Delayed Reaction: As You Like It

[Note: This is part of a project I'm calling "A Century in a Month". The idea is that I'm going to start with a movie from about 100 years ago and pick a series of connected films until I get to the present. The rules I set this time are release years, per IMDB, can't be more than 5 years apart. I can't repeat the same connection although I can reuse the same type of connection. That means if I use "movies directed by Scorsese" to connect two, I can't use Scorsese as a connection again but I can use a director as a linking element again. I'm not really sure why I'm doing this, but it seems like a fun game.]

Connection to Texas Rangers: Both star Alfred Molina

 

Premise: The Shakespeare play As You Like It but transplanted to 19^th century Japan.

 

By now, I think I’ve made my stance pretty clear about Shakespeare adaptations. Basically, I’m tired of films trying to strike a balance. Either use the story and release yourself from the shackles of the dialogue or embrace the fact that we are watching a play. I appreciated what the 1944 Henry V does, literally starting as a stage production so we can appreciate it as an audience in his time would’ve. It then drifts into something more cinematic. It fully embraces the theatricality. What I struggle with are the adaptations where they try to bring life to Shakespeare’s language in a real-world setting. The characters are speaking in verse. I’m sorry. By design that’s not supposed to sound natural. I find it tedious.

 

I do appreciate that As You Like It moved the setting of the film. That late 19^th century period in Japan when it rapidly tried to embrace the modern world looks cool and isn’t explored enough in film. I liked the epilogue, where Bryce Dallas Howard addresses the camera directly from the film set. I would’ve appreciated more of that throughout the film. As long as everyone is speaking the Shakespeare language, the audience isn’t going to forget that this is a play in the same way that while characters sing an audience won’t forget something is a musical. So, embrace that this is a play with a budget that a play would never get. Be a Romeo + Juliet.

 

All that said, I suppose if someone is going to do another Shakespeare film, Kenneth Branagh has the credentials. While I don’t understand the decision to avoid casting many Asian actors, the actors they did get provided a good variety. Bryce Dallas Howard, Kevin Kline, Janet McTeer, Alfred Molina, and David Oyelowo all carry themselves like they’ve done Shakespeare productions before. The movie does look pretty. In a world where I wasn’t so tired of Shakespeare adaptations, this would be ok.

 

Verdict: Weakly Don’t Recommend