Oedipus The King (1967)

During the past few weeks, we have been spoon fed by Dr. Edwin with his DVDs of the Elizabethan films such as Elizabeth The Golden Age and Hamlet. Then, on 10/03, we went back to the Greek era and watched Philip Saville's Oedipus The King. The film was released in 1967 and involved legendary performers such as Christopher Plummer, Lili Palmer and Orson Welles. However, this film was not widely released and given the promotion it deserves that only like only 20 people have watched this film. That's the reason why I couldn't find the DVD that I could download from Torrent. Thanks to Youtube, I could download the film in 17 parts and merged them into one single film. Eventhough it is in low quality, my course mates and I did enjoy watching it.

After watching the film, I think the film is a well-adapted version of the play. Christopher Plummer quite simply dominates this version of Oedipus Rex. Various characters look 'Greek" enough for me, and the removal of the traditional masks that were found in Greek plays works out. Why? Well Plummer fits the part of the play's namesake. He obviously did well researching or getting into the 'mind' of Oedipus. Watching him speak, his expressions are much better than somehow finding 'hubris' from a mask that is frozen into place. The rest of the cast compliment well, but above all is Plummer. The cinematography and the costumes are exquisite. If you are going to show a film version of Oedipus Rex in a drama class, this is the version. It's easy to understand and updated for a culture that would find little interest in watching frozen masks walk around. I am amused that the film has not been marketed intelligently by the studios and remains unseen by many who'd have loved to see the film. I wish this film was released widely on DVD and not only available at insane high prices on an educational website. I would give this film 7/10. =)