Lady Macbeth, an adaptation of Nikolai Leskov’s 1865 novella “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” relocated to Victorian England, will make its New York premiere at the 2017 New Directors/New Films series, and open theatrically on July 14.
The film, the debut feature of acclaimed UK theater director William Oldroyd, written by up-and-coming playwright Alice Birch, is described as a riveting drama of oppression, adultery and murder. Florence Pugh plays Katherine, a young woman stifled by her loveless marriage to a bitter man twice her age, and his cold, unforgiving family. When Katherine embarks on a passionate affair with a young worker on her husband’s estate, a force is unleashed inside her so powerful that she will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
Featuring a breakout performance by British newcomer Florence Pugh, who was only 19 when she shot the film, Lady Macbeth was one of the discoveries of the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival and recently screened at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.
