Otello (1986 film)
| Otello | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Franco Zeffirelli |
| Produced by |
Yoram Globus Menahem Golan John Thompson |
| Written by | Arrigo Boito (based on William Shakespeare) |
| Starring |
Plácido Domingo Katia Ricciarelli Justino Díaz |
| Music by | Giuseppe Verdi |
| Cinematography | Ennio Guarnieri |
| Edited by | Peter Taylor |
| Distributed by | Cannon Films |
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Release date
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Running time
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122 minutes |
| Country | Italy Netherlands |
| Language | Italian |
Otello is a 1986 film based on the Giuseppe Verdi opera of the same name, which was itself based on the Shakespearean play Othello. The film was directed by Franco Zeffirelli and starred Plácido Domingo in the title role, Katia Ricciarelli as Desdemona and Justino Díaz as Iago. For the movie's soundtrack, Lorin Maazel conducted the Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro alla Scala. The film premiered in West Germany on August 28, 1986 and received a U.S. theatrical release on September 12, 1986. It was nominated for a Bafta Award and a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film.
With only a few exceptions, the film follows the same plot as the opera. Iago plots and brings about Otello's downfall by convincing him that his wife Desdemona is engaged in an affair with the young lieutenant Cassio, provoking Otello to murder her in a blind rage. However, in a major change from the opera, Otello kills Iago at the end by throwing a spear at him, while in the stage version he only wounds him with his sword.
Menachem Golan and Yoram Globus of Cannon Films worked out a deal with popular operatic tenor Plácido Domingo to finance him in a movie version of an opera. They wanted the singer to appear in an adaptation of Verdi's Il trovatore. Domingo, however, suggested instead that they film Otello, his signature role. While working with Italian director Franco Zeffirelli on a stage production of Tosca at the Metropolitan Opera, Domingo discussed the possibility of collaborating again on another opera movie. They had previously made television versions of Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci together, as well as a theatrically released movie of Verdi's La Traviata. Zeffirelli agreed to direct Domingo in Otello.
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