the famous orations of Mark Anthony.

0Comment 7 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

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Most recent customer reviews

Five Stars

perfect for homework for 7 yr old

Published 1 year ago by mrs A M Whittaker

Five Stars

Now this is a good watch

Published on 21 May 2015 by Poppy

Five Stars

Essential for anyone entering teaching...

Published on 2 April 2015 by MR PAUL M O'DONNELL

Five Stars

Wonderful.

Published on 21 January 2015 by Ms E M C MULLIGAN

Four Stars

Arrived quickly and in good condition. Thank you.

Published on 25 August 2014 by Neil Cox

Thank goodness the supplier is five stars!!!

This is a video - I thought I was buying a DVD (I had just thrown away my video) but your wonderful supplier sent me the DVD which I think is amazing service - thank you.Read more

Published on 28 November 2013 by jayneherbert

Excellent.

Watched years ago with daughter. Now she is older she loves it again and is preparing her for when she really has to study it. Great!

Published on 4 April 2013 by Ailsa

Entertaining and an indispensable resource for teaching! Shakespeare would have approved!

I used to watch The Animated Tales as a teenager and it sparked my love of Shakespeare plays. Abridged into 20-30 minutes, each animated feature captures the essence of the play...Read more

Published on 16 January 2013 by Anon

Good to have in your Shakespeare library

This is a good resource to have in your Shakespeare library to use in conjunction with other resources.Read more

Published on 14 December 2011 by Libby

shakespeare animated tales

great as a taster or an introduction to Shakespeare, good for children but the language is still a little difficult in places

Published on 8 May 2011 by ct

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