I did love Julie Taymor's Titus.

So did I, Laga.

I guess my problem with Too Stupid To Live is that, well, Too Stupid To Live = Me Cheering For Their DOOM.

Yep, this. OTOH, it is somewhat comforting to know that Shakespeare agrees. Since they do, you know, die.

It's a great vehicle to introduce kids to Shakespeare because it's so melodramatic and lets the whole difficult language barrier down and they can climb over it and explore the ideas.

Maybe because I grew up around theatre buffs and had already seen a fair amount of Shakespeare performed by the time we studied it in middle school, but we did R&J and Midsummer Night's Dream because they're The Plays You Teach To Children So They'll Like Shakespeare, and to this day I can't stand either one.

I did love Julie Taymor's Titus.

Second that love. Ebert had a great review of it where he basically said Titus Andronicus was Shakespeare doing a grindhouse movie, and it really does work on that level (the play I mean). That was the first place I'd seen Harry Lennix and I've kept my eye out for his name every since.

All this talk about tragedy vs. comedy reminds me that I saw Stranger Than Fiction over the weekend, and Harold's running tally on trying to figure out if his life story was a tragedy or a comedy was hilarious.

I loved that 40s (30s?) version of Midsummer, but probably because the only other James Cagney movie I'd seen was White Heat and the study in contrasts is rather enormous.

Branagh's Hamlet

I love Hamlet and I love Kate Winslet, but I couldn't make it more than about half an hour into this. It was just. so. self. righteous. and. plodding.

Dude, putting all the folios together into one massive ego trip? NOT A GOOD IDEA. ALSO, YOU ARE TOO OLD TO PLAY HAMLET. ALSO, ENOUGH WITH THE FUCKING MIRRORS.

Ebert had a great review of it where he basically said Titus Andronicus was Shakespeare doing a grindhouse movie, and it really does work on that level (the play I mean).

Oh, so very true.

R&J and Midsummer Night's Dream because they're The Plays You Teach To Children So They'll Like Shakespeare, and to this day I can't stand either one.

See, I still like Midsummer Night's Dream, but that's because I have a week spot for things concerning the Faerie Court. I keep hoping someday someone will do a production of it where the majority of the story is treated like a horror movie. I think it could be very creepy, if approached properly.

It was '30s, because Mickey Rooney was only around 10 or so when it was filmed. (My first Cagney film was Yankee Doodle Dandy, so his gangster films were a big surprise to me!)

ALSO, YOU ARE TOO OLD TO PLAY HAMLET. ALSO, ENOUGH WITH THE FUCKING MIRRORS.

Hee! ITA, Jessica. I saw that Hamlet at the Music Box Theatre and boy, did it draaaaag. I was so ready for Fortinbras to invade by the end.