Portrayal of "Richard III" by Lawrence Olivier.

William Shakespeare wrote "Richard III" in 1592. He amalgamated his text from a variety of historical records and legends. In doing so, he created a dramatically heightened play and gave Richard, his villainous antihero, intense political and social dimensions. Laurence Olivier adapted the play from the medium of the theatre to film in 1955. It is unusual for Shakespeare's plays to be performed in their entirety. He condensed Shakespeare's text into a coherent script. Olivier used traditional methods of film adaptation, such as cutting characters and dialogue. He did this while maintain…