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Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999]
 
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Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999]

DVD ~ Gwyneth Paltrow
4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
RRP: £17.99
Price: £3.98 & eligible for Free UK delivery on orders over £5 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £14.01 (78%)
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Customers buy this item with Romeo And Juliet [DVD] [1996] DVD ~ Leonardo DiCaprio

Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999] + Romeo And Juliet [DVD] [1996]
Price For Both: £8.96

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  • This item: Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999] DVD ~ Gwyneth Paltrow

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    Eligible for FREE UK delivery on orders over £5 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • Romeo And Juliet [DVD] [1996] DVD ~ Leonardo DiCaprio

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    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    Eligible for FREE UK delivery on orders over £5 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999]
96% buy the item featured on this page:
Shakespeare In Love [DVD] [1999] 4.1 out of 5 stars (38)
£3.98
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Romeo And Juliet [DVD] [1996]
1% buy
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Product details

  • Actors: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Judi Dench, Colin Firth, Simon Callow
  • Directors: John Madden
  • Format: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
  • Language English, German
  • Subtitles: English, German, Swedish, Danish, Polish, Dutch, Finnish, Czech
  • Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Classification: 15
  • Studio: Universal Pictures UK
  • DVD Release Date: 2 Feb 2004
  • Run Time: 119 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B00004CZAP
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 3,943 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

    Popular in this category:

    #97 in  DVD > Comedy > Romantic

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Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
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

Video 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

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Customer Reviews

38 Reviews
5 star:
 (26)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:
 (3)
1 star:
 (5)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (38 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Shakespearian Wit, 20 April 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Shakespeare In Love [VHS] [1999] (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!
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars brilliant romantic movie reflecting Shakespeare's works, 22 Nov 2006
By Jonathan Palombi (Nuremberg, Germany) - See all my reviews
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.
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The show must...........Go on!, 18 Jun 2007
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!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars AN GOOD EVENING OF VIEWING
A lovely humerous look at Shakespeare life with stunning performances from an all star cast of both British and American filmstars. Read more
Published 1 month ago by H. Tuckley

5.0 out of 5 stars "For she shall be my heroine ... for all time.
This is my favourite film for many reasons. Firstly, it reminds us that creative genius is not just about some hallowed deity who must always be detached from the human... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. M. M. Waller

5.0 out of 5 stars Bard of Avon calling.......
Avon Bard Joe Fiennes gets hots for Ethel the Pirate's daughter, who is a girl playing a boy playing a girl - sort of Julian Clary in drag. Read more
Published 6 months ago by JohnHoppy

5.0 out of 5 stars Much Ado about Writing
Writing a play is a tiresome burden when you don't have the faintest idea what it is going to be about but you need to hand it over real soon. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Ford Ka

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything about this film is astonishingly good
I even cried this time round! Read Amazon's own review on this - it's spot on. What a film!

Small point - it is very kind to the somewhat weak and overrated Twelth... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Greshon

4.0 out of 5 stars Primarily a Love Story - The Shakespeare Thing is Just an Extra
I guess the biggest fault you can find in this film is that the story of E.T. is more likely to have been true than the love affair portrayed in 'Shakespeare in Love'. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Marlyly

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding class
This film will change your whole perspective on love. It has the ability to move you to both laughter and tears, and that reason alone places it in my top five of all time... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Wilson Carter

5.0 out of 5 stars Never mind Shakespeare, I'm in love!
I've no idea why it's taken me so long to get round to watching this 1990s rom-com which I believe won several Oscars. Read more
Published 18 months ago by L. Felthouse

2.0 out of 5 stars Smug self satisfied whimsy
Didn't like the general air of smugness the film had, I found that really offputting, wasn't too keen on Paltrow's over controlled performance either. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Lou Knee

1.0 out of 5 stars Save your time
this movie is an utter waste of time. No script, bad acting, and boring
from start to finish.
Published on 14 May 2007 by Ebben Adams

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