ROSENCRANTZ & GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD
A film review by Randy Parker
Copyright 1996 Randy Parker
RATING: *** (out of ****)
(Review written in 1991)
BILL & TED MEET HAMLET just as well could have been the title of ROSENCRANTZ & GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD, Tom Stoppard's clever film adaptation of his popular play. In the original Shakespearean version of the story, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were minor characters (childhood chums of Hamlet), appearing in only a couple scenes. Stoppard's gimmick is to retell HAMLET entirely from their point of view. These two meandering medieval misfits take center stage, and their verbal banter and petty squabbles are a nonstop source of amusement.
Stoppard imaginatively weaves Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's misadventures into the general HAMLET story line by having them wander in and out of scenes lifted directly from Shakespeare. The result is an inventive mixture of old and new. Happily, Stoppard's witty script and assured direction get first rate support from the cast, especially Gary Oldman, whose droll performance as Rosencrantz is sublimely entertaining. Oldman and co-star Tim Roth have created two truly exasperating nitwits ... who also happen to be irresistibly endearing.
--- Randy Parker rparker@slip.net http://www.shoestring.org
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