e-to-face with an enemy tank--Richmond's tank, to be exact. Richard frantically reverses, and manages to hang up the jeep on a log or a fallen telephone pole. "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!"Richmond--like Richard, now on foot--chases Richard through the battlefield, up a flight of stairs, and out onto the exposed girders of a building that has been hit by artillery fire. Cornered by Richmond, and unwilling to suffer the humiliation of capture, Richard allows himself to fall off the girder and into a blazing fire. We see him from above, falling in super-slo-mo (a tactic doubtless "borrowed" from Die Hard). Our last image of Richard is his smiling face as he is consumed by the flames.In the text of the play itself, Richard's death occurs offstage, although I'm sure that when it is performed, the final duel is seen onstage in all its' glory. McKellan's updating gives us a suitably melodramatic finish, which will no doubt prompt a standing ovationCONCLUSIONThere is no doubt that Lawrence Olivier's version does a better job of sticking with the letter of the play, bringing us all the richness of the Elizabethan dialogue and costume, allowing us to experience the events as they happened.But McKellan's version, while radically different in presentation and style, is true to the spirit of the play, bringing the intrigue and violence to life in a way undreamed of in Olivier's time. The point I am trying to make is that the new version really is very good, and appeals to modern audiences.THE END...
