| SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE |
 1998
- USA / UK
Director: John
Madden - Reviewed by Margot  The
manager of the Rose Theatre, Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush) needs to present a
play, and not just any play. He needs a guaranteed hit that will pay off the
theatre’s debt, and hires the young William Shakespeare, played by Joseph
Fiennes, to author it. We find him ink-stained and madly writing new pages for
his new comedy: Romeo and Ethel, the
Pirate's Daughter.
Meanwhile, Young Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow) hears Shakespeare’s poetry at a performance for Queen Elizabeth and falls in love with his beautiful verse. She aches to perform Shakespeare’s verse (forbidden for a woman) so she disguises herself a man in order to land a role in the play. She is a hopeless romantic and wants to experience the true love of which Shakespeare writes. Unfortunately, she is betrothed to a man she does not love and her fate is (of course!) irreversible. But as luck and a clever plot would have it, she soon finds herself in a position not only to perform Shakespeare’s play, but to fall in love with the man himself. Viola inevitably becomes Shakespeare’s muse for (the eventually titled pirate comedy turned tragic love story) Romeo and Juliet, and the chemistry between Fiennes and Paltrow is absolutely palpable. The film’s fictional sources, and later reenactment, of some of Shakespeare’s most famous scenes, such as the balcony scene, are simply brilliant. Stoppard and Marc Norman (the screenwriters) have done more than their fair share of Shakespearean homework. As any true Shakespearean tale should be, the story is full of twists, turns, secrets and dismay—not to mention brilliant comedy. Suffice it to say that there are secret trysts, betrayal, heartfelt longing, deep despair, and immense joy. And best of all, as Henslowe might say, “Strangely enough it all works out well.” The transfer quality on DVD is up to snuff for new releases, with anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1. Features include interesting biographical information on many of the historical figures depicted, including Elizabeth I, Edward Alleyn (the company’s leading man) and Christopher Marlowe (Shakespeare’s rival playwright). However, for a film that won big commercially, with critics, and especially with the Academy, you would think that the boys at Miramax would have spent some of that big promotional budget on some extra goodies and strong concept behind the whole packaging. The Miramax "Collector's Edition" doesn't really include anything that shouldn't be included on any well-thought-out DVD. Nonetheless, this is a fantastic movie, and impossible to dislike! The performances are impeccable, the ensemble cast works like a well-oiled machine, the story is hilarious and bittersweet, and all the trimmings (costumes, sets, music) are perfect. It’s no surprise that this won Best Picture in 1998—no film was more deserving than this one. If you haven’t seen it, run, don’t walk to your nearest video store and pick it up! Better yet, buy it for your DVD collection—you won’t regret it. |
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