Review of Hamlet 2 (2008) by Jamie F — 31 Jan 2010

Amusing enough but I thought this was meant to be controversial and upsetting for hardball Christian types and all that jazz. As far as pushing the envelope and containing anything that should raise an eyebrow, it fell way short. I get that in the context of the films story line, what's happening is causing a stir, but not watching the film. So Coogan's character plays Jesus in a school play? He's really not portrayed in a bad light and that's about as close as we get to controversial. So, not what I was expecting in that light. A single episode of South Park has managed to cause more of a stir.

On it's own merit, it's OK. A few laughs and Coogan is always likable, though I had to question his American accent a little. Maybe it was deliberately hammy. And how many times are we going to see the down-and-out class of miss-fits/gang-bangers be turned around by an inspirational/persistent teacher so by the end they produce the goods?

The actual performance of Hamlet 2 as the finale was good but seemed a little short, after all we'd endured to get to that point. Considering they didn't have any money, the cast and crew pulled off quite a production!

Oh, and Elisabeth Shue and David Arquette were way underutilized. There's even a hint of a romance between Shue and Coogan at one point but that never get's hinted at again - what was the point in that? Oh well. Catch it on cable.