IMDb RATING
6.1/10
3.8K
YOUR RATING
A daughter of the powerful Duke must show her courage and inventiveness to be with the man she loves.A daughter of the powerful Duke must show her courage and inventiveness to be with the man she loves.A daughter of the powerful Duke must show her courage and inventiveness to be with the man she loves.
- Awards
- 1 win & 6 nominations
Nobuyuki Takano
- Charles
- (as Nobuyuki "Daishi" Takano)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis was the ninth and final film directed by Kenneth Branagh in which Richard Briers stars. The others are Henry V (1989), Peter's Friends (1992), Swan Song (1992), Much Ado About Nothing (1993), Frankenstein (1994), A Midwinter's Tale (1995), Hamlet (1996) and Love's Labour's Lost (2000).
- GoofsLions are not native to Japan. The lion is a carryover from the original play, which was set in a generic European country at an indeterminate time in the Middle Ages. Even that didn't make much sense, as lions have been extirpated from the main part of Europe since the 4th century AD, and from the Caucasus since the 10th century. But many Europeans, possibly including William Shakespeare, didn't know that lions weren't around anymore.
- Quotes
Touchstone: The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.
- Crazy creditsThe picture seems to end without the play's Epilogue. Then, the closing credits begin, when they are suddenly interrupted by Bryce Dallas Howard, still in character as Rosalind, who then is seen speaking the Epilogue as she begins to walk to her trailer, drinking a cup of coffee along the way. After the speech, Kenneth Branagh can be heard off-screen saying "Aaaand...cut!" After this, the closing credits resume.
- Alternate versionsThe version shown on cable television has been formatted to the aspect ratio commonly used in HDTV production (that is, anywhere from 1.78:1 to 1.85:1), while the version released to movie theatres was released in the typical CinemaScope/Panavision aspect ratio (2.39:1). It is the theatrical version which has been issued on DVD. Since the film was made using the Super 35 format, it was possible to make versions of the film in different aspect ratios.
- ConnectionsFeatured in 14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2008)
- SoundtracksUnder the Greenwood Tree
Composed by Patrick Doyle
Lyrics by William Shakespeare
Performed by Patrick Doyle and London Symphony Orchestra
Featured review
Kenneth Branagh seems to get a fair bit of stick in some places, and I'm never quite sure why. Whether it's because he picks unfashionable projects to direct or star in, or because he comes across as a theatrical English "luvvy", I don't know. But for me, his lonely (almost solitary) championing of modern big screen Shakespeare adaptations has always been cause for celebration. Time and again he has sought to make the bard's literature not only appealing and comprehensible to the audience of today, but also relevant - to show that Shakespeare has always got something to say about society and people. If nothing else, English teachers worldwide must be relieved there are alternatives to showing kids the more archaic Olivier golden oldies.
His latest adaptation, As You Like It, is no exception. For those unfamiliar with the play, it's basically a romantic comedy, with a bit of political drama thrown in for good measure. Here the action is relocated from Middle Ages France to 19th century Japan (stay with me), when the country was being opened up to the West. A small group of Western settlers have more or less set up their own private kingdom here. You can find a detailed plot synopsis elsewhere on the web I'm certain, but I'll try and summarise it anyway: Rosalind (Bryce Dallas Howard) is the daughter of Duke Senior (Brian Blessed, with long white hair), who is usurped by his own treacherous brother, Duke Frederick (Blessed again, with dark hair this time, doing the usurping in a neat wordless sequence). Senior is exiled to the forest with his followers, while Rosalind is forced to remain and keep Frederick's daughter Celia (Romola Garai) company. Frederick becomes paranoid though, and banishes Rosalind as well shortly afterwards. Celia, best friends with Rosalind, decides to accompany her; naturally, both are forced to disguise themselves, which causes complications when the one Rosalind loves, Orlando (David Oyelowo), declares his undying love for her.
Bright, breezy and instantly accessible, Branagh has come up trumps. Staying behind the camera this time out, the cast is led by Bryce Dallas Howard, in a performance that will surely (if there is any justice in the world) attract awards attention. The part of Rosalind is one of the most popular and sought after female roles in all of Shakespeare. She is sweet and kind, but not simpering - she's quite decisive too. She is the dynamic behind the play's actions, and Howard seizes the role with everything she's got. The supporting cast are uniformly excellent too - the legend that is Brian Blessed is always great value, and he does well here in his dual role, particularly the evil Frederick. David Oyelowo is also excellent, while Alfred Molina is very funny in the comic relief role of Touchstone, the court fool. Look out too for Patrick Doyle, the film composer who provides the score here but also performs on screen in the singing role of Amiens.
Obviously the unique spin on this adaptation is the setting. The play is mostly set in the forest of Arden, so nature is a prominent theme throughout. Branagh highlights this by moving the action to pre-20th century Japan, where beauty and peace can be readily found in nature. The film is gorgeous to look at, not only in the forest settings, but also in the 'court' during the first act's coup d'etat - the sets and costumes look brilliant.
I won't try and argue that this is going to be the best film of 2007, because I'm sure that would be nonsense. The film has faults, although some of these might be attributed to the source material (with which I'm not familiar) - one or two characters seem to disappear halfway through, while Duke Frederick's fate is a cop-out even by Shakespeare's standards. But the important thing is that Branagh has made the play very easy to follow, very humorous and also given it a contemporary edge, as well as making an entertaining film in its own right. And for that, he surely deserves a cheer at least.
I urge anyone to seek the film out, whether you're interested in Shakespeare or not, because it is simply great fun. Here's hoping Mr Branagh continues to get his films funded and made.
His latest adaptation, As You Like It, is no exception. For those unfamiliar with the play, it's basically a romantic comedy, with a bit of political drama thrown in for good measure. Here the action is relocated from Middle Ages France to 19th century Japan (stay with me), when the country was being opened up to the West. A small group of Western settlers have more or less set up their own private kingdom here. You can find a detailed plot synopsis elsewhere on the web I'm certain, but I'll try and summarise it anyway: Rosalind (Bryce Dallas Howard) is the daughter of Duke Senior (Brian Blessed, with long white hair), who is usurped by his own treacherous brother, Duke Frederick (Blessed again, with dark hair this time, doing the usurping in a neat wordless sequence). Senior is exiled to the forest with his followers, while Rosalind is forced to remain and keep Frederick's daughter Celia (Romola Garai) company. Frederick becomes paranoid though, and banishes Rosalind as well shortly afterwards. Celia, best friends with Rosalind, decides to accompany her; naturally, both are forced to disguise themselves, which causes complications when the one Rosalind loves, Orlando (David Oyelowo), declares his undying love for her.
Bright, breezy and instantly accessible, Branagh has come up trumps. Staying behind the camera this time out, the cast is led by Bryce Dallas Howard, in a performance that will surely (if there is any justice in the world) attract awards attention. The part of Rosalind is one of the most popular and sought after female roles in all of Shakespeare. She is sweet and kind, but not simpering - she's quite decisive too. She is the dynamic behind the play's actions, and Howard seizes the role with everything she's got. The supporting cast are uniformly excellent too - the legend that is Brian Blessed is always great value, and he does well here in his dual role, particularly the evil Frederick. David Oyelowo is also excellent, while Alfred Molina is very funny in the comic relief role of Touchstone, the court fool. Look out too for Patrick Doyle, the film composer who provides the score here but also performs on screen in the singing role of Amiens.
Obviously the unique spin on this adaptation is the setting. The play is mostly set in the forest of Arden, so nature is a prominent theme throughout. Branagh highlights this by moving the action to pre-20th century Japan, where beauty and peace can be readily found in nature. The film is gorgeous to look at, not only in the forest settings, but also in the 'court' during the first act's coup d'etat - the sets and costumes look brilliant.
I won't try and argue that this is going to be the best film of 2007, because I'm sure that would be nonsense. The film has faults, although some of these might be attributed to the source material (with which I'm not familiar) - one or two characters seem to disappear halfway through, while Duke Frederick's fate is a cop-out even by Shakespeare's standards. But the important thing is that Branagh has made the play very easy to follow, very humorous and also given it a contemporary edge, as well as making an entertaining film in its own right. And for that, he surely deserves a cheer at least.
I urge anyone to seek the film out, whether you're interested in Shakespeare or not, because it is simply great fun. Here's hoping Mr Branagh continues to get his films funded and made.
- Cinemasitter
- Jul 10, 2007
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Nasıl Hoşunuza Giderse
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross worldwide
- $563,162
- Runtime2 hours 7 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
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