Great cast, lavish Italian locations and a fantastic script (hey, old Will knew how to churn out the words) add up to nothing special in Michael Hoffman's lacklustre adaptation of Shakespeare's comedy.
The tale of squabbling young lovers, mischievous fairies and clodhopping mechanicals lacks spark, largely because Michelle Pfeiffer (Titania), Rupert Everett (Oberon), Calista Flockhart (Helena) and Christian Bale (Demetrius) all treat the material with dainty-dainty reverence. Only Kevin Kline and Stanley Tucci (as, respectively, Bottom and Puck) grab the play by the scruff and shake out something special. Kline gives gobby merchant Bottom a certain vulnerability while Tucci makes Puck into a nightmarishly dangerous goblin, barely held in check by Oberon's orders.
DVD Extras:
None.
