Review of Shakespeare in Love (1998) by Gavran R — 28 Oct 2011

I never thought it possible, but on the Gwyneth Paltrow's breasts front, I have to say: too much, too soon. I know, I know, it had to be established that this was a passionate love affair, and to the knukcle-dragging boyfriends watching this movie, there had to be a reason to keep watching, but the sex scenes in the early going actually had a negative impact. It got really boring by about the 45-minute mark, with the love affair having peaked early, leaving only the lacklustre Joseph Fiennes to invest in - very little was actually happening.

Thankfully, though, the few plot pieces that were tediously laid down did knit together a great second half, one in which even Ben Affleck did his damnedest to not suck (and more or less succeeded). Gwyneth Paltrow carried the movie in a few spots, balancing her two characters very well. Best Actress-well? The Academy thought so...

The story is at worst a plausible fiction, and contains many references to Shakespeare's life and work; the best and worst part of these references, however, is that they're playful, sometimes being clever and sometimes dragging the film down into camp. The film feels inauthentic, but it's quite glossy too... I'm not sure that it was better than Saving Private Ryan in 1998, but despite itself it turned out to be a rather good film.