The Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew

In this version of The Taming of The Shrew Shakespears famous play is portrayed in a modern setting with modern language whilst keeping the overall storyline and characters although most are given modern names. There are many subtle Elizabethan influences in the film for example a lot of the background music would not be out of place if played in Elizabethan times. Also the décor in some of the settings for example the villa in Italy is very detailed and decorative similar to a lot of the décor in grande Elizabethan homes and the Queen’s palace. Also in the film at Biancas home some of the furnishings are green and purple as are many of Bianca’s and her mother’s outfits. These colours were associated with the upper class and nobility in Elizabethan times as they were expensive to produce and this is used in the film to show the class and wealth of Bianca and her mother. They also both wear white in one scene which has connotations of being upper class and no doing hard work as white easily gets dirty so could not be worn by someone in a lower class job. Also they often are seen wearing a lot of jewellery especially necklaces which were favoured by Elizabethan women and used to show their style and wealth. They also both wear a lot of make up throughout the film as upper class Elizabethans did to show their states and also  to make themselves more desirable. Katherine’s make-up however is done at the beginning of the film to look like she is not wearing any as Queen Elizabeth I is portrayed not to be wearing make-up in some of her very early portraits and then Katherine wears some make-up later in the film on her wedding day showing the progression of her character and Queen Elizabeth I wore makeup in her later portraits to make herself be seen in a certain way. In comparison the clothes of other characters are used to show their class for example Harry wears a checked shirt which in the pasted has been worn commonly by land workers or farmers and is therefore associated with the working class. Also Harry’s apartment is a lot smaller and has duller colours in the décor suggesting he is less wealthy than other characters. Then towards the end of the film Harry is seen wearing a black suite when it is known he is going to be marrying Bianca and Katherine's mother and the change is clothes style and colour shows he is now part of the upper class.