Reviews

Richard III by William Shakespeare

dreamsower's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

kaylaoswald's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

bonersniper's review

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

sebniv's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

authorcharlottee's review

5.0

I did not at all expect this to become one of my favourite Shakespeare plays - or pieces of literature - ever. And yet, it has made my list! I cannot express to you how shook I am by this play (and by Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance of Richard III in BBC’s THE HOLLOW CROWN). I. FREAKING. LOVED. THIS!!!!

benedettal's review

3.0

Good but not great. Maybe I’m holding it to a higher standard because it’s a history, but I just felt like Richard was too much of a caricature at times, felt too political.

Needless to say Shakespeare crafted a perfectly sleazy and evil villain that really gets the job done in terms of alienating the audience and any amount of sympathy they may have had at any point. It definitely makes some scenes more powerful, and overall I think it does work. Only it could have been a more nuanced piece of work.

On a positive note to end with, I really appreciated Richard’s dialogues. I can’t really think off the top of my head of another play that is dominated by the villain (as the effective protagonist) to such a wide margin. In that sense it felt quite creative and compelling. Getting inside the mind of the bad guy is always fun.

glassnerd's review

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

classick's review against another edition

dark funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

jennaaaaaa's review

tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

whimsicalmeerkat's review against another edition

3.0

I think this is the first work by [a:William Shakespeare|947|William Shakespeare|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1179017891p2/947.jpg] I have rated so low, and I do so not based on quality, necessarily, but on my own lack of enjoyment. It felt like a chore to read this, and rather than taking a day or two, it took me a month. There are certainly some brilliant passages, primarily those in speech format, but I just could not "get into" the story. I think this was largely due to my own difficulty keeping the characters straight. I've often had this problem when reading about the War of the Roses and the Tudor era. It seems like everyone is named Thomas, Henry, Richard, Elizabeth, Margaret or Anne. Anyway, three stars to this, but I am sure it was more me than the play itself.