Rating: 
Summary: DVD Comments, For a Change....
Review: If you want to know what I think of the film, I believe it was one of the best films of 1998. I won't go any further. Instead, I'll concentrate on the qualities of the disc itself, since that's undoubtedly what you've scrolled down the screen to read in the first place, rather than people's pitious cries of miscomprehension or impoverished songs of praise.The disc is wonderful. The quality of the transfer is near reference. This is Disney's first ever 16x9 transfer, and the down-conversion for my 4x3 screen was luminous. Not a distortion or artifact to be found. (In an aside, it's worth noting that Disney's 2-disc SE of A Bug's Life coming in late 1999 will be 16x9 enhanced as well, which the initial release was not.) The audio is also fine, though the film's nature obviously precludes any public display for the sake of a few "Ahhs" and "Oohs". Stick to Armageddon for that. Now the downside. Aside from the trailer and a few historical notes, the disc has little to offer in the supplemental department. Which is even more aggravating since the rest of the world is receiving a special edition disc with director's commentary and deleted scenes (although in the rest of the world the disc is distributed by Universal, not Disney). The special edition will be hitting region 1 sometime either late this year or early next year (that way Disney can milk you for the same money twice). Those of you who love the movie and want to own it immediately will be pleased with this disc. Those of you on the borderline, however, may wish to wait for next year's special edition.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth all the praise
Review: All right, it is a good movie but it is by no means great. It takes away from Shakespeare's creativity instead of adding to it. Christopher Marlowe even outlines the play's plot for him - making it more his creative genius than Shakespeare's. While it is interesting to see an idea into where the story came from I found it to be trying too hard in many parts. All in all it is worth seeing, but far from the Best Picture award it received.
Rating:
Summary: Worth every nickel!
Review: I loved the movie in the theater and am now so glad to have the DVD. Shakespeare is made interesting, funny, poignant in this film. Joseph Fiennes was superb and should also have been nominated for an Academy Award for his role.
Rating:
Summary: Best romantic comedy I've ever seen
Review: Truth be told, Shakespeare in Love is not nearly as substantial as its rich style would have you believe. The romance between Will and Viola doesn't seem to be much about romance; they aren't soulmates, but they're great bedmates. You'd think our beloved William Shakespeare would be less shallow!
On the other hand, Romeo and Juliet itself is a story more about passion and lust than true, romantic love. This parallel fuels the moods and unpredictability of the entire film, as it does the brilliant play-within-a-play structure.
And like a good Elizabethan era play, you got all mixes of low-brow and high-brow for all audiences. Great costumes, witty dialogue, great plot twists, fight scenes, some brooding drama, reverence for the Queen, reverence for the common man, and biting irreverence for everybody else. And plenty comedy. Verbal comedy. Physical comedy. Situational comedy.
Add up all these things and it's very hard not to swoon. The winner here is the screenwriters who have succeeded in playing homage to the Elizabethan literature while playing it (and our time) for laughs by making a play that might have belonged in it. Couple it with a classic Hollywood production (itself a continuation of that era's penchant for maximal thrills), and you have Shakespeare In Love, the best romantic comedy I've ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: What? 5 stars? Are you guys nuts?
Review: After hearing of the awards heaped upon this film, I expected great things. How disappointed I was! With a silly plot and over-acting (best actress? Something is strange is going on in Hollywood), this picture is not worth the money or the time.
Rating: 
Summary: awful script, mostly bad acting
Review: The customer reviewer from Winston-Salem who posted comments on 8-18-99 expressed my views perfectly. Actaully, it was so terrible I couldn't stand it and turned it off after about 20 minutes. In its favor I can only think to say that at least Paltrow is graceful and attractive; her acting wasn't bad but couldn't overcome the absolutely awful awful script; Dench was inoffensive and may have lent relief from the misery later in the film if she had been featured more and if I had been able to bring myself to watch. Why hasn't anyone commented on how ill Fiennes looked (like a walking corpse)? It struck me as a 90s version of a bad 50s historical adaptation (I know this wasn't an adaptation)...Tony Curtis et al. If you like anachronistic, dumbed-down, almost-lowest-common denominator historical comedy, you'll like this....I prefer Monte Python: at least they have honest pretensions.
Rating:
Summary: Language
Review: 'Shakespeare in Love' was a wonderfully, enjoyable movie. Gweneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes are excellent as lovers out of step with the confines of their world. The most enjoyable part of the movie were the supporting characters however. Paltrow's nurse, the owner of Wil's theatre and Judith Dench's Queen Elizabeth were particularly outstanding. I was struck with how well the actors carried off the Elizabethan language. Words that are sometimes difficult to follow when reading were carried off with such ease in expression. I found myself thinking about the movie days after I saw it....and wanted to watch it again and again.
Rating:
Summary: An Amazing Expierence
Review: A must see movie
Rating:
Summary: The best movie I've seen in years!!!
Review: Do you like action? - it's here! Do you like romance? - it's here! Ilicit sex? - Yep! Comedy? - Believe it! This film was satisfying on every level. Repeat viewings do not lessen the pleasure, but increase the understanding. You don't have to know your Shakespeare to thouroughly enjoy this film, but it helps.
Rating:
Summary: A FEAST OF SIGHT AND SOUND!
Review: Joseph Fiennes was robbed! The Motion Picture Academy had him in the palms of their hands and they let him slip through. At the very least, he should have received an Academy Award nomination for his role in "Shakespeare In Love". Gwynneth (as Viola) played well off of his character and he did the same with her. Wonderfully paced humor, romance, sadness and wit. If you enjoy the thinking man's romance/comedy, this one is for you! Looking forward to viewing it again and again, and picking out new things I missed from the times before!
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