Product Details

• Actors: Lindsay Duncan, Alex Jennings, Desmond Barrit, Finbar Lynch, Osheen Jones
• Directors: Adrian Noble
• Writers: Adrian Noble, William Shakespeare
• Producers: Ian Scaife, Paul Arnott
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Walt Disney Video
• VHS Release Date: April 4, 2000
• Run Time: 105 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305470456
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #25,914 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This adaptation of a Royal Shakespeare Company production of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream is drenched in color: The costumes, the set, the lighting--all of them are flush with bright yellows, reds, blues, every color in the rainbow. In this classic comedy, the confused lives of four young lovers (two men who love the same woman and another woman who loves one of the men) get caught up in a fight between Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies. Oberon has his servant Puck brush Titania's eyes with a flower that will make her fall in love with the next creature she sees--who turns out to be an oafish aspiring actor named Bottom and whom Puck has magically given a donkey's head. But Puck also brushes the eyes of the young lovers, twisting their love rectangle in all directions. The RSC actors have the great virtue of British theatrical training; they understand Shakespeare's language and, for the most part, can make that understanding clear to the audience. The production carries a number of theatrical devices into the movie--some actors play more than one character; the forest of the fairies is represented by a bare and brightly painted wooden floor; doors and umbrellas appear out of nowhere, resulting in some wonderfully surreal imagery. This may be confusing at first, but over the course of the story these techniques give the play's shifting worlds a greater clarity. This unusual adaptation is a feast for the eyes and an excellent introduction to one of Shakespeare's most popular plays. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lavish production of a timeless classic..., August 23, 1999

By A Customer

This is NOT the weak Hollywood version released earlier this year, but a tremendous production by the Royal Shakespeare Company a few years ago. I saw this production in England in 1995 and it is truly phenomenal. Alex Jennings is an actor of true power, forcefully taking on the dual roles of Theseus and Oberon (an interesting, though not uncommon approach). Desmond Barritt is absolutely hilarious leading the band of mechanicals. I would HIGHLY recommend this video to anyone, but particularly to those who have seen the play performed by other (particularly American) actors. You will truly have an appreciation for how truly gifted Royal Shakespeare Company actors are.

28 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A 'dream'!, April 10, 2001

By	"sopera" - See all my reviews

I was fortunate enough to see the stage version of this production (same cast, same director, etc.) when the RSC came to Broadway in spring 1996. I loved the show so much that I went to two performances in three weeks.

The video preserves a lot of the most endearing characteristics of the stage show--the double casting (everyone except the four lovers has a "mortal" role and a "fairy" role), the slightly naughty atmosphere, the mystical world of the fairies. I was espcially glad to see that the "forest of light" set wasn't omitted--just as stunning on film as it was live.

The cast here is top-notch. A number of the leads are Olivier Award winners, and it's easy to see why. Alex Jennings (Oberon/Theseus) is a treasure--as Oberon, he is commanding and masterful; and Barry Lynch is an impish, sexy Puck. All of the mechanicals are splendid, especially Desmond Barrit as Bottom. Among the lovers, Emily Raymond stands out--she really works to make Helena into a unique and sympathetic character. The actors here actually USE Shakespeare's words, instead of reciting them as poetry. How wonderful that all of these performances were preserved on film!

Having said that, I was surprised by some of the changes made to the production for this video. For one, why is the young boy included? During a few of the scenes, the camera is so focused on his reactions that the dialogue is pushed into the background. I also missed the original music--on Broadway, it was sort of Celtic, and the fairies had a beautiful dance in the final scene.

All in all, however, this is a fantastic film and the best adaptation of "Midsummer" I have seen.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Thoroughly Delightful Production, April 22, 2000

By	Joseph M Conlon (High School English teacher Warsaw, IN) - See all my reviews

This 1996 film adaptation of the 1994 RSC stage production of A Midsummer Night's Dream is marvelous. The acting is outstanding throughout the cast and the beauty of Shakespeare's language shines like a jewel. The costuming and setting are a rather non distinct present day time. The stage design is quite different than anything I've seen before - quite original and quite effective. The woods around Athens are represented by a blank stage with hanging light bulbs and various moveable doors about the set. Umbrellas are used in a number of unique and creative ways both to denote scene changes and as the bowers in fairyland. Also creatively used is a doll-house. Another unusual aspect of this production is the use of a young boy and his dream as a framing device for the play. The boy is also the "Changling Child" and he observes each of the scenes and takes part in the scene changes. Fairyland is often the most difficult effect for a modern director to conceive and Noble's concepts are both effective and delightful. The doubling of Theseus / Oberon and Hippolyta / Titania also works to tie the storylines together thematically. The staging of the Pyramus and Thisby play within a play during the fifth act is both touching and funny and again Noble's direction brings out Shakespeare's messages about the nature of love in a most perceptive manner. My only criticism of the casting (and it is a very minor one) involves the two female lovers. As Shakespeare wrote the play, Helena is a tall blonde. In this production Emily Raymond as Helena is a short-haired brunette only an inch or so taller than Monica Dolan's long-haired brunette Hermia. Both actresses' performance is superb, and the similarity of their looks does increase the confusion and emphasizes the theme of the lack of reason when considering love. Demetrius and Lysander are virtually interchangeable as Shakespeare wrote them. At 103 minutes, the play moves along briskly and some cutting of lines must have occurred but the cuts must be deftly handled because I didn't notice them. All of the famous passages are there as well as all the memorable quotes. I consider this production much superior to the more well known and highly publicized lavish Hollywood 1999 production directed by Michael Hoffman starring Rupert Everett, Calista Flockhart, Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Stanley Tucci.

I give this production five stars.