A Modern Translation, Not An Improvement But Acceptable Entertainment.
Always seeking formulas that make money without taking real chances, Hollywood's penchant for the occasional visit to classic literature, while adding their own embellishments, is strongly evident in this composition. Not a bad film, it's hardly worthy of Shakespeare?s pen though. Like many predecessors that exploit Shakespeare in this inferior art form, this movie seeks to reinvent the unnecessary and thereby fails to understand the point of the original work. Strictly based on entertainment value and imagination, it's adequate entertainment, provided of course you're a GREAT listener who can discern a melting pot of dialects applied to the prose of the original work. Somehow, I found straining to hear Roman words spoken with British, US, Asian, Latin and other accents within the same scene most uncomfortable. Still, if you don't mind the avant-garde, somewhat Brooklyn style, you'll dig this one. See it though. Small culture's most always worth the price of a ticket.