Shakespearean Star
Laurence Olivier and National Cinema

This is the first study to comprehensively analyse Laurence Olivier's Shakespearean films alongside his unique Shakespearean star image.

Jennifer Barnes (Author)

9781107181113, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 6 July 2017

226 pages
23.5 x 15.7 x 1.6 cm, 0.51 kg

'Elements of each film are analysed in the course of the book, but the productions are treated not as freestanding texts in themselves but as texts alongside others that support the argument concerning Olivier's achievement of representative 'national' status. Barnes traces the development of this in his theatrical and personal career to good effect, with reference to the actor's papers, held in the British Library, as well as to press reports and other sources.' Russell Jackson, Shakespeare Survey

Laurence Olivier was one of the best-known and most pioneering actor-directors of Shakespeare on screen. This is the first study to provide a comprehensive analysis of Olivier's Shakespearean feature films and his unique Shakespearean star image. Through an examination of Olivier's unmade film Macbeth, as well as his adaptations of Shakespeare's Henry V, Hamlet and Richard III, Jennifer Barnes offers a detailed exploration of Olivier's entire cinematic Shakespearean oeuvre in relation to his distinctive form of stardom. Considering the development of Olivier's image in relation to the industrial and cultural contexts of the wartime and post-war British film and theatre industries, the volume also analyses Olivier's life writing and published autobiographies and is supplemented by numerous illustrations.

Prologue
1. Henry V (1944)
2. Hamlet (1948)
3. Richard III (1955)
4. Macbeth I (1955–60): contexts
5. Macbeth II (2012-): legacy
Epilogue.

Subject Areas: Shakespeare studies & criticism [DSGS], Literary studies: plays & playwrights [DSG], Individual film directors, film-makers [APFB], Films, cinema [APF]