A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM
Directed by William Dieterle and Max Reinhardt Running Time: 132 minutes Originally Released: 1935
Reviewed by E. Benjamin Kelsey
* * * (out of four)
Reviewing a movie that came out in the 30's can be a difficult task. First off, to fairly view the film, one must attempt to transport themselves back in time. If you critique the film using today's standards, most films would get zero stars. Technology has come a very long way in the past sixty years, and even acting and writing styles have changed. Keeping that in mind, I tried to the best of my ability to watch A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM objectionably, forgetting for two hours that when it was released, my GRANDparents hadn't even married yet.
MIDSUMMER is, of course, based on the William Shakespeare play by the same name. It's just one of about 17 or so versions of the play that have been done for movie or TV. This version stars, most notably, James Cagney as Bottom, the actor who winds up with a donkey head, and a young Mickey Rooney, playing the mischievous sprite Puck. It's a love story, granted a bizarre and comedic love story, focusing on four characters: Lysander (Dick Powell), Demetrius (Ross Alexander), Hermia (Olivia De Havilland), and Helena (Jean Muir). Lysander and Hermia are in love, but Demetrius also loves the beautiful Hermia. This is heartbreaking to sweet, unloved Helena, who has loved Demetrius for quite some time without the returning of such feelings.
Off in the forest dwells the fairies. Oberon (Victor Jory), king of the fairies, instructs his servant Puck to make Demetrius fall in love with Helena so that all may be well. In a case of mistaken identity, Puck actually has Lysander falling in love with Helena. Eventually he gets Demetrius to fall in love with Helena too! So here we have four characters. The men are fighting over a woman still, just a different one. Helena, who's never been the object of a man's fancy, believes that it must all be a cruel joke at her expense. And lovely Hermia simply doesn't know what the hell is going on. (Not Shakespeare's words, but mine).
Another little story is going on during all this. Puck loves to cause trouble. In something no more than a "prank", Puck turns Nick Bottom's head into that of a donkeys. Bottom is part of an acting group that are going to put on a play for the marriage of Theseus (Ian Hunter) and Hippolyta (Verree Teasdale). Then Oberon has Puck putt a spell on Titania (Anita Louise), the queen of the fairies, to have her fall in love with Bottom so he can still the Indian baby she has stolen. Confusing enough? Well, it was for me too, and I'm not completely sure if I even have all of this right, but when you're watching the film, it flows well enough that you don't have to get too concerned.
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM is actually quite good, and, not that I really know, but the effects seemed pretty good for coming from the 1930's. It is difficult a lot of times to tell what the people are saying, and it's very confusing at first, but when you get into it, it's fun. The last half an hour or so got kind of slow and boring, but the middle of the film makes it worthwhile. James Cagney is great, and Dick Powell is quite fun in a sappy way. The most annoying thing here by far is Mickey Rooney. It's hard not to cringe every time he squeals or shrivels up his face. He's almost unbearable to watch and is definitely the biggest complaint about the film.
Over sixty years old, this film might be hard to come by. I don't really know how popular a version this is. Just to make note, this film was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar in 1936, but didn't win. It did pick up two other Oscars - for film editing and cinematography. This is a recommendable film, but if you're really one for modern technology you'll probably find it unbearable. Especially Mickey Rooney!!!
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