Shakespeare Top 25 Movies

Below is my Top 25 Shakespeare Movies list. William Shakespeare was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. He died in 1616 at the age of 52. During that time he was an actor and playwright. Most of his work was produced from 1589 until 1613. He wrote some of the finest plays in the English language. It is estimated that Shakespeare added about 1,700 words to the English language. 

On the Top 25, Shakespeare Movies list is three groups. The first group is are plays that were made into movies using his words and set in the correct time period, such as Henry V (1989). Secondly, some movies follow Shakespeare’s words and are set in another place or time like Ran (1985). The final group features Shakespeare-inspired movies, like Forbidden Planet (1956) or McLintock! (1963).

There are a number of movies that portray the life of the bard. Movies like Anonymous (2012) spend their time trying to discredit this great writer because he didn’t have a formal education. However, Shakespeare made major mistakes in terms of history and anachronisms in his plays. He was not perfect. Just the fact that he invented over 1,700 words shows he wasn’t dependent on formal education.

Other films, such as Shakespeare in Love (1998) and All Is True (2018) are fiction that strives to explain part of the bard’s life. There have been a few short-lived television shows that tried to explain his life.

One of my favorite things about William is that in his last will and testament, he left his wife his second-best bed. What the heck happened to the best bed and who got it?

The list below contains 25 movies written by Shakespeare or inspired by the same. I am always looking for updates, so if you find a movie that is not on the list, please add a comment.

Episode	Name	Year	Play	Comment	Rating
	Henry V	1989	Henry V		1
	Romeo and Juliet	1968			2
	Throne of Blood	1957	Macbeth		3
	Much Ado About Nothing	1993			4
	Ran	1985			5
	A Midsummer Night's Dream	1935			6
160	Forbidden Planet 1956	1956	The Tempest		7
	Westside Story	1961	Romeo and Juliet		8
	Othello	1965			9
	Chimes at Midnight	1965			10
	Henry V	1944			11
	Kiss Me Kate	1953			12
	Hamlet	1944			13
	My Own Private Idaho	1991			14
	Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead	1990			15
	Julius Caesar	1953			16
	Hamlet	1995			17
	Richard III	1955			18
	10 Things I Hate About You	1999	The Taming of the Shrew		19
	Othello	1951			20
	King Lear	1971			21
	Joe MacBeth	1955	MacBeth		22
	Hamlet	1990			23
	She's The Man	2006	Twelfth Night		24
	Tempest	1982			25
3	McLintock!	1963	The Taming of the Shrew		26
	The Lion King	1994	Hamlet		27
	She's the Man	2006	Twelfth Night		28