Directed by: Richard Eyre
Genres: Drama
Cast: Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Rupert Everett, Tom Wilkinson, Zoe Tapper, Richard Griffiths, Ben Chaplin, Hugh Bonneville, Edward Fox, Derek Hutchinson, Mark Letheren, Jack Kempton, Alice Eve, Fenella Woolgar, David Westhead
IMDB raintg: 7.3
My rating: 6.0 [rate 6.0]
This film on its own is pretty average. The story is very simplistic, predictable and with a number of weak points. Acting is immature at best. Costumes and decorations are undeveloped. Dialogues need more work. I also didn’t like how the style of the film was changing as the film progressed. At the beginning it looked more like something of an old Britain. At the end it was more like costumed performance of actors in the modern theatre. The difference was huge and it wasn’t neither explained nor necessary.
I liked the drama of it though. While it is a common theme for Hollywood movies to have a star that drops and than rises again for the happy ending, this film didn’t make it as obvious as it’s usually made.
And I know that I said that acting sucked in this film, but I was amazed by Billy Crudup. His female performances were outstanding. No wonder people were confusing him…
Anyway, as much as they tried, the film needs much more work and is pretty boring sometimes. If you’re looking for Shakespeare in modern cinema than you better watch “The Merchant of Venice“.