Most American critics assumed that I’d used the film for some cathartic purpose. In fact, I’d chosen to make Macbeth because I thought that Shakespeare, at least, would preserve my motives from suspicion. After the Manson murders, it was clear that whatever kind of film I’d come out with next would have been treated in the same way. If I’d made a comedy, the charge would have been one of callousness. – Roman Polanski

A must-see for fans of both the Bard and this thrillingly bold director, Roman Polanksi’s first film following the murder of his wife Sharon Tate was an atmospheric and gripping tale of ruthless ambition and inner turmoil that is among the most stark and authentic of all Shakespeare films.

Shakespeare’s Macbeth seemed perfectly suited to Polanski’s sensibilities. A suspenseful tale of intrigue and shifting power relations, with conspiracies and deception all around, and where the unpredictable elements of the supernatural are never far away. Noteworthy for a variety of reasons, not least for its gritty and realistic-looking milieu and – perhaps chiefly – for its graphic violence and explicit nudity, the presence of which was widely attributed by critics as Polanski’s response to the murder of his pregnant wife, Sharon Tate at the hands of Charles Manson and other members of the Manson family in August 1969 – claims that Polanski refuted.

Extremely violent, anarchic, and visceral; this is down-in-the-dirt, no-holds-barred Shakespeare. Featuring copious amounts of bloody gore and expert use of the rugged north Wales film locations, what’s beyond doubt is Polanksi’s take - despite its notoriety - remains one of the most infamous and compelling film adaptations of the Scottish play.

Part of BFI presents Shakespeare on Film programme.

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