The Merchant of Venice is simultaneously spectacular [whenever Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons or Joseph Fiennes appears] or pretty but boring [any scene with the lead women-gorgeous, but while they weren’t bad actors, in contrast to their male counterparts, no life or urgency in their scenes]. Lately Al Pacino has just been parodying himself, which is still a joy to watch, but he has been on automatic. I really felt like he held his own and communicated every facet of Shylock. Jeremy Irons is always on point. While Joseph Fiennes looks like a horse in comparison to his older brother Ralph in his heyday, Joseph wins points for being daring and thoroughly inhabiting a character’s range of emotions. Zuleikha Robinson doesn’t get enough air-time, but I did want to know more about Jessica as a result of her performance. I wish that she was in more films or even just the lead in this one. The film is sumptuous and isn’t afraid of confronting the anti-Semitic tones in The Merchant of Venice while also not validating them. A must see for Shakespeare, Pacino, Irons or Pacino fans