Introduction

Coriolanus is a 1984 drama film directed by Elijah Moshinsky.

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Outline

A banished hero of Rome allies with a sworn enemy to take his revenge on the city.

Cast

• Paul Jesson … First Citizen.
• Ray Roberts … Second Citizen.
• Leon Lissek … Third Citizen.
• Jon Rumney … Fourth Citizen.
• Russell Kilmister … Fifth Citizen.
• Joss Ackland … Menenius.
• Alan Howard … Caius Marcius (Coriolanus).
• Patrick Godfrey … Cominius.
• John Rowe … First Roman Senator.
• Peter Sands … Titus Lartius.
• John Burgess … Sicinius.
• Anthony Pedley … Junius Brutus.
• Mike Gwilym … Aufidius.
• Valentine Dyall … Adrian.
• Brian Poyser … First Volscian Senator.

Trivia

• The production design of Rome in this episode was very specific; everywhere except the Senate was to be small and cramped.
  • The idea behind this design choice was to reflect Coriolanus’ mindset.
  • He dislikes the notion of the people gathering together for anything, and on such a cramped set, because the alleys and streets are so small, it only takes a few people to make them look dangerously crowded.
• When Caius Marcus fights the Coriolian soldiers, he leaves his shirt on, but when he fights Aufidius in one-on-one combat, he takes it off.
  • Elijah Moshinsky did this to give the scene an undercurrent of homoeroticism.
• In the script for the episode, Coriolanus’ death scene is played as a fight between himself and Aufidius in front of a large crowd who urge Aufidius to kill him.
  • However, in shooting the scene, Elijah Moshinsky changed it so that it takes place in front of a few silent senators, and there is no real fight as such.
• Part of the long running BBC Television Shakespeare project which ran between 1978 and 1985.

Other Versions

• Coriolanus (1965).
• Coriolanus (1979).
• The Tragedy of Coriolanus (1984).
• Coriolanus (2011).
• Coriolanus (2014).
• Coriolanus (2019).

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s): Elijah Moshinsky.
• Producer(s): Shaun Sutton.
• Writer(s): William Shakespeare (original play).
• Music: Stephen Oliver.
• Cinematography: Garth Tucker.
• Editor(s): Graham Taylor.
• Production: BBC and Time-Life Television Productions.
• Distributor(s):
• Release Date: 21 April 1984.
• Running time: 145 minutes.
• Country: UK.
• Language: English.

Video Link