A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
Genre: Fantasy / Comedy
Duration: 116 minuten
Alternative title: William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
Country:
United Kingdom / United States / Italy
Directed by: Michael Hoffman
Stars: Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer and Stanley Tucci
IMDb score:
6,4 (27.435)
Releasedate: 14 May 1999
A Midsummer Night's Dream plot
"Hold on to Your Heart. Cupid is Armed and Dangerous."
In this Shakespeare story, the men Demetrius and Lysander both compete for Hermia's hand, but Hermia only wants Lysander, only Hermia's father wants Demetrius as a son-in-law. Then there is Helena, who in turn is in love with Demetrius who does not return her love. These four end up in the enchanted forest where the elven king and queen have come into conflict. The story becomes even more complex when a failed potion causes the people who ingest it to fall in love with the first person they see.
Actors and actresses
Oberon
Helena
Nick Bottom
Titania
Puck
Demetrius
Hippolyta
Theseus
Hermia
Lysander
Reviews & comments
tommykonijn
-
- 5006 messages
- 2258 votes
So far I have encountered two 'plays' by William Shakespeare: Macbeth and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Macbeth easily held my attention. I didn't think A Midsummer Night's Dream was bad at all, but at the same time I couldn't do much with it. It turns out I can say this for both the original play and this Michael Hoffman film adaptation.
Hoffman stays true to the source material, which I really appreciate. I find the changes he makes somewhat meaningless. As Mug already mentions, it is quite strange that Italy was chosen as the location and I was not sure what the frequent use of the bicycles added exactly. In any case, while watching, just like when I read the original text, I was not completely sucked into the created fantasy world (or rather: 'dream'). It comes across as rather amateurish at times. Perhaps they choose to stay as close as possible to the experience of a play, but I think it would have benefited the film if they had made the forest visually more attractive (and larger in scale).
Apart from these flaws, there is really little to criticize about this film. It is, literally, by the book and therefore very little can go wrong. Mediocre acting might have killed the film, but this is by no means the case. The all-star cast performs well, and I particularly liked Stanley Tucci in his portrayal of Robin Goodfellow. Kline, Pfeiffer and Everett also deliver excellent work. This has made it a worthy film adaptation. Not a high flyer anywhere, but I certainly found it amusing.
3*
Translated from Dutch · View original
Onderhond
-
- 87389 messages
- 12356 votes
Chaotic happening.
As is often the case with Shakespeare, I am not really familiar with the source material, nor with the adaptations. And from what I've already seen, the details disappear fairly quickly. I suspect this movie will be no different.
Hoffman clearly sees it as a film play. At least, I hope so, otherwise the somewhat brackish decor in the middle part is difficult to explain. The forest looks rather contrived and fake, I hope that was the intention.
The entire last act also makes no sense. It feels like an afterthought, but one of 30 minutes. Strangely enough, it is also the best part of the film. Strange performance that is put down with quite a lot of humour. Humor that works much less well elsewhere during the film.
It is not really good, but it is a bit crazy and therefore also quite original. Strange cast, crazy atmosphere, clumsy but occasionally a bit charming. On the other hand, often boring and cheap. Too bad it couldn't have been half an hour shorter.
2.0*
Translated from Dutch · View original
Sergio Leone
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- 4192 messages
- 2881 votes
Pfft.
Absurd and at times bizarre play. This results in a rare funny moment when, for example, the voluptuous Michelle Pfeiffer rides Kevin Kline dressed as a donkey. It shows how much the film (fortunately) doesn't take itself too seriously. But it is also an example of the cacophony that is conjured up on the screen. This is by no means romantic, if that was the intention. It is mostly busy amateur theater and therefore totally not my thing.
1
Translated from Dutch · View original
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