Justin Tucker

ENG4423
Dr. Bender
November 13, 2015
The Animation of Caesar
This analysis is of the adaptation of Julius Caesar into an animated movie; part of the
Shakespeare: The Animated Tales written by Leon Garfield. This adaptation is aimed at a younger
audience to view the source material in a way they understand. These films are important and
politically progressive because the target audience is children and young adults (Semenza, 2008).
While it does introduce younger readers to the source material, the adaptation does lose some things,
such as moral ambiguity, because of the younger audience and the things that are changed to
accommodate them. However, at the same time, these are things that are only noticeable to a person
who has studied Shakespeare's works at higher educational level. For that reason that it is best to
examine the work not only on its own merits but also how well it handles explaining the play. First it is
best to see what the adaptation does well and what it does right in helping the viewer understand the
material. Then examine what works against the adaptation and how it might weaken itself from
someone who would compare it to the original source.
The Shakespeare: The Animated Tales: Julius Caesar does a fantastic job of telling the tale of
Julius Caesar through the use of animation. The movie starts with the introduction from a narrator who
is there to fill in plot details that the film will sometimes skip over. This helps the film shorten its run
time to only thirty minutes and keeps the pace going very well. However the length of the film is due
to how it was written, which was designed to shown in a school setting. The film is also helped by the
animation which allows for more subtle movements from the characters. An example of this would be
the moments in the film that does not have dialogue but makes its clear at what the character is trying
to express. The other big part of the animation is the use of symbolism through visual means.

Symbolism is very heavy in this film due to the boundless possibility that animation provides and
is something that is a big part of the film. A key example would be when Cassius hands over his letter,
a transparent serpent appears, which symbolizes the deception that is about to fall upon Brutus.
Another would be when Anthony is giving his speech after Caesar is murdered. Anthony holds up
Caesar's cloak and shows the crowd his stab wounds, then places it back on Caesar. The cloak then
morphs into blood running down a slab which transitions into the crowd becoming an angry mob. One
final example would be a flame extinguishing whenever the murder or death of Caesar is mentioned or
hinted at. This symbolism allows for a younger audiences to grasp some of the more complex concepts
that maybe lost through just reading the play.
The voice acting in the film is also very well done and helps convey the characters' motivation.
The film does use direct lines from the play which adds to atmosphere, but also helps the adaptation
stay true to the source material. This is also helped by each character having a unique look to them.
This means that a younger viewer will have an easier time figuring out who is who in the film, which
could be confusing if just read. The film, to its credit, is trying very hard to ensure that the younger
audience can understand the material. Overall, even with the original English being used, the
animation allows the viewer to follow the plot easily. However, in its accommodation of this younger
audience, it does in fact lose some key elements that make it weaker.
The weaker aspects of Shakespeare: The Animated Tales: Julius Caesar are not many in number
but they do weight heavily on the film. One of best places to start would be the thirty minute run time
of the film, it makes the source material seems shorter than it is. This shorter run time means that
certain characters had to be left out of the film to make for time. An example being Cinna the
conspirator who, while not dire to the plot, shares the name with the poet that the mob kills in
confusion. Although his role is small in the original play, Shakespeare was able to show the
consequence in how mob mentality led to the wrong person being hurt. Another character is Octavius
Caesar, who is introduced, but by means of just one line in the film narration and only having a single

scene. Again, this character may not have a large role in the play, but his role was significant in
showing the underpinnings of politics. The short run time also does not leave room for character
development. Whereas, in the play, the characters are given the chance to have moral ambiguity, the
film adaptation makes the characters either good or evil. This lack of character development makes the
characters very dry and leads to biggest weakens of the film, the lack of moral gray area.
The film lacking the moral gray area is its biggest weakness because it causes the characters to lose
their complexity and become one dimensional. For instance is Cassius, due to the way he animated
and acted, it clearly paints him as envious and evil. It also makes it seem like he is the mastermind
behind this plot to kill Caesar and it is his deception alone that convinces Brutus to help. Even Brutus
himself is portrayed in such a way that makes him seem like a noble man tricked into killing Caesar.
By having the characters be so clear cut good and evil hurts the film over all, even for the sake of a
younger audience. The film appears to deduce that just because it is being viewed by a younger
audience this must be done this for their benefit. It forces the audience to make assumptions about the
characters based solely on how the creators build that character. So instead of Cassius being a man
trying to fight his destiny and be destroyed by the potential threat that is Caesar, he is reduced into a
greedy man who wants the beloved leader out of the way. This truly hurts the film and causes it to
loses merit by thinking that a younger audience cannot understand the moral gray areas of life.
In conclusion, despite the lack of moral gray area being a huge weakness for the film, it still has
some merits that causes it a good adaptation. From the acting being well done to the use of symbolism
helping to show complex ideas it has things that a younger viewer would enjoy. Additionally, it helps
this select audience become familiar with Shakespeare at a much younger age than previous
generations. On this same note, even though the short run time does not allow a full description of all
of the characters from the original play, it is long enough to hold the attention of the younger viewer.
This familiarity could possibly lead to them not being weary of Shakespeare when they have to study
his works in their older years.

Works Cited
Semenza, Gregory M. Coln. "Teens, Shakespeare, and the Dumbing Down Clich: The Case of The
Animated Tales." Shakespeare Bulletin 26.2 (2008): 37-68.
Shakespeare, William. Shakespeare: the animated tales. 1992.

Theory of Adaptation
My theory on adaptations is, because it is essentially a new work itself, an adaptation should be
able to stand on its own merits. While comparing the adaptation to the original source is just fine, the
adaptation should not be judged on how faithful it is to the original source. However I will also say that
should the adaptation be a direct adaptation it should not muddle the message of the original source
with current trends. With that being said most adaptation are a good thing because they bring new
meaning to the source and help to introduce people to the original source.

List of Julius Caesar Adaptations and Cultural References

Julius Caesar directed by David Bradley(1950):

This direct adaptation of the play is the first film version to have sound. It stars Charlton
Heston as Antony who is the biggest name in the movie. This adaptation is very faithful to the
original source and is worth the watch. It is available to buy from a few online sources.

Rinse the Blood Off My Toga by Johnny Wayne and Frank Schuster(1958):

A humorous skit about Flavius Maximums a Private Roman Eye is hired by Brutus to

investigate the death of Caesar. This is a well done quick skit that is a very funny adaptation and
brings a bit humor to the play. The skit can be found on YouTube.com here at this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rR_5h8CzRcI

An Honorable Murder directed by Godfrey Grayson(1960):

A modern reworking of the play set in the corporate world of the City of London. It is played in
modern dress with Caesar as the chairman of a company considering a merger with another
company. Brutus and the conspirators are of the board of directors and the Roman people are
shareholders. Beyond this brief summary there is not much else online about the text which
however it is available on online for order from Amazon UK.

Shakespeare: The Animated Tales: Julius Caesar by Leon Garfield(1989):

This animated adaptation of the play is a well done version for younger viewers. This
adaptation tries to stay as true as it can to the original source, but uses animation to make it a
stronger adaptation. It used symbolism as a way to help a younger viewer understand complex
ideas. Here is a link to the video on Dailymotion.com:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x274c9g_shakespeare-the-animated-tales-02x04-juliuscaesar-eng-subs_shortfilms

Cultural References:

Et tu Brute:

This line is one of the most well known lines from the play and is even know by people who have
never seen the play. It is even used as a joke any time someone is betrayed in a small way.

We should Totally Just Stab Caesar:

A poplar scene form the movie Mean Girls and is a great summary of the plot to kill Caesar. The scene
can be found on YouTube and other video sites. Here is a link to one on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPfjHD0yXQw

Bottle of Classic Caesar with a knife in it, Original poster unknown

Julius Caesar From Civilization Game Series

English National Opera: "Julius Caesar" Print Ad by Beta London