The Merchant of Venice

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The Merchant of Venice

R

2004

2h 11m

Comedy

Drama

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72%

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125 Reviews

72%

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10,000+ Ratings

In 16th-century Venice, Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes) hopes to wed Portia (Lynn Collins). But to have a chance at winning her hand in marriage, he needs to have a lot of money -- a critical resource he lacks. And because Bassanio's rich friend Antonio (Jeremy Irons) is unable to help, he's forced to make a deadly deal with pitiless moneylender Shylock (Al Pacino). Bassanio will get his money -- and without paying interest. If he doesn't pay it back, however, he will owe Shylock a pound of his flesh.

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Critics Consensus

A respectable if uneven take on the Bard's The Merchant of Venice.

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Will Self

London Evening Standard

I've decided to be merciful to Michael Radford's meat and-potatoes, 21st-century, politically correct, GCSE-student version of The Merchant of Venice.

Dec 20, 2017

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David Stratton

At the Movies (Australia)

The text is wonderful, Radford's film has some fine performances from Jeremy Irons and Joseph Fiennes, and he makes good use of Venice locations.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 10, 2009

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David Rooney

Variety

Pacino is at least dynamic, something harder to say about the women in the cast.

Jul 4, 2008

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Steve Cramer

The List

Al Pacino's Shylock is strong, intense, and powerful, yet he gets little support from the cast.

Rated: 2/5

Apr 23, 2019

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Dorothy Woodend

The Tyee (British Columbia)

Lovely to look at, but like the famous caskets that Portia uses to test her suitors, its very beauty hides a weird core.

Aug 24, 2017

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Don Groves

sbs.com.au

Pacino seeks his pound of flesh as a tragic outsider.

Rated: 3/5

Jan 3, 2011

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Alec B

Its a thoughtful adaptation that adds some interesting historical context without abandoning the plays odd little quirks. This is one of Pacino's best performances and its great to see something from him post 1990 that isn't all shouting or him bored out of his mind.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/20/24

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Aender S

I never could get into the groove of Shakespeare's plays. Their language's too artificial and antiquated, making them even partly unintelligible to me. Plus I never liked the ridiculous mannerisms of actors playing classic plays. Still, the movie's not bad. First because of Al Pacino's excellent performance, which stands in contrast to what I just wrote before. And the sets are beautiful, artificial and original alike.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

04/21/24

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Maria A

Excellent Shakespeare adaptation. The brilliant acting makes the text accessible to all. Beautiful. Classic.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/16/23

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Evan M

Outstanding solid rendition of Shakespeare's best play.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/03/23

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steve d

A fantastic adaptation of a difficult drama (at least by today's standards) Pacino is mesmerizing.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Daniel N

Michael Radford truly understood and recreated the main idea of this awesome novel, even though Al Pacino stole the show, he did it for good in this remarkable film.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/25/20

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Michael Radford

Director

Al Pacino

Shylock

Jeremy Irons

Antonio

Joseph Fiennes

Bassanio

Lynn Collins

Portia

Zuleikha Robinson

Jessica

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Synopsis

In 16th-century Venice, Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes) hopes to wed Portia (Lynn Collins). But to have a chance at winning her hand in marriage, he needs to have a lot of money -- a critical resource he lacks. And because Bassanio's rich friend Antonio (Jeremy Irons) is unable to help, he's forced to make a deadly deal with pitiless moneylender Shylock (Al Pacino). Bassanio will get his money -- and without paying interest. If he doesn't pay it back, however, he will owe Shylock a pound of his flesh.

Director: Michael Radford
Producer: Cary Brokaw, Michael Cowan, Barry Navidi, Jason Piette
Screenwriter: Michael Radford, William Shakespeare
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Avenue Pictures Productions, Istituto Luce Cinecittà, Delux Productions, Arc Light Films, Navidi-Wilde Productions Ltd.
Rating: R (Some Nudity)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 29, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 6, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $3.8M
Runtime: 2h 11m
Sound Mix: Surround

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