Lady Macbeth marks the striking screen debut feature by accomplished theater director William Oldroyd, who shifts the locale of Nikolai Leskov’s play Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District to Victorian England.
Florence Pugh is forceful and complex as Lady Katherine, who enters into an arranged marriage with the domineering, repressed Alexander (Paul Hilton).
Along with dealing with her demanding spouse, she has to contend with her even more unpleasant mine-owner father-in-law (Christopher Fairbank).
In this constrictive new milieu, she finds carnal release with one of her husband’s servants (Cosmo Jarvis), but there are profound consequences to her infidelity.
Boasting deft performances by an outstanding ensemble cast, Lady Macbeth is a rousing parable about the price of freedom.
Roadside Attractions will release the film, which had premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Fest and also played at MoMA’s New Directors/New Films in July.