Synopsis:
In this irreverent comedy, a failed
actor-turned-worse-high-school-drama-teacher
rallies his Tucson, AZ students as he conceives
and stages politically incorrect musical sequel
to Shakespeare's Hamlet.
The Freak's Rating:
D+ : Steve Coogan has peaked my interest as
a fan of comedies over the last year or so.
After his performance in this year's amazingly
funny Tropic Thunder,
I was eager to see his latest comedic venture.
With a less-than-intriguing plotline and perhaps
the worst title choice in a decade, Hamlet 2 had
many strikes against it for cinematic success.
Eagerly attaching a tagline of "from the creator
of South Park and Team America" is an obvious
attempt by the studios to garner an audience.
This is a ploy easily tied to attaining box
office success which will result in all who
attend based on the association with a South
Park creative team will leave extremely
disappointed. Writing isn't nearly as
sharp as South Park resulting in few comedic
site gags or dialogue that trigger more than a
chuckle. Having seen Coogan's potential as
a comedic actor during his limited role in Tropic Thunder,
the writing is especially painful to see on
screen. Coogan and Elizabeth Shue
(starring as herself) are able to rescue a few
lines from writing hell, but for the most part
this extremely important aspect of the film
falls horribly flat.
80's child note - Shue made me want to try
karate (The Karate Kid) and become a bartender
(Cocktail) when I was younger. She was
always incredibly cute as the girl to get.
She is still incredibly cute after all these
years, though it may be only my age group that
will think so.
Direction of the film is adequate, unable to
make up for the loss of quality writing.
Overacting is on display from all the drama
students and the principal of the school as
well. Catherine Keener and David Arquette
have entertaining parts in the film as the
protagonists' wife and roommate, causing some of
the film's few moments of hilarity. A
cameo from SNL's Amy Poehler is completely out
of place as an attorney fighting for free
speech, all the while spewing racial and sexist
slurs.
There is one incredibly bright spot in this
film, saving it from complete failure on my
scale. During the controversial play, a
musical number titled "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" had
me laughing out loud. Coogan and the rest
of the cast have wonderful antics on stage and
lyrics are sharp and funny. I'd encourage
searching on YouTube of the film's site to
obtain the clip of it.
Without the one music video section of the film,
this is a true bomb. With it, it barely
slides under the failing radar.
Alex's Rating: F : This is the cheapest
rubbish ever made. This film is a TOTAL disgrace
and humiliation.
William Shakespeare is one of the greatest - if
not the greatest - playwright IN HISTORY! His
works contained the finest, most original
storylines, fantastic pacing and unbeatable
poetry.
He wrote 37 plays, 5 poems and 154 sonnets. His
works are 400 years old, yet they STILL retain
their popularity! Ask any ignoramus who starred
in this to write a masterpiece, and they will
stare blankly at you like a lobotomized APE! How
DARE some fool decide to disrespect such a
master in such a foul manner, when they are not
capable of a remotely reasonable sentence!
Equally disgusting is the way they turned a
brilliant masterpiece into a softcore sex comedy
with disgusting songs about FACIAL RAPE and
HAVING SEX WITH JESUS!!!
This is the ultimate insult to Shakespeare. Just
because most modern day idiots are too lazy to
work out some mildly difficult terminology, it
doesn't mean you have to spit in the face of a
genius! And this is exactly what happens here.
Once you look up the tough words in a
dictionary, you realize that Shakespeare is not
dull and boring, he in fact set a majestical
example of what great literature truly is.
TRYING at least to understand Shakespeare is
extremely rewarding. He used some of the best
imagery and poetry ever. His comedies are truly
hilarious, his historical plays are intriguing
and insightful, his tragedies explore the
passions and forces that destroy men, and offer
a unique glimpse of the darkest depths of human
nature.
He will NEVER be matched nor beaten, no matter
how genius and honorificabilitudinitatibus, (the
word means worthy of honours), some cheap little
director percieves himself to be!
Hamlet is arguably the greatest tragedy in the
English language. In this cheap film, it is
turned into a science fiction musical about sex
and violence! THIS is the type of stuff that
averts people from Shakespeare. It is not a film
for anyone with a working brain. It is for 19
year old losers with nothing more to do in life
but linger in their miserable existence and get
themselves high on heinous amounts of alcohol in
front of the TV with their so - called 'homies'!
And so, some college dropout horrifically
distorts something masterful and glorious. The
result is 92 minutes of shrill,vulgar, explicit,
cheap, common filmmaking, which is neither
comedy nor drama, but a sick little film about
rape, sex, failure, and alcohol. It should be
BANNED!
I bet that who ever reads my review is thinking
"Ho ho ho.. just one of those snobby idiots
doesn't know what he's on about". Well, I can
tell you with a heart and soul full of honesty,
that this review is by a person who REALLY knows
what he's on about!
I am a hardcore fan of Shakespeare, and I truly
know what i'm saying. I can recite "To be or not
to be" fluently, I write plays and poetry in my
spare time, and I have a huge taste for
Shakespeare because he is worthwile and
immensely entertaining and inspiring.
I pride myself in my literary tastes and
talents, so please take my word for it!
So if you also prefer great as a substitute to
gaudy, steer WELL CLEAR of this film. Waste of
time and money. Buy yourself a complete works of
William Shakespeare... And for once in this
increasingly common world... indulge yourself!
Storminator's
Rating: C- : I was expecting better, really,
based on the plot. The acting and writing were
both flat, which is a shame since there was so
much potential. But yes, the "rock me sexy
Jesus" bit was entertaining.
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