A Midsummer Night's Dream [1999 film]
by Michael Hoffman (Director/Screenwriter)
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Description
In the village of Monte Athena in Italy at the turn of the 19th century, necklines are high, parents are rigid, and marriage is seldom a matter of love. Thus, Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander, while her father wants only Demetrius for his son-in-law. Poor Helena burns hot for Demetrius, who avoids her like the plague. Meanwhile, fairy king Oberon is engaged in a battle of wits with his queen, Titania, and has commanded a trick of Puck, which show more naturally goes horribly wrong. They are all in the enchanted wood on a midsummer's eve, coming out in the end charged with a gift from the fairies--an enchanted eroticism--that sweeps them away to bed chambers and weddings. The film celebrates love's ability to alter reality while quietly acknowledging that any attempt to portray the feeling of love ultimately falls short. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
The scenery, the magical effects and the acting and directing were all excellent, we thought, even if there was rather more implied intimacy than I had ever seen before in productions of this play. While there’s nothing untoward shown, there are several scenes where it’s obvious that couples are naked, and in at least one of them it is very clear what is about to happen.
Shakespeare’s plays are full of innuendoes and bawdiness, but it was rather more overt in this production than in the live theatre I have seen previously. That apart, I would recommend this very highly, if you don’t mind a rather different style of production. It was very amusing in places, and we enjoyed it thoroughly.
Shakespeare’s plays are full of innuendoes and bawdiness, but it was rather more overt in this production than in the live theatre I have seen previously. That apart, I would recommend this very highly, if you don’t mind a rather different style of production. It was very amusing in places, and we enjoyed it thoroughly.
Kevin Kline steals scenes, but then, so do others. This is the film that interested my daughter in Shakespearean tales, and it IS fun, but after XXX times (as in more than 30) I can wait a while to view it again.
A cast that ought to have made a better movie. Boring, and not very interesting visually either.
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- A Midsummer Night's Dream [1999 film]
- Original title
- A Midsummer Night's Dream
- Original publication date
- 1999
- People/Characters
- Nick Bottom; Titania; Oberon; Puck; Helena; Hermia (show all 17); Demetrius; Lysander; Theseus; Hippolyta; Peter Quince; Robin Starveling; Snug; Tom Snout; Francis Flute; Egeus; Philostrate
- Important places
- Monte Athena, Italy; Italy
- Important events
- 19th century; 1890s; Summer Solstice
- Related movies
- A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999 | IMDb)
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 420
- Popularity
- 73,412
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (3.90)
- Languages
- English, Spanish
- ISBNs
- 4
- UPCs
- 3
- ASINs
- 9
