Here, even the witches seem to be some sort of arthritic chemists in hazmat suits, rather than creatures out of a nightmare. While our sorrow is not engaged, neither is a far more primitive emotion, the one most commonly associated with the spookiest of all Shakespeare plays: fear. Even the scene where Macduff (Nick Brooks) learns of the murder of his family (traditionally the play’s biggest tear-jerking moment) leaves cast and audience equally dry-eyed.
Richard Ugino as Banquo is a Paul Giamatti-like presence, a sort of a cross between a teddy bear and an accountant. He seems likes the sort of nobleman who would be more comfortable hatching schemes than hacking limbs, which fits in with Castro’s corporate reconception of the play. Julian Mozzell as the title character is an ectomorph in type - more Cassius-like than Thane of Cawdor. It would only be a small leap to replace the ubiquitous swords carried by every male character with some sort of laser weapon, with which the characters could eliminate each other, sans blood in addition to the lack of darkness. “Macbeth” has always been a play in which the actors shed more blood than tears, but the present production takes it still farther, substituting the pumped-up half-animal Scottish warriors with cool, dry technocrats in synthetic sci-fi costumes. The production itself reflects this emphasis, seeming less driven by emotions than ideas. As you’ve probably gleaned from the foregoing, Hipgnosis is a company that prides itself on its grey matter.