Blood Scenes in Roman Polanski’s Macbeth

Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, is a tragedy based on a man, a tragic hero, who is the paradox of the fall from innocence to guilt, as he was driven by some both external characters and his internal desire in order to attain power. As the play is the representative of the Elizabethan tragedy, it involves blood scenes that is continuously used by Shakespeare. As in the play, blood is one of the recurrent symbols that makes the play a real tragedy and death scenes. Macbeth, as a play, was adapted to cinema by the director, Roman Polanski, who in many ways produced the film version of Macbeth being sometimes loyal to Shakespeare’s text. However the adaptation of the blood scenes by Roman Polanski is one of the effective representation and reconstruction of Shakespeare’s play through the addition of visual effects as portrayed in the blood scenes.

In fact, Roman Polanski used the blood scenes as producing visual effects and shot design for the aim of emphasis and stress of blood dominant in the movie. As given by Roman Polanski, blood symbolism and shot designs are used in two examples in the movie. One of the most important scene for depicting shot scene happens in the after morning when Macbeth kills the King Duncan. The cinematic effects also reveal this shot scene and blood is displayed through the red coloured sun rising lights on both Macbeth and the chambers of the King Duncan’s. The red shade and colour hence symbolizes the bloodshed in which Macbeth murders King Duncan cruelly, which is used to increase and raise suspension and emotion to the film for important effects.

Also the display and representation of the blood as the dominant and recurrent symbol of the film, based partly on the play, Polanski makes use of again the red colour in order to show the similar features and attributes. In this scene, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth lie in their bed and Macbeth thinks loudly by saying that For mine own good, All causes shall give way. I am in blood, Stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o'er. Strange things I have in head, that will to hand, Which must be acted ere they may be scanned” (Act III, Scene 4). Thus, Polanski created a blood design in this scene, through stressing the significance of these lines by making them very effective. This effect is achieved through showing the audience the crimson tone for the display of the deaths which was caused by the tragic hero.