The Merchant of Venice on DVD

By James Wray Mar 5, 2005, 18:06 GMT

Set in the lavish era of 16th century Venice, one of English literature's most powerful - and controversial -- plays comes to opulent life in Michael Radford's gripping film adaptation of William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, which follows the interlocking lives of a captivating assortment of classic Shakespearean characters bound by love, stung by betrayal and tragically set on a collision course with destiny. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment proudly announces the May 10 DVD and VHS release of one of the most acclaimed films of 2004, with a SLP of $26.96 for the DVD and rental priced for the VHS.

William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice was adapted for the screen and directed by Academy-Award™ nominated director Michael Radford (Il Postino) and boasts an all-star cast as impressive as its literary origins, including Academy-Award™ winning actors Al Pacino (1993 Best Actor, Scent of a Woman), and Jeremy Irons (1990 Best Actor, Reversal of Fortune) supported by Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love), Lynn Collins (13 Going on 30), and Zuleika Robinson (Hidalgo).

Antonio (Jeremy Irons), a successful but cash-poor merchant, approaches Shylock (Al Pacino), a wealthy moneylender, for a loan to help his young friend Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes) woo the fair Portia. Despite being longtime enemies, Shylock grants the request, but demands one pound of Antonio's flesh if the debt is not repaid on time. When Antonio defaults on the loan, Shylock seeks what is legally owed to him but soon learns that those to whom evil is done, do evil in return.

The DVD is available on preo-order via Amazon, no word on a UK release as yet. For full feature details see our database.