Mr. Radford had taken up a daunting task to make a perfect film adaptation of this classic. But he got on his side enough budget, a superb cast and a brilliant screenplay. And so he succeeds to come out with one of the best film adaptations of Shakespeare. Radford gets an original take on anti-Semitism. From the very opening of the film it is quite evident. Many stage versions of the play portray Shylock as the uni-directional villain. But the tragic-hero Shylock, a victim of Christian-Jew sentiments that we always crave for is totally present in Radford's vision. But Radford needed an actor to work it out completely. And he got the best candidate.

Dustin Hoffman reportedly wanted to play Shylock in this film. I can't say how he would do; but Pacino's performance is enough to experience the character's every essence. The way he says "And for these courtesies I am to lend you money" , the way he screams "I want her dead at my feet" , the way he shows impatience when Antonio says his last words to Bassanio in the courtroom are unforgettable touches of his genius. On the other hand Jeremy Irons gives a flat performance as Antonio who is also a complex character. Same can be said about Joseph Fieness's Bassanio. What fascinated me is Lynn Collins' take on Portia. This virtually unheard classic beauty captures the character's intelligence quite nicely.

It is rated R for some nudity. I think those shots add effectively to the beauty of this film. I'd certainly recommend young people to watch this film. Because even the most avid Shakespeare-lover would be proud to see such an adaptation.

Al Pacino is terrific in this film. I loved his performance. Jeremy Irons is also great.

I would have rated this film even higher, but it is based on Shakespeare's play, and Shakespeare did not handle this play's plot very well. He put a comic romantic scene near the end of what is otherwise a very tragic story. This "rings" scene near the end makes no sense to me. It does not fit in with the rest of the film, either in storyline or emotional tone. And because this scene comes near the end, it ruins what until this point had been a terrific cinematic experience.