Shakespeare in Love

Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson
and Judi Dench
Screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard
Directed by John Madden
Website: www.miramax.com

http://www.crankycritic.com/archive98/shakespeareinlove.html


IN SHORT:  Finally, a fun movie for grown-ups.


Cranky's been sitting through so many OscarR wannabees that his brain
was beginning to melt. Movies that were too long. Movies that were too
heavy. Movies that were just out and out indulgent crap. And none of
those descriptions or adjectives apply to Shakespeare in Love, an
absolutely lovely piece of movie making. Funny and filled with all
sorts of things historical and cultural that film students can discuss
over their after screening cappuccino. For the rest of us normal folk,
it's just right.

Set four hundred years ago, Shakespeare in Love details a battle of
literary (and by logical extension) economic wills between two English
theaters and their resident poets and/or playwrights. At the prosperous
Curtain Theater sits Christopher "Kit" Marlowe (Rupert Everett) who,
for the cost of a beaker of mead will help struggling writer William
Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) out with problems of story construction
and character naming and what not. For those of you out there thinking
"Oh God not history" hold back on the nodding out, it gets much better.

Mr. Fenneyman (Geoffrey Rush), the owner of the Rose Theater where
Shakespeare hangs his quill is deep in debt to a local moneylender (Tom
Wilkinson). Short of having his limbs all hacked and mangled brave Mr.
Fenneyman offers a partnership in the new play by Shakespeare, a
rousing comedy of Pirates and Kings and a funny little dog. You all
know it from English History: "Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate King's
Daughter."

Two three four... rimshot.

That's only a set up, folks, as Shakespeare In Love plays out a parody
on Romeo and Juliet that will have you in stitches. The true story is
that poor Will is suffering from a mighty writer's block that only love,
or a potent charm from the sixteenth century equivalent of a shrink can
deliver. The former is free. The latter costs fourpenny and comes with
a great merchandising deal.

Out in the high paying seats, the lovely Lady Viola (Gwyneth Paltrow)
swoons to the sonnets of the Bard and dreams that she, too, could trod
the boards and bespeak the poetry that twangs her heartstrings so. Women
were not allowed to perform on stage in those days, which may explain
why drag is such a big deal in England even to this day. But I digress...

The lady does herself up in male drag auditioning for the play as
"Thomas Kent". Shakespeare is dumbstruck, he's found the Romeo he's been
dreaming of. But the actor runs off and, on chasing him down, Shakespeare
stumbles upon the real life form of Paltrow, daughter of a rich family,
engaged to be married to Lord Wessex, a poor but soon to be wealthy
Virginia tobacco farmer (Colin Firth). Yes, it's a comedy of errors and
reads like something out of the twelfth night -- surf the net or, better
yet, rent the adaptations 'cuz Cranky doesn't have time to recount them
here.

The script by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard is brilliant. When you
deconstruct it, Shakespeare in Love is built in perfect Shakespearean
form. It mixes a great story with bits and pieces of history (whether
fact or fiction it matters not); lies and deception; mistaken identities;
a couple of swordfights; a passion that can only end badly and, of
course, a dog.

That's a running gag in the flick. You'll appreciate it when you see it.

Famous lines of Shakespearean dialog drop out of the mouths of supporting
characters (and at all times the Bard takes note of 'em for future
reference). And while set four centuries back, the lure of the spotlight
is just as seducing to the moneylenders of that faraway time as it is
now. Tom Wilkinson is herewith noted for another fine supporting
performance (as was the case with The Full Monty and The Governess and to
a lesser extent Rush Hour) as is Geoffrey Rush, who has already won a
statue so enough about him.

Judi Dench strides through as the elderly Queen Elizabeth, who sets
everything right as the final curtain falls. She's a Queen, it's her
right y'know, and all is well.

On average, a first run movie ticket will run you Eight Bucks. Were
Cranky able to set his own price to Shakespeare in Love, he would have
paid...

$7.00
maybe more

You don't have to know Shakespeare to appreciate Shakespeare in Love,
but the more you do the funnier it gets. Getting past the Middle English
dialect takes only a slight bit of work and the reward, of course, is the
luminous Ms. Paltrow. Unless you'd rather look at Fiennes. To each his
own, someone wrote...