Did Ben Elton ever actually have any talent? As much as he was king of comedy in the 80s - mostly in collaborations - his work since has been so dire that it makes you wonder. Sometimes an artist can get the appearance of talent from being in the right place, with the right people, at the right time. Anyway, this is slow, clunky, and arrogant in that Elton seems to think he is an adequate model for his subject - that, because he and Shakespeare are both writers, it is enough to look at himself to find out how Shakespeare ticked. It's like a mouse thinking it knows what it's like to be a lion, because they both have four legs.
Of course, you can argue that it's impossible to explain a genius, and it's always going to be difficult even to represent the genius of a writer on screen; but it's pointless making a film about someone like Shakespeare, whose actual life was humdrum, unless you can do it somehow. Surely they should have found a way to incorporate a few speeches - ones relevant to the character's life situation - from the plays? But as it is this doesn't come anywhere close: where Shakespeare constantly startles you with his insight, so original and yet so true, everything said by these characters is of the most obvious imaginable. Writing about the great does not in itself produce a great piece: the danger is that, actually, you only show up your own mediocrity.
It looks nice, courtesy of director and star Kenneth Branagh, but as actor his Bard is an insipid man; and it's frankly taking the mick to cast octogenarian Judi Dench as his wife. If it was the other way round - an actor of 80 playing a man married to a woman of 50, and supposed to be roughly her age - there would be howls of outrage.
Of course, you can argue that it's impossible to explain a genius, and it's always going to be difficult even to represent the genius of a writer on screen; but it's pointless making a film about someone like Shakespeare, whose actual life was humdrum, unless you can do it somehow. Surely they should have found a way to incorporate a few speeches - ones relevant to the character's life situation - from the plays? But as it is this doesn't come anywhere close: where Shakespeare constantly startles you with his insight, so original and yet so true, everything said by these characters is of the most obvious imaginable. Writing about the great does not in itself produce a great piece: the danger is that, actually, you only show up your own mediocrity.
It looks nice, courtesy of director and star Kenneth Branagh, but as actor his Bard is an insipid man; and it's frankly taking the mick to cast octogenarian Judi Dench as his wife. If it was the other way round - an actor of 80 playing a man married to a woman of 50, and supposed to be roughly her age - there would be howls of outrage.