Stage director Trevor Nunn hasn't exploited it in his film of the chaotic Bard farce, which delivers only fitfully on goodwill the play automatically beckons.
Twelfth Night (1996)
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Reviews Counted:30
Fresh:21
Rotten:9
Average Rating:6.8/10
Consensus: Director Trevor Nunn makes some questionable choices, but his stellar cast -- which includes Helena Bonham-Carter, Ben Kingsley, and Nigel Hawthorne -- more than rises to the material.
Runtime: 2 hrs 45 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: Trevor Nunn's version of William Shakespeare's classic comedy revolves around Viola, a young woman who disguises herself as a man to work as a page in the court of Count Orsino. Orsino is... Trevor Nunn's version of William Shakespeare's classic comedy revolves around Viola, a young woman who disguises herself as a man to work as a page in the court of Count Orsino. Orsino is hopelessly in love with a woman named Olivia, and soon Viola finds herself hopelessly in love with Orsino. But Orsino thinks she's a man, and her predicament worsens when she realizes that Olivia has fallen in love with her. Nunn's film sets the play in the 19th Century and brings out both the ebullient and the melancholy aspects of Shakespeare's story. [More]
Starring: Helena Bonham-Carter, Ben Kingsley, Nigel Hawthorne, Richard E. Grant
Starring: Helena Bonham-Carter, Ben Kingsley, Nigel Hawthorne, Richard E. Grant, Imogen Stubbs, Mel Smith, Imelda Staunton, Steven Mackintosh, Toby Stephens
Director: Trevor Nunn
Director: Trevor Nunn
Screenwriter: Trevor Nunn
Producer: Stephen Evans, David Parfitt
Composer: Shaun Davey
Reviews for Twelfth Night
Twelfth Night is blessed with a first rate cast, all of whom have bought into Nunn’s vision.
British director Nunn doesn’t always take advantage of the play’s comic possibilities. But he creates absorbing, original moments -- in the unlikeliest of places.
Shakespeare aficionados will probably be pleased that so much of the written word has made it to the screen, but the two-plus hour running length is a bit burdensome.
Nunn has done a very good job of keeping the humor and vitality of Shakespeare intact...
This is the film to take a Shakespeare fan to see so he will understand why so many people do not care for Shakespeare.
An innovative and imaginatively rendered version of Shakespeare's funniest play.
The autumn chill suffusing this film is right in line with the play's constant song of death and loss.
Bonham Carter, who has grown wonderfully as an actress, walks the thin line between love and comedy...
Twelfth Night may be uneven, but is still largely appealing, thanks to the talented cast and the unique design of the film.
The adaptation of the text is quite literal, but the passion and the chemistry is not up to par.
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