A Midwinter's Tale (1995)

As an actor, I've worked with many of these characters over the years. Kenneth Branagh's screenplay truly captures the craziness of life backstage, and the formation of a new, temporary family during a production. I am so pleased it's available on DVD at long last -now more people can get to know this wonderful film. There are so many wonderful lines it would take far too much space to list them - But rest assured you'll write down a few to remember and use on your friends.Virtually the entire cast is marvelous. The late, great Richard Briers was never better. Julia Sawalha's Ophelia was totally affective. Gerard Horan's dipsomaniacal character was very moving -He really should be given larger roles. If only Jennifer Saunders had not tried that terrible American accent... Hers is the only performance in the film that doesn't ring true.

Am I the only person in the Universe who hated this grim clichefest of a movie? Full of gangrenous, decaying ham, tiresomely twee, this horror ends up celebrating the ghastliest form of luvviedom that it should be sending up. The real mystery is how come so many people liked it. Is it the case that there are a lots of Americans out there who are taken in by this poor-man's Ealing-comedy as something terribly, authentically, 'English'? Could it be that having Kenneth Branagh in it is enough? No idea why this should be - the man is a booming, ghastly luvvie who can't act and can't direct. It was billed I seem to remember as a 'gentle comedy', two of the most terrifying words in the English language. Terrible terrible terrible. No more needs to be said.

Kenneth Branagh tries hard to shift the essence of a theatricalproduction onto film, and succeeds in some parts but fails inothers. The film concerns the lives of several dysfunctional luvviesbrought together by unemployed actor Joe, played by MichaelMaloney. Producing a Christmas-time Hamlet seems a labour oflove for Harper, and the pragmatic approach to the broadening ofShakespeare brings together quite a mixed-bag of personalities.Briers and Sessions stand out as the unlikely 'bedfellows', with theemphasis on theatrical camp. Briers has the best lines, andSessions overacts with apparent glee, but several of thesupporting characters seem lightweight in comparison. There isthe usual mix of tragedy and comedy, but at times it does all ratherseem cliched. Basically, they are all good at heart, but strugglewith personal issues that somewhat sidetrack from the plot. Inplaces it is highly amusing, but some of the gags fall flat on film,better suited to the extravagance of a stage production. There is apantomime quality to the production, and the black and whitepresentation is perhaps an attempt to tone down the charactersand the unreality of the situation. All in all though, the film is aboutsacrifice and the unravelling of egos. It will certainly help brightenthe odd gloomy evening, but realistically the film lacks bite andcredibility.

I love this film. It is small, and quiet, and it is rather unexpectedly in black and white. It opens like a documentary, and then slips you right into the role of fly on the wall for the rest of the film. The ensemble is terrific and keep an eye on the facial expressions of the actors who are not actually speaking. A lot of Branagh regulars make welcome appearances. The "look" is wonderfully textured and layered, taking advantage of b/w. Ironically, I prefer many of "Joe's" interpretations of Hamlet to the same scenes in the various film versions I've seen, including Branagh's epic version. Of course, the version they perform is designed for the stage, with a mostly live audience.... My favorite aspect of this film is that it turns a production of Hamlet into a "neo-pseudo-Shakespearean comedy." The parallels between the characters in Hamlet still exist in the players in A Midwinter's Tale. They've been updated and personalized so that Joe's comment that "the play is about loss" works equally well for the film. But, just as almost everyone is dead at the end of a Shakespearean tragedy, everyone is paired up at the end of MT. Of course, as a modern work it can't just end in weddings, but happy endings abound for everyone. The cleverness of this all is that there is naughty, campy, frivolous humour which hides deep emotional pain, uncertainty, and even tragedy. Anyone who is familiar with Shakespeare's comedies will be familiar with that dark edge which contrasts the joyous romping. Then there are the requisite farcical elements to make the parallel complete. The only unresolved issues I had at the end of the film/play were "how will Molly handle the fencing scene?" and "how is it possible for Henry to be both Claudius and the Player King?" But I'm not about to gripe about these little points when everything else is tied up so neatly and well.