Mariam -The Merchant of Venice ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5

I started off with the lectures for this one and they were quite good. It mainly talked about the progression of Shylock as the honest to God villain in early versions of the play and then gradually as history unfolded in the unfortunate way that it did, how eventually Shylock became a victim. It also talks about what makes a good man hero in Shakespeare and I don't know. I'm unconvinced, not by the lecturer's argument but by what Shakespeare thinks makes a good hero. 

I liked the movie for itself. It is a riveting story and the historical setting was enjoyable and beautiful. The R rating was for topless women, the fashion in Venice at the time. 

I really just want to talk about two things. 

One was Shylock as a dad. It pissed me off that Lorenzo and the other guys just dismissively believe that Shylock doesn't have a right to his own daughter because they think less of him. It was very familiar because I see people have this attitude around Muslim men, where they are considered subhuman, bestial, abusive, ugly, just unlikable, so their female relatives (the beautiful ones who aren't like the others) are open for picking. 

It's demeaning the man and his daughter. It strips dignity from the man, but it also reduces the woman to a prize to be taken and makes them very unsafe. My heart broke for Shylock when he found Jessica gone. 

By the way, Jessica pissed me off too. By all means, run away with a loser if you want to, it's your life, but why did you have to steal from your father?

Antonio and Bassanio were just sad to me. Whatever relationship it was, it was very lopsided. 

Like why did he have this face the whole time

for this goofy face?

I don't get it. That, by the way, is Voldemort's brother. Who knew. 

I don't have much to say about Portia and her suitors storyline. It almost felt like an afterthought to the immense gravity of Shylock's story. This is not how the play was written, from what I understand. The play wrote Antonio and Bassanio as charming companions, the romance as sweet, and the villain’s defeat as satisfying, even comedic.

Which leads me to the next thing I want to talk about. 

WHAT WAS THAT PRANK AT THE END?

 

Portia and Nerissa disguise themselves as male lawyers, outmaneuver Shylock in court, and then after saving their husband manipulate those same husbands into giving up their wedding rings as tokens of gratitude. Then they return in their original identities and berate them for it, accusing them of giving the rings to other women, threatening their marriages only to reveal, *giggle giggle* that they had the rings all along and were *gasp*  the lawyers. 

It was probably meant to show how girlboss these women were which I admit was ahead of Shakespeare's time and probably cracked up his audience more than enlightened them given how unlikely the whole scenario was. But it made me furious. Those couples didn't deserve each other or maybe they did. I can understand using manipulation for power when you have no other way, but to use it for nothing but to whip around your power is just toxic. 

So why did I like the movie so much? I think it was a very modern take on topics such as anti-Semitism and women's choices. It made it easy for me to agree because it is modern rhetoric and I do agree. I think this movie may be the play that was most changed from its original in tone but it is also one of the worst to age so I don't think I can disagree with the choice. I wonder if I watched it in its original tone whether it would be even more disgusting or it would successfully sweep the horror under a rug of laughs and kisses. Ick. 

Next is Henry V. It's a Branagh. I have high hopes.