When shall we three meet again? (Ahem, ahem.)
After taking a year off from indoor screenings due to COVID-19, the New York Film Festival returned to Alice Tully Hall on Friday night with the world premiere of “The Tragedy of Macbeth.”
The kickoff to the 59th edition of the fall celebration of independent movies, held at Lincoln Center, felt like old times. Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand — who play Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in the latest onscreen adaptation of the Shakespeare drama — received a rapturous standing ovation after the film’s first (of two) screenings at 6 p.m.
Apple and A24 will release the black-and-white movie, which is being positioned as an awards contender in next year’s Oscars race.
But it wasn’t all business as usual. The screening adhered to strict COVID protocols, as guests were told twice before the movie played to keep their masks on — covering both their noses and mouths. Inside the theater, there were crowds at a bar, as people clamored for a free cocktail with Campari (the festival’s sponsor) and soda.
“I want to point out just because it’s a tragedy it doesn’t mean you can’t have a good time,” Coen spoke as he introduced the film. This was his first directorial effort without Ethan.
McDormand was Lady Macbeth when he was 14 years old, and again at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre a few years later. She asked her husband, Joel Coen, if he’d consider directing “Macbeth” onstage, but he said he’d prefer to do it as a movie.
Judging from the early reviews and the response at the screening, “The Tragedy of Macbeth” could mean another trip to the Academy Awards for both Washington and McDormand. By the way, if you’re counting, he’s been nominated eight times for acting (and won two statues). She’s been nominated six times for acting (and won three times).
In Variety’s review, chief film critic Owen Gleiberman praised Coen’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s famous play, writing, “[Coen] has made a “Macbeth” that is sure to seduce audiences — one that, for all its darkness of import, is light-spirited, fleet, and intoxicating. It shows you, through the ironic empathy summoned by Washington’s performance, just how fast the human race can slip off the tracks. And it brings that drama into ravishing deep focus.”
When Washington was asked at a Q and A following the screening why he agreed to play Macbeth, he responded: “Because Joel Coen asked me to.”
“The Tragedy of Macbeth” shot in the early days of the pandemic, and had to stop production on March 13, 2020 for five months due to COVID.
“Before we got back together, I said, ‘Joel, we got to get everyone back on Zoom,’” McDormand explained. “I need to know how everyone is since the revolution.”
And although he’s Zoom-averse, Coen did make a cameo on the call to talk to his cast.
The film’s after party was held at Tavern on the Green, where actors — from Isabelle Huppert to Daveed Diggs — and press gathered until after 2 a.m.