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From Amazon.co.uk
One of the most endearing and intelligent romantic comedies of the 1990s, the Oscar-winning Shakespeare in Love is filled with such good will, sunny romance, snappy one-liners and devilish cleverness that it's absolutely irresistible. With tongue placed firmly in cheek, at its outset the film tracks young Will Shakespeare's overwrought battle with writer's block and the efforts of theatre owner Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush, in rare form) to stage Will's latest comedy, Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter. Jokey comedy, though, soon takes a backseat to ravishing romance when the beautiful Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow) disguises herself as a young man to wangle herself an audition in the all-male cast and wins both the part of Romeo and, after much misunderstanding, the playwright's heart. Soon enough, Will's pirate comedy becomes the beautiful, tragic Romeo and Juliet, reflecting the agony and ecstasy of Will and Viola's romance--he's married and she's set to marry the slimy Lord Wessex (Colin Firth).
The way that Oscar-winning screenwriters Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard enfold their story within the parameters of Romeo and Juliet (and even Twelfth Night) is nothing short of brilliant--it would take a Shakespearean scholar to dissect the innumerable parallels, oft-quoted lines, plot developments, and thematic borrowings. And most amazingly, Norman and Stoppard haven't forgotten to entertain their audience in addition to riding a Shakespearean roller coaster, with director John Madden (Mrs. Brown) reigning in his huge ensemble with rollicking energy. Along the way there are small gems to be found, including Judi Dench's eight-minute, Oscar-winning turn as a truly regal Queen Elizabeth, but the key element of Shakespeare in Love's success rests on the milky-white shoulders of its two stars. Fiennes, inexplicably overlooked at Oscar time, is a dashing, heartfelt Will and as for Best Actress winner Paltrow, well, nothing she'd done before could have prepared viewers for how amazing she is here. Breathtakingly beautiful, fiercely intelligent, strong-willed and lovestruck--it's a performance worthy of Shakespeare in more ways than one. By the film's end, you'll be thoroughly won over--and brushing up your Shakespeare with newfound ardour. --Mark Englehart
Product Description
DVD Special Features
"making Of" Documentary
John Madden Commentary
Cast and Crew Commentary
Theatrical Trailer
21 TV Spots
Academy Awary Winning Costumes
Deleted Scenes
Language:English, Dolby Digital 5.1/German, Dolby surround
Subtitles: English/Dutch/German/Danish/Finnish/Swedish/Norweigan/Hebrew/Polish/Czech
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Blu-ray
In 2003 (and at considerable expense) I bought the 'Superbit' DVD of this wonderful film to get the best picture quality I could and it was far better than the standard DVD version (even though it didn't have the extras the standard DVD did). But this January 2011 BLU RAY reissue with its superlative picture quality AND nicely complimentary extras - trumps all previous formats. And at less than ten quid, it's reasonably priced too. But to the details first...
Originally released into cinemas in early 1999, "Shakespeare In Love" was nominated for a whopping 13 Academy Awards and went on to win 7 - Best Picture, Best Leading and Supporting Actress, Screenplay, Set Design, Costumes and Music. So many things came together on this film - the inspired casting of Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes as Viola De Lessops and William Shakespeare, Geoffrey Rush as the permanently living-on-the-edge theatre owner Philip Henslowe (his dialogue titles this review), Colin Firth as the dastardly and arrogant Lord Wessex (wittily refers to life in 1593 as "Dallas in frocks"), right down to the ordinary-people emotion of Imelda Staunton who is superb as Viola's nurse. In fact the entire ensemble cast (Tom Wilkinson, Martin Clunes, Rupert Everett, Jim Carter and Simon Callow) are all superlative and add hugely to its overall classy feel. There's John Madden's assured direction (he did "Mrs. Brown"), the beautifully evocative score by Steven Warbeck, the 17 fully reconstructed buildings and two theatres created by the Production teams and of course the movie's true ace-in-the-hole - the stunning screenplay by Tom Stoppard and Marc Norman which successfully emulates the bard's genius while at the same time making him real and human to us.... Read more ›
Originally released into cinemas in early 1999, "Shakespeare In Love" was nominated for a whopping 13 Academy Awards and went on to win 7 - Best Picture, Best Leading and Supporting Actress, Screenplay, Set Design, Costumes and Music. So many things came together on this film - the inspired casting of Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes as Viola De Lessops and William Shakespeare, Geoffrey Rush as the permanently living-on-the-edge theatre owner Philip Henslowe (his dialogue titles this review), Colin Firth as the dastardly and arrogant Lord Wessex (wittily refers to life in 1593 as "Dallas in frocks"), right down to the ordinary-people emotion of Imelda Staunton who is superb as Viola's nurse. In fact the entire ensemble cast (Tom Wilkinson, Martin Clunes, Rupert Everett, Jim Carter and Simon Callow) are all superlative and add hugely to its overall classy feel. There's John Madden's assured direction (he did "Mrs. Brown"), the beautifully evocative score by Steven Warbeck, the 17 fully reconstructed buildings and two theatres created by the Production teams and of course the movie's true ace-in-the-hole - the stunning screenplay by Tom Stoppard and Marc Norman which successfully emulates the bard's genius while at the same time making him real and human to us.... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By MisterHowie
Format:Blu-ray
This title is region free, as I've confirmed on two BluRay players (a crappy, cheap Magnavox and a Sony). Since it's not available as a direct, Region A release, this might be a good option for those who are tired of waiting.
19 of 22 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:VHS Tape
Stoppard certainly knows what he's about: The plot is delightful and the references elegant, clever parodies if you spot them or inconspicuous parts of the plot if you don't. And the references are on all levels: to Shakespeares plays, his unknown life and the many theories that have been made about it, and his writer and actor collegues. Normally I'd hate "the person behind the genius-films" because they miss the point that it's precisely the work, not the person, that's interesting. However, this is not so much a film about Shakespeare as a story in its own right. There is no temptation to believe that "this is really how it was" and yet the information is so true to the period that even specialists need not be annoyed by uninformed inconsistencies. It's a cornucopia of Shakespearian wit!
16 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By Steve_Turner
Format:DVD
What can you say about this film that hasn't already been said? Nothing, its absolutely brilliant, I noticed that someone gave it one star previously. Idiot. You do not have to have an intimate knowledge of The Bard to enjoy this film, a modicum of intelligence is useful but really anyone could & should enjoy this film. Its funny, witty, beautifully written & the acting is superb throughout, especially Tom Wilkinson who to be fair is brilliant in anything he is in anyway. Its also incredibly uplifting & the final scenes with Gwyneth Paltrow walking across the beach to the words of Twelth Night whilst Stephen Warbeck's incredible score grows ever louder in the background, never fail to inspire & move me to tears. A wondrous, wondrous film!
14 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
One of the most romantic, charming and at the same time witty and humorous films about Shakespeare. With John Madden as the director "Shakespeare in Love" becomes a film to be recommended to Shakespeare-fans as well as to those who just want to enjoy a fabulous movie. However, due to all the parallels that the director drew to Shakespeare's plays - especially to Romeo and Juliet - it is recommended to have read them before in order to be able to fully understand all the allusions. Likewise a deeper knowledge about the various circumstances of the Elizabethan Age like all the customs and the social situation at that time helps to be able to follow the plot of "Shakespeare in Love". But the brilliant acting of the protagonists and their way of interpreting their roles makes the film also very interesting and just a romantic love story to everyone who doesn't know anything about Shakespeare.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Southcoaster
Format:Blu-ray|Amazon Verified Purchase
My first BluRay disk.
However with BluRay players upscaling ordinary DVD's so well, it's hard to tell if paying the extra was worth it.
What is not worth it, is how the BluRay disk is controlled:
Back in the old DVD days, one got used to the DVD player's features which were the same for all disks purchased.
Now with BluRay I understand it's basically a data disk with software loaded from the disk into the player.
This means each disk is different, so for example this disk does not have the 'resume' feature.
Also because the BluRay player has to deal with far more data, the sound is often out of sync with the lips.
This can usually be corrected in the player setup, but it all smacks of two steps forward and one back!
However with BluRay players upscaling ordinary DVD's so well, it's hard to tell if paying the extra was worth it.
What is not worth it, is how the BluRay disk is controlled:
Back in the old DVD days, one got used to the DVD player's features which were the same for all disks purchased.
Now with BluRay I understand it's basically a data disk with software loaded from the disk into the player.
This means each disk is different, so for example this disk does not have the 'resume' feature.
Also because the BluRay player has to deal with far more data, the sound is often out of sync with the lips.
This can usually be corrected in the player setup, but it all smacks of two steps forward and one back!
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4.1 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Romance at its Best
this film is one of the best and so romantic you fall in love with it, great comedy too. fantastic!!
Published 27 days ago by Mr. S. A. Blackaby
5.0 out of 5 stars
Upgrade of a vhs tape
Thought it about time to get a dvd copy rather than the vhs tape version as begining to wear out. Just a feel good film with all sorts going on will they manage to put on the play... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ms. C. Martin
5.0 out of 5 stars
a terrific movie but...
I love this film, the writing and acting are superb and the score is just sublime, however to this day i cannot believe it beat Saving Private Ryan to Best . Read more
Published 1 month ago by A. H. Fallon
5.0 out of 5 stars
Long time favourite.
I loved this movie from the first time seeing it on the cinema. Now I have the DVD for my collection and viewing it again was s o refreshing!
Published 1 month ago by Mr. Mc Warwick
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant Direction and Editing makes a excellent Rom-Comedy
Brilliant Direction and Editing makes a excellent Rom-Comedy - All actors do a great job bringing Shakespeare to the masses
Published 2 months ago by mmoore
4.0 out of 5 stars
Something Different
It is a brave thing to attempt to portray any aspect a figure so revered and disdained by the world, but I think this film just about carries off its entertainment value. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Lotti Infelix
2.0 out of 5 stars
Spurious
Not as good as I expected......bit stupid and dream like. A made up experience nothing close to any historical fact.
Published 2 months ago by M. A. Beale
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best films ever
Cannot fault this as an entertainment and piece of well written and research entertainment which i would recommend to anyone interested in Shakespeare
Published 4 months ago by Mariejosephe
4.0 out of 5 stars
Judi Dench as M or Elisabeth I or both
When l first saw this at the cinema l was absolutely enchanted by it. I thought it was witty and informative ...and beautifully staged. On second viewing ten or more years later . Read more
Published 4 months ago by John Irons-patterson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great film
Saw this 4 times on the wide screen when it came out. Wonderful story told with brilliant wit by Tom Stoppard. Those who know their Shakespeare will love all the clever references. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jessiebooboo
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