The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice.

Ah, the famous “pound of flesh.”

Much to my discredit and shame, I’ve never read this famous play by the Bard. I leaned more toward the fanciful comedies and romances. Romeo and Juliet, Taming of the Shrew, and Midsummer Night’s Dream were more my speed. But after learning Al Pacino had assumed the role of Shylock, I had to see it.

Right away, I knew my education was about to be enriched. Thankfully, Michael Radford added background via scrolling to the beginning of the movie. I learned that Jews were persecuted even in the 16th century Venice. They were confined to a ghetto (or Geto) at night, which was guarded by Christians, and forced to wear a red hat during the day. Sound familiar? They were forbidden to own property which produced those in the business of usury. Lending of money for profit was against Christian law, which further irked the religious zealots of the day.

Like the best of Shakespeare’s plays, this movie is played well through breathy romantic dialogue and ardent suspense. Joseph Fiennes is adequately dark and brooding as Bassanio, the suitor of the wealthy Portia whose subplot supplies the romantic part of the play. Lynn Collins is wonderful as Portia. Al Pacino evokes both sympathy and hatred as the Jewish moneylender who takes advantage of the merchant Antonio (which is played humbly by Jeremy Irons) by demanding a “pound of flesh” extracted nearest his heart instead of the money he owes him as revenge against his daughter, eloped with Antonio’s friend Lorenzo. In addition, Antonio was one of the ones who has mocked and berated Shylock.

Poor Antonio. On top of it all, the sailing ships which had him in hock up to his eyebrows sink, after he borrows money from Shylock to give to Bassanio. With so much betrayal, berating, and revenge going on, it's hard to know who to feel sorry for in this movie. If anyone, I feel sorry for Jeremy Irons. It can't be easy being the sympathetic character to Pacino's villain, to sit there complacently while uses him as an appetizer for the scenery chewing that later ensues.

I will not summarize the entire movie. These guys do it better.
Great stuff this Shakespeare. And here we have some of his favorite ploys to heighten the suspense...deceit, betrayal, and women dressed as men, and more plot twists than General Hospital during sweeps week. But if you are not a fan of the plays, or have trouble understanding British accents, shy away from this one. No subtitles, except in French.
My favorite passages came forth, nonetheless.
Shylock upon demanding his pound of flesh of Antonio is asked “why? What is it good for?”
To which he replies:

To bait fish withal: if it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge. He hath disgraced me, and hindered me half a million; laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted mybargains, cooled my friends, heated mineenemies; and what's his reason? I am a Jew. Hathnot a Jew eyes? hath not a Jew hands, organs,dimensions, senses, affections, passions? fed withthe same food, hurt with the same weapons, subjectto the same diseases, healed by the same means,warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer, asa Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed?if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poisonus, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we notrevenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian,what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge. The villany you teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction.

I had no idea Shakespeare was so political.