"Stage Beauty" Why,... why did we have to suffer through "Shakespeare in Love"

Films/DVD Asylum

Movies from comedy to drama to your favorite Hollyweird Star.

Stage Beauty is everything Shakespeare in Love promised to be... but never delivered.
The parallels between the two films are inevitable - both deal with the subject of law prohibiting women from playing in English theaters.
But there the similarity ends. While SiL gives us only the pretty wrapper with paper confetti inside, Stage Beauty offers plenty to chew on.
The film is complex in its almost playful complexity. Comedy and drama get intertwined in an entertaining spectacle, where the participants start playing... themselves. There is sudden depth to the story that starts on a light note, at the point where you almost ready to write it off as yet another ball of fluff, and that seriousness begins to take its grip on you... the sensation being strange and... welcome!
It is very easy to recommend this film. It covers wide territory in its 110 minutes, and it keeps you interested, entertained... and thinking along the way. That in itself is an accomplishment.
Good performances abound. Tom Wilkinson shines as theater director, Rupert Everett, whom I never liked before, is incredible fun to watch as King Charles II, Claire Danes shall get a few more words later on, and Billy Crudup is simply superb!
One could speak volumes about Crudup's performance. It is deep and emotional, with broad range of feelings, sufferings and joys. It is simply the kind of performance we all so long for... yet so rarely find.
Just watching his performance alone would be more than rewarding.
Claire Danes... here we have a difficult case. The actres with an obvious good ability is struggling with her cross. That cross is her apparent visual similarity with another popular star... but to make the matter worse, it is not star - it's stars.
The feeling is aery and at times almost unpleasant. In some scenes you suddenly see Scarlett Johansson, and in others - Cate Blanchett. While I love Cate, and have moderate appreciation for Scarlett, the similarities are distracting and do get in the way of enjoying her performance for what it is - a solid good acting.
Stage Beauty is an intriguing film with solid performances and great story line, good directing and interesting perspective at historic events. It is fresh like very few films are - one might consider The Music Teacher as another representative of that rare category.
Great period costume dramas, great acting... great entertainment with a dash of intelligent insight.

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Topic - "Stage Beauty" Why,... why did we have to suffer through "Shakespeare in Love" - Victor Khomenko 20:15:59 07/29/05 (5)

Re: "Stage Beauty" Why,... why did we have to suffer through "Shakespeare in Love" - jamesgarvin 09:29:59 08/01/05 (0)

I quite liked "Stage Beauty" ... - Harmonia 19:25:37 07/31/05 (0)

After posting, found Patrick's review. We agreed... surprise! (nt) - Victor Khomenko 20:19:06 07/29/05 (2)

Re: After posting, found Patrick's review. We agreed... surprise! (nt) - patrickU 10:49:00 07/31/05 (1)

You back... in one piece, I hope? (nt) - Victor Khomenko 12:38:35 07/31/05 (0)

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