At the outset, Jon Finch, who plays the title role, seems to lack the depth of emotion needed to play such a tragic figure... In the end, he has charged the role with a brooding force that is astonishing coming from an actor of 28 years.

There are excellences in this Macbeth that would be beyond tamer talents. The play has been translated from the stage to the screen with a movement, a rhythm and a visual impact unique to the medium.

Without a shred of "modernization," Polanski has created a film which is as contemporary and as relevant as The Godfather.

At times it's a historical epic in which Polanski maintains an atmospheric and violent tone, but, frankly, there is almost no power in the Shakespearean soliloquies and the characters are often as flat as a sword blade. [Full review in Spanish]