Name: The Taming of the Shrew
Genre: Short, Comedy, Romance
Released: 1923-05-01
Duration: 22 min
Rating: 5.6
Cast: Dacia Deane, Lauderdale Maitland, Cynthia Murtagh

This version concentrates on the contest between Petruchio and Katerina, as it should. The Biance subplot is used only to set up the Shrew story. When the subplot is resolved, its intrusion comes almost as a surprise, but I suppose the director felt he had to tie up lose ends. Maitland's primary mode of dealing with Kate is to laugh hilariously (and we perceive one advantage of silent film!). But a neat parallelism occurs between Kate's sweeping books off the table in her father's library and Petruchio's sweeping food and drink off of his table in his country house. His behavior physically mirrors hers. They reconcile at the table after she thanks him, so the big final scene of the script is not included in this two reeler. Titles are occasionally placements and transitions but usually lines from the play. That technique works better than it usually does in a silent Shakespeare since here it's cued carefully to the visual action. This film is a reasonable condensation, not the best of the silent filmed Shakespeares by any means (see the Italian 'Romeo and Juliet,' for example), but not bad. Perhaps British Film Institute can be encouraged to include this film in a 'Silent Shakespeare II' as a follow-up of the valuable first version of the silent films in their collection.

The comedy genre refers to a category of entertainment that aims to amuse and entertain audiences by using humor, wit, and comedic situations. Comedies are created with the primary intention of eliciting laughter and providing lighthearted enjoyment. They encompass a wide range of styles, tones, and themes, appealing to various tastes and audiences.

Will Ferrell, Angela Grillo, and Lap-Gei Cheung in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)

The romance genre features the theme of romantic relationships and emotional connections between characters. These stories focus on the development of love, desire, and intimacy between protagonists, often exploring the challenges, conflicts, and triumphs that arise in their relationships.

Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1942)

The short form refers to creative works characterized by their brevity and concise storytelling. Unlike full-length feature films, short films have a running time of less than 45 minutes, while TV shorts have a running time of less than 22 minutes.

Benedict Cumberbatch in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)

Get a closer look at some of Hollywood's perfect pairs.

Hollywood Power Couples

Get a closer look at some of Hollywood&#39;s perfect pairs.

"The Gentlemen" and "Slow Horses" return this fall, while the "Reacher" spin-off series "Neagley" makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

2026 Fall TV and Streaming Watch Guide

&quot;The Gentlemen&quot; and &quot;Slow Horses&quot; return this fall, while the &quot;Reacher&quot; spin-off series &quot;Neagley&quot; makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

See who dazzled on the red carpet and took home gold at the 78th Primetime Creative Emmy Awards.

The Taming of the Shrew

Photos

Top Cast6

User reviews1

Related interests

Storyline

Did you know

Top picks

Details

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed