A Midsummer Night's Dream

I came across this movie one rainy afternoon on TV. Jimmy Cagney doing Shakespeare? Surely not! My expectations were, frankly, low. We English are a bit funny about Shakespeare, as you can imagine, and the thought of the dirty rat as one of the bard's greatest comic creations was worrying, to say the least. The whole film is, however, magical. I laughed out loud at the wall joke, even though I knew what was coming, and Roony's Puck was, as another contributor says, probably his best performance. Bottom's realisation that he is now the proud possessor of an ass's head is quite affecting. It's Titania's fairies, though, that make this such a wonderful experience. I have seen this a couple of times since that rainy afternoon, and am always convinced that it will not live up to my expectations. It always does, though. The sheer beauty of the scene where the fairies awake is, as we say over here, gob-smacking. I am sure that this could never be done with such picturesque quality in colour. I had this on tape for a long time, and then I lent it to some eejit who erased it. I scan the listings every week to see if it's on TV, and when it is I shall make sure that it never leaves my possession.

source: A Midsummer Night's Dream

A Midsummer Night's Dream

A very lush and dreamy screen adaption of Shakespeare's play. The sets are amazing - the costumes are beautiful! Very good! Worth the time to watch if you enjoy plays on film and beautiful fantasies. 8/10

The movie is dated, true. In fact, seeing 30's Hollywood's version of Shakespearian England's version of Athenian costuming is a delight in itself. But the actors in this rendition are just amazing. Not only is the cast impressive (Cagney, Brown, Rooney, D'Havilland, Powell), but they are doing the roles with the right mixture of buffoonery and dedication to Shakespeare's love of high and low comedy together. The casting of Cagney as Bottom was brilliant, his mixture of swagger and obliviousness is perfect, especially when played off of the great Joe E. Brown, who's rubber faced quiet performance is uproarious. Young Mickey Rooney is a wonderful puck, light and athletic, it may be his finest work. The special effects manage to give off the feeling of faerie, without overpowering what is going on. And the weaving of the two stories together works as well as might be hoped for. I consider this to be the classic definitive Midsummer's Night Dream films. No other can ever measure up.

Though another commentator disagrees, if Rooney is not the greatest Puck you've ever seen, then tell me who is. With all respect to a talented actor, the sad part is that he played his greatest role when he was, what, 14? The greatest Shakespeare movie of all time, in my opinion. The dazzling cinematography for its age. The fact that they got the mostly American actors to speak the lines properly. That inspired scene with a fairy jazz band. The special "star spangled" effect. The criticism that scenes are overly long is related to a more modern perception of how long a scene should be, and alas, Shakespeare is mostly unmercifully cut (look at Olivier's last "King Lear"--Branaghs "Hamlet" would be an exception). Shakespeare just wrote long scenes. You woulnd't have Juliet on the balcony just say "I love you, Romeo," and disappear.

Max Reinhardt's theatre production, together with William Dieterle's directorial flair, brings Shakespeare to Hollywood. The ideas and effects within this vision are brilliant, although the detail has undoubtedly diminished with the wear and tear of several decades. Best in the actors are Mickey Rooney as Puck, and Joe E Brown as Flute. James Cagney is Bottom, Anita Louise is Titania, Victor Jory is Oberon, Olivia de Havilland and Dick Powell are amongst the lovers. All are ok but nothing special. The little changeling is Kenneth Anger, who would later be vitriolic in his book 'Hollywood Babylon'. Perhaps the best thing about this film is how it looks. It truly is magical, and you get the sense of fairies and sprites causing mischief and confusion deep in the woods. I have the feeling it would look superb in colour.