I cannot make up my mind whether the play is bad (it's not Shakespeare's greatest) or the film is bad (it's definitely not Branagh's finest hour). I think it's a bit of both. I went in with high expectations (after Branagh's Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, and Hamlet), but hated the whole enterprise from start to finish.
The music was poor, Rosalind was mis-cast, and the whole Japan setting was a really bad idea that did not work.
I hope this was just an aberration on Branagh's part and he can return to form. He is capable of excellent work with Shakespeare's plays, but this is a bad choice of play, badly done.
The music was poor, Rosalind was mis-cast, and the whole Japan setting was a really bad idea that did not work.
I hope this was just an aberration on Branagh's part and he can return to form. He is capable of excellent work with Shakespeare's plays, but this is a bad choice of play, badly done.