Siberian Lady Macbeth

The second supreme masterpiece of Wajda !
Andrezj Wajda was in an efervescent state of mind and besides he was in the peak of his artistic powers when he decided to adapt this Shakespeare classic . Only several years before the director Akira Kurosawa had released the Japanese version (Throne of Blood) of Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth, Andrzej Wajda, for his first project outside of Poland, directed Siberska Ledi Magbet/Siberian Lady Macbeth.

This particular version of four hands versions was based on the 1865 novel Ledi Makbet Mtsenkogo Uyezda/Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District by Nicolai Leskov and Dmitri Shostakovich's 1934 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (also based on Leskov's work).

Wajda once more shows his enormous genius employing clever metaphors to illustrate more than a simple coincidence ; the presented dramatis personae with the opressiveand struggling situation in his beloved Poland .

Beware the Hungary invasion was very fresh in the mind of the world and the iron circle after...

Siberian Lady MacBeth has an Eastern European side to it that is unmistakable and beautiful
Siberian Lady MacBeth is loosely based on Shakespeare's play, but much more so on a novella by Nikolai Leskov called Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District. Although I may be stating the obvious, the story is set in Russia. The lady of this macrebe tale is ambitious, but in a murderous way. I can also confirm your suspicions that this movie is going to be dark. However, being shot in black and white brings out the beauty of the wooden buildings where most of the story takes place. Being both well shot and visually appealing brings out the beauty in this otherwise sad story.

The troubles begin when the lady of the house, Katerina (Olivera Markovic), is left for too long with her father-in-law while her husband is away. And things get pushed over the edge when a peasant named Sergei starts to work for the family. Katerina and Sergei both take a liking to each other; furthermore, they both see they can gain something from each other. Katerina wants to leave the life she...

lady macbeth is depressing and stark
this movie, which i thought would be a Shotakovit's opera, is dark, both literally and figuratively. It is morose, lugubrious and difficult to watch. It does smell of mother Russia, poor and desparate.

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