*** Welcome to piglix ***

The Taming of the Shrew (1967 film)

The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew (1967 film) poster.jpg
Original film poster
Directed by Franco Zeffirelli
Produced by Elizabeth Taylor, Richard McWhorter
Screenplay by Paul Dehn
Suso Cecchi d'Amico
Franco Zeffirelli
Based on The Taming of the Shrew
by William Shakespeare
Starring Elizabeth Taylor
Richard Burton
Natasha Pyne
Michael Hordern
Music by Nino Rota
Cinematography Oswald Morris
Edited by Peter Taylor
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • March 8, 1967 (1967-03-08)
Running time
122 minutes
Language English
Budget $4 million
Box office $8,000,000 (North America)
$12,000,000 (worldwide)

The Taming of the Shrew (Italian: La Bisbetica domata) is a 1967 film based on the play of the same name by William Shakespeare about a courtship between two strong-willed people. The film was directed by Franco Zeffirelli and stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton as Shakespeare's Kate and Petruchio.

Baptista Minola (Michael Hordern) is attempting to marry off his two daughters; however, he will marry off his youngest, Bianca (Natasha Pyne) only if someone will marry his eldest, Katharina (Elizabeth Taylor). Katharina is an ill-tempered woman but a lusty young nobleman, Petruchio (Richard Burton), takes on the challenge of taming and marrying her. A subplot involves the wooing of Bianca by several suitors including handsome Lucentio (Michael York), foppish Hortensio (Victor Spinetti), and elderly Gremio (Alan Webb).

The film, made in English but shot in Italy, cuts much of the original dialogue, including much of the subplot of Lucentio and Bianca, and all of the Christopher Sly framing device.

Taylor plays Kate’s final, controversial speech without any obvious irony (such as Mary Pickford’s wink in the 1929 film); however, her taming is apparently undercut by her quick exit from the banquet, which forces Burton’s Petruchio to chase after her amid jeers from the other men. Similar to Harold Bloom’s take on the play, Elizabeth Taylor's Katherina is demonstrating that women may control men by appearing to obey them.


...
Wikipedia

...