THE TAMING OF THE SHREW
(Franco Zeffirelli, 1967, 122 mins)
Release date: 21 July 2025
Limited Edition Blu-ray (UK premiere)
Richard Burton (Absolution) and Elizabeth Taylor (Secret Ceremony) star in The Taming of the Shrew, a vibrant and bawdy adaptation of Shakespeare’s immortal romantic comedy from director Franco Zeffirelli (Romeo and Juliet).
Nobleman Baptista (Michael Hordern, Girl Stroke Boy) seeks husbands for his two daughters. Bianca (Natasha Pyne, The Devil-Ship Pirates) has no trouble attracting suitors, but the headstrong and acerbic Kate (Taylor) drives men away... until the nobleman Petruchio (Burton) is inspired by a sizeable dowry to take on the challenge.
This lavish production’s all-star cast is rounded out by Cyril Cusack (Gideon’s Day), Michael York (Cabaret), Alan Webb (The Third Secret), and Victor Spinetti (A Hard Day’s Night), and features a lush soundtrack by the great Nino Rota (The Godfather, 8½).
INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
• High Definition remaster
• Original mono audio
• Audio commentary with film historians Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson (2025)
• Matthew Sweet on ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ (2025): the broadcaster and writer examines the background behind the film’s production
• Royal Film Performance screening (1967): newsreel footage capturing an audience of special guests, including Princess Margaret and a who’s who of British cinema greats
• French premiere (1967): newsreel footage of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton attending the film’s Paris premiere
• Original theatrical trailer
• Teaser trailer
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with new essay by Bethan Roberts, a contemporary on-set report by John Francis Taylor, an overview of critical responses, and film credits
• UK premiere on Blu-ray
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK
• All features subject to change
#PHILE466B
BBFC cert: U
REGION B
EAN: 5060697924114
Nice to see some actual extras compared to the Australian edition. My thoughts on the play and the adaptation from the Shakespeare List Project
domino harvey wrote: Mon Sep 02, 2019 4:50 pm
[…] I think that Shakespeare Guide guy is dead-on when he says "you can't win" when discussing this play-- I have recently read many fervent defenses and active readings of the play and particularly the final scene, but I think this is "special pleading" and not backed up by the text itself. I understand the frustration Bardolatry-practicers feel at having to reconcile the humanist who gave us vibrant women characters like Juliet or Rosalind with being the same guy who gives us Kate being tormented, tortured, and forced into capitulation to her abuser-- especially when the play itself is easily the best of these early comedies! It does make me laugh a bit at those who get worked up over the ending of the Two Gentlemen of Verona and then find ways to pretend Kate isn't saying exactly what she is saying in the final speech though! As is, this is a very good and frequently amusing play that also furthers a world view abhorrent to most of us watching/reading today. I like to think anyone able to appreciate Shakespeare and the multifaceted readings and approaches one can take to his texts can appreciate the play as it is while still marking it with a mental asterisk in consideration rather than convincing themselves it's actually progressive. It surely ain't, folks.
The Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor adaptation is a frenetic mess, but I liked Burton's zeal, even if he did very self-consciously fill every gap in his lines with incessant guttural guffaws that made him come across like Muttley. The extended courtship, greatly expanded upon from the source and turned into an earthy flirtation/gropefest, is an interesting choice, clearly advocating the reading that Kate meets her match in Petruchio and is actually into the whole thing. I can understand this reading, but to me the great comic horror of the play is found at the end of this scene, when Petruchio announces to Kate's father that even though she says she doesn't want to marry him, they're actually in love and they made an arrangement that she'd still pretend to hate him in public. It's a twisted and perverse comic nightmare, and no adaptation I've seen really knows what to do with it. The film gives Taylor some beats wherein she expends her will on her situation, such as the moment when she takes control of the household and is found cleaning it up (obviously not at the behest of Burton, who could care less), but this again tries to make her out to be willing participant and in some way equal partner, which while understandable is just not convincing for this material.
Incidentally, a strong personal recommendation for the Alexandra Heller-Nicholas/Josh Nelson commentary - they really know their stuff, and are witty with it.
It is correct. All July releases from Indicator except HMS Defiant are BD-25, in line with Fidelity in Motion habits when dealing with older HD masters that don't really warrant allocating more bitrate.
