Perhaps the most enjoyable period piece ever made for the silver screen is Shakespeare in Love. That is, however, not to suggest that it is a good movie, a production of quality or something of the sort. Shakespeare in Love is an extraordinarily inexpensive fantasy that plays out to be little original or quality work.
In looking back, there appears to be nothing more than a thin, repetitive plot that is only carried by the depiction of characters that we revere in our history books. The best indication of this might be the plot. One of the two theatres in London is owned by Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush). It's at the height of the age of royal theatre, and Queen Elizabeth (Judi Dench) is very much a fan. Nonetheless, to quote the film specifically, he has "cash flow issues". It becomes evident over a long series of events that his entire life depends on his next show going well enough to pay off his debts.
So, the young playwright, William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes), is employed by Mr Henslowe to pen a comedic production. With a severe case of writer's block, however, and blames it on the fact that his love life is also struggling. He has in mind the title, Romeo and Ethel, the daughter of the pirate (after a while, even that joke loses steam), but he can't seem to put words on paper. Then, as only Hollywood could have it, he meets Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow) through a long set of twisted events and falls madly in love, thus curing his writer's block. There are several other minor problems faced by Mr Henslowe, but they all pan out to be a lot of ado over nothing.
In watching this film, the first realization I achieved is that one of the messages given is that a show should not always be attributed to its creator. That couldn't be truer here, ironically. Not the scenes that fit into the story, but rather the recitals of Shakespearean lines by actors playing actors, are the great scenes that will sweep viewers away. The character of Shakespeare or Queen Elizabeth or even the theatre owner is not one of the most breathtaking moments in this movie, but rather two young children named Romeo and Juliet who choose to end their own lives in the name of love.
In this fun but weak film, the acting is often thin to the point that even in the theatres of Queen Elizabeth, it would not have survived. Tragically, Joseph Fiennes is incredible and comically bad. In her lead role as well, Gwyneth Paltrow is nothing more than adequate. The supporting cast does, however, almost save the day. Geoffrey Rush is nothing less than fantastic, and Judi Dench is excellent.
Shakespeare in Love is just worth the ride if you want to be amused until all is said and done. Entertainment may be enjoyable, though, as the movie so kindly pointed out, but it's not inherently good. To put it plainly, it's far-fetched, poorly planned, but quite funny.
