A black-and-white adaptation of Shakespeare from an Oscar winning writer/director, starring a two-time Academy Award winner? It’s awards season, all right! Bring on the sweaters and fall leaves.

The film in this particular case is The Tragedy of MacbethIt’s based, yes, on the Shakepearean play, with Denzel Washington in the title role, plus Frances McDormand as Lady Macbeth, Corey Hawkins as Macduff, and Brendan Gleeson as King Duncan. The film was written and directed by Joel Coen, one half of the Coen brothers team — without his brother Ethan. It���s the first film one has directed without the other in their entire career. That alone makes it a very intriguing movie.

The Tragedy of Macbeth makes its premiere at the opening night of the New York Film Festival this weekend; here is its striking trailer:

Those are some eye-catching visuals. It reminds me a bit of Laurence Olivier’s 1948 Hamlet (another Oscar winner, as it turns out) but even more stark in the black-and-white photography department. Denzel is no stranger to Shakespeare, either; he’s appeared in his works on both the stage and on the big screen, like in Kenneth Branagh’s charming 1993 adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing.

Here is The Tragedy of Macbeth’s official synopsis:

Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand star in Joel Coen’s bold and fierce adaptation; a tale of murder, madness, ambition and wrathful cunning.

The Tragedy of Macbeth premieres in theaters on December 25. It will be available for streaming on Apple TV+ on January 14, 2022. We’ll see what kind of reception the movie gets at New York Film Festival on Friday.

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