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 | |||
| 390 | 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 |
