Shakespeare in Love

* My favorite IMDB user reviews about Shakespeare in Love:

Oscar got it right after all - 3 February 2004
Some day, someone will be able to review this movie without mentioning Saving Private Ryan. Not today. In 1998, I couldn't believe that this Gwyneth Paltrow romcom won the top honours. Today, this film has grown on me while Spielberg's has not. It's clever, funny, dramatic and romantic, so it hits all the right buttons. And a terrific ensemble cast love every minute of it. Alright, so Judi Dench as Queen Elizabeth I is overrated, but the production shines from virtually every pore.

Shakespeare in Love - 28 October 2006
This is a great movie, full of comedy, drama, love, you name it. Unfortunately, due to the nudity, only the edited version is used in the school at which I teach. Still, it is a wonderful teaching tool to show students how costuming, screen writing, and acting SHOULD be. This is a first-class production. What is particularly excellent in this production is how John Madden incorporates so many of Shakespeare's lines from so many plays into this production. Furthermore, my the interweaving of the subplots helps with the teaching of irony, which many freshmen have trouble understanding. Outside the classroom, I highly recommend this film for a "couple's night" when people need a good laugh or are in the mood for some top-notch drama.

A Great Movie - 4 February 2005
When my English teacher told the class that we would be watching "Shakespeare in Love" everyone groaned, me included. We all thought it would be another boring movie, but I along with many others was pleasantly surprised. Even though the movie didn't portray the actual life of William Shakespeare, it is a very interesting interpretation of what his life might have been like. Normally I am not a big fan of Gwenyth Paltrow, but she fulfilled the role of Viola De Lesseps very well. This movie, unlike many others I have been forced to watch in school, has not been a waste of time and has informed us more about the concepts and details that could not be seen just by reading the play. Overall I think I have gained a better understanding of Romeo and Juliet by watching "Shakespeare in Love".

Deserving of every award received. - 2 June 2001
As a Shakespeare-o-phile I was blown away by the wit, imagination, humour, the literate script and the outstanding acting, costume and directing that sparkles throughout this film masterpiece. I can easily see why audiences unfamiliar with Shakespeares biography, his works and the everyday reality of Elizabethean life and the theatre would not be especially impressed. After all, while they did watch all the film, they really missed about half the movie. It would be like reading Giulliver's Travels as just a voyage adventure without noticing the fact that it's true genius and meaning lies on other levels entirely. There are many, many instances in the film where dialogue or events would seem to be straight forward but in fact allude to other known facts or persons; and therein lies the real humour and appreciation from what is in effect a continuing series of, "double entendres". What especially impressed me was the way in which the love story between Will and Viola is played out using many of the actual lines from Romeo and Juliet and with John Madden, the director, seamlessly transitioning the scenes from the bedroom to the stage and back again. I've never seen that device used in a film before with such effect! Deserving of every award it received and made it's main competition at the Oscar's that year, Saving Private Ryan, look like what it really was: a powerfully effective 15 minutes at the front end followed by an unimaginative and franky unbelievable John Wayne type flag waver from there on to the finish line.

Why bother comparing it to any other film? It's great on its own right. - 25 August 1999
Lots of people don't like John Madden's "Shakespeare in Love," I think, mostly because it beat out Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" for the Best Picture Oscar. But I'm not going to talk about that. Why? I'm not going to change anybody's mind, that much is obvious.

Well, if you want my opinion, "Shakespeare in Love" is a superb motion picture. It is, from every standpoint, a flawless piece of craftmanship. For starters, there is the acting, which is simply top-notch. This is clearly Gwyneth Paltrow's breakthrough performance, in which she truly delivers an Oscar-worthy performance. Her character is rich, vibrant, and wondrously alive. As is Joseph Fiennes' take on Shakespeare. Even though the Academy didn't see fit to honor him with even a nomination, that is not to say that his performance is bad by any means. I predict that Fiennes will become a leading man in his own right, thanks to this film, because it is now completely obvious that he is an actor of great depth and enthusiasm, which is something Hollywood greatly needs today. And who could forget Judi Dench? The lady is, I think, simply brilliant. Give her seven minutes of screen time and she turns out a virtual instruction manual on screen acting. Her take on Queen Elizabeth is witty, smart, daring, outrageous, and yet, deceptively simple, that is, all the things the Virgin Queen was herself. And, of course, there is also Ben Affleck and Geoffrey Rush, among others, whose work here sparkles with originality and vitality.

But lets get to the real core of what makes "Shakespeare in Love" a great film. There is John Madden's effortless direction, and, above all, the amazing script by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard. Seriously, I can imagine people being left in the intellectual dust when they come face to face with this film, because it is what so many films aren't. It manages to be blazingly intelligent, romantic, exciting, funny, serious, light, profound, historical, and farcical all at the same time, among other things. The dialogue crackles with energy and originality, and the writers are clearly playing a sort of mental tennis match with the audience. In the end, both sides win, and it is a glorious victory.

Doubts at first, but.... - 17 April 1999
When I heard that Shakespeare in Love recieved the Oscar for Best Picture, I couldn't believe it. How can something be better than Saving Private Ryan? But seeing that I never saw Shakespeare until just recently, I took it upon myself to find out if Skakespeare was truly better than Ryan. By the end of the film, I was well assured that the Oscar went to the better film. I loved Shakespeare. I laughed, I cried, and I found myself giving a little applause at the end. Who ever did the casting did a superb job. Not only could these people act in a film, but they could also do Shakespeare (which mind you is not very easy). Not only was the film excellent but the performances of Romeo and Juliet that appeared throughout the film were the best that I have seen and probably will see. Sadly, I could only give this film a 10 because the voting scale won't go high enough. In my opinion the film deserves an 11.

Keep in mind it is FICTION - 3 November 1999
Like The English Patient, this is a FICTIONAL movie depicting real people in a FICTIONAL tale. Don't over anaylize the historical accuracy of it. It is not historically acurate, it is not intended to be. What it IS, is a beautiful romantic story about a playwright and his muse. The parallels they create between Shakespeare and Viola and Romeo and Juliet are priceless and wonderful.

Also, I have to say, the performances of Romeo and Juliet in this movie are the best I have ever seen. I would love to see all the players from this movie do Romeo and Juliet the way they did in this movie. I have never before seen anyone speak the lines from any Shakespeare play in a way which conveys the feeling of them, as opposed to the meaning of them. It is a pity that the only time it is done is in bits and pieces for another movie.

This movie is great. Everything from the costumes to the acting is superb.

One of the best of 1998 and deserving of that Oscar! - 9 July 1999
Every so often a movie comes along that is literate, intelligent, and has magic and charm to spare. Movies like these affirm our belief that film is a terrific art form. Shakespeare In Love is one such movie.

The movie chronicles Shakespeare's writer's block while trying to write a play entitled Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter. In desperate need of a muse, Shakespeare finds one in the beautiful noblewoman Viola de Lesseps who has a desire to be an actor at a time when women are forbidden from performing. Shakespeare and Viola fall in love thus inspiring Romeo and Juliet.

As Shakespeare, Joseph Fiennes steps out of his brother Ralph's shadow and proves what a dashing and charismatic leading man he can be. Fiennes has a Peter O'Toole quality about him and should become a big star. While his portrayal may be nothing like Shakespeare, he makes us believe in romance Shakespeare's woes.

Gwyneth Paltrow is stunning as Viola de Lesseps. She throws herself into the part and handles an English accent very well as she did in Sliding Doors and Emma. Viola is the heart and soul of the movie, she is the reason for Romeo and Juliet's existence and Paltrow truly makes us believe in romance.

The supporting cast is all terrific. Geoffrey Rush is amusing as the theater owner Henslowe. Ben Affleck is truly surprising a hammy actor, with good material, Affleck is quite a capable actor. Judi Dench and Queen Elizabeth and Rupert Everett as Christopher Marlowe round out the cast with fine performances.

The story is quite entertaining. Screenwriters invest the script with a healthy portion of Romeo and Juliet's dialogue and Shakespeare's sonnets that only make the movie more amusing. The story of Romeo and Juliet is familiar to us all, and the movie parallels the story in surprising and charming ways.

The most ingenious aspect of the movie is how elements of Shakespeare's plays have become so ingrained in our movies, television, and theater, even though they were cliches in Shakespeare's time. This movie actually manages to breathe life into all the old cliches thanks to a wonderful exuberance and a fantastic cast.

An intelligent movie that actually rewards the audience for knowing something about Shakespeare, Shakespeare In Love is a treat from start to finish. It makes literacy look sexy and makes sexiness look mature, a feat most movies only hope to accomplish Grade: A+

* My favorite trivia about Shakespeare in Love:

* Gwyneth Paltrow saw the script at Winona Ryder's office table in 1997 and asked her if she could read it.

* The street preacher at the start points towards the Rose Theatre and proclaims "The Rose, smells thusly rank and would by any other name," is an adaptation of "That which we call a Rose would by any other name smell as sweet," which is a line in Romeo and Juliet; the play at the center of this film.

* Will is shown signing a paper, with six illegible signatures visible. Several versions of Shakespeare's signature exist, all of which are different. This has led to debate about whether William Shakespeare may actually have been illiterate.

* Viola asks Will, "Are you the author of the plays of William Shakespeare?" This is a hint at the modern day speculation whether the works of Shakespeare were really written by him, or whether some nobleman (or another famous author) used his identity as a pseudonym. The film also manages to provide theoretical sources for the two prevailing academic theories about Shakespeare's inspirations for many of the sonnets: that they were written either for an extramarital mistress or a male lover.

* Reference is made to Edward Alleyn on a promotional leaflet for one of William Shakespeare's plays at the beginning of the film. Edward Alleyn, an actor in Shakespeare's time, ('Ned' in the film, played by Ben Affleck) was the real-life founder of the famous London private secondary schools Dulwich College and Alleyn's School.

* The unpleasant little urchin John Webster, who is shown playing with mice, grows up to be a big name of the next (Jacobean) generation of playwrights. His plays are known for their blood and gore, and his most famous title is "The Duchess of Malfi."

* Lord Wessex (played by Colin Firth) is the villain of the film and is generally presented as none too bright. Wessex's mistaken belief that it is Christopher Marlowe instead of William Shakespeare who has slept with Viola is particularly amusing given that it is the general historical and literary consensus that Marlowe was gay; something that (the film implies) Wessex would have known if he paid even a little bit of attention to the theater, arts, or culture of his age.

* In an interview Judi Dench said she had to wear such high heels for this film that director John Madden nicknamed her "Tudor Spice."

* The play being performed for the Queen at the beginning of the film is Two Gentlemen of Verona.

* Judi Dench was so taken with the full sized replica set of the Rose Theatre that Miramax gave it to her to take home when filming ended. Variety reported in early 1999 that she was looking for a site and a financial backer so it could be used as a working theater.

* In the beginning of the movie, when Henslowe asks Will if he has been working on his play, and William Shakespeare answers "Doubt thou the stars are fire, Doubt that the sun doth move" he is quoting from Hamlet (Act II Scene 2). The lines are from a letter he wrote to Ophelia while pretending to have gone mad, and are followed by "Doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love."

* The priest near the beginning yells "a plague on both your houses," which is a famous quote from Romeo and Juliet.

* Counting this film's win for best picture, it has the most Oscars ever won (7) without winning the best director award.

* The sonnet Will writes for Viola which begins with "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" is Sonnet 18. In reality, this sonnet, along with Sonnets number 1 to 126, were written for a male friend of William Shakespeare. Some speculate that this friend is either Henry Wriothesley, earl of Southamption, or William Herbert, earl of Pembroke.

* In the first scene with William Shakespeare, we see him crumpling up balls of paper and throwing them around the room which land near props which represent or refer to other works by Shakespeare. The first lands next to a skull - a reference to Hamlet and the second lands in a chest - a reference to the Merchant of Venice.

* The boatman who rows William Shakespeare says, "I had that Christopher Marlowe in my boat once." This is a reference to the stereotypical remark of London taxi drivers about their famous customers: "I had that [famous name] in the back of my cab once."

* Kate Winslet turned down the role of Viola after the success of Titanic.

* Judi Dench won an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for her role as Queen Elizabeth, although she is on-screen for only about eight minutes in four scenes. This is the second-shortest performance to win a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. The shortest ever performance was by Beatrice Straight in Network, as she appeared in only six minutes of the film.

* When Queen Elizabeth II was preparing to bestow a new noble title to her son Prince Edward in 1999, she originally wanted to make him the Duke of Cambridge. But after he saw Shakespeare in Love, he asked her if he could instead be the "Earl of Wessex," after Colin Firth's character "Lord Wessex," even though the character is villainous and unlikable. He requested and received the "Wessex" title and is sometimes known as Edward Wessex.