A Shakespeare's Birthday Tag!

'Ello to all of the World!

As today is the supposed birthday of William Shakespeare, "The Bard", PioneerGirl over at The Tearoom created this tag and nominated me! This tag reminds me of one I did for a Shakespeare Blog Party, but it has been awhile so I have new answers.

The Rules:
1. Answer truthfully, "Thou canst not then be false to any man." {I just put that as a rule because I wanted to use the quote. hee hee!}
2. Tag at least three people and let them know that they've been tagged. "For he today who does this tag with me shall be my brother..."
3.Link back to the person who tagged you and post a link to your post in the comments of this post, because I want to read your answers and "There never was yet philosopher who could endure the toothache patiently."

The Questions:
1. What was the first exposure you ever had to Shakespeare?

An outdoor play when I was very young. The Merry Wives of Windsor, perhaps? But it was a while before I comprehended who Shakespeare was and that all these plays were written by him.

2. How many of Shakespeare's plays have you seen?

Oh gosh.
Performed live (ones with an asterisk I've seen more than once):
A Comedy of Errors
Hamlet
Julies Caeser
Macbeth
The Merchant of Venice
The Merry Wives of Windsor* (Don't remember the first time really)
Romeo and Juliet*
Twelfth Night*
Two Gentlemen of Verona

Films:
As You Like It (2006)
Hamlet (1996)
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
Much Ado About Nothing (1993)
I have Macbeth (1979) currently checked out from the library but haven't watched it yet.

3. What is your favorite Shakespeare play?

Comedy: Much Ado About Nothing!
Tragedy: Macbeth.

4. What is your favorite non-Shakespearean play? {musicals are permissible}

Into the Woods! I've seen a film version, but the one time I saw it as a live play it was awesome!

5. What is an adaptation of one of Shakespeare's plays that you like? Why?

I have seen multiple spinoffs such as 10 Things I Hate About You, The Lion King, West Side Story, etc., but Gnomeo and Juliet (2011) is defintely my favorite! It is so hilarious and incorporates the story so well while at the same time making fun of some things.

6. Who is your favorite Shakespearean character?

I'm going with Don Pedro [Much Ado About Nothing] again! He's the best. I mean, I love Beatrice, Benedick, and Dogberry from the same play, too. (By the way, you should all read Megan's post on this play HERE. It is so good!)

7. What is your favorite Shakespeare quote?

"Fair is foul, and foul is fair." ~ Macbeth

I'm chosing this one to be original. How's it working?

8. If you were in a Shakespearean production which play would you want to be in and which character?

My family and I were just talking about this today! Thinking about it I would want to be all of the villains because they are so complex! Lady Macbeth, anyone? Or for some reason I want to play Mercutio [Romeo and Juliet] and nail being absolutely annoying. Or Malvolio [Twelfth Night].

9. Have you read any of Shakespeare's sonnets, and if so, which is your favorite?

I have never purposefully read one, I've just had other people read them to me, so no.

10. Have you ever written/tried to write a play?

*laughs nerviously* In my mind, yes...

11. Cast one of the big five {Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Richard III, or Much Ado About Nothing} with modern actors from either the stage or the screen.
{you only have to do main characters.}

This is the hardest question! Don't know anythin about Richard III. Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet have been done a lot (not to say that it can't be done again). The movie Much Ado About Nothing is perfect so I couldn't do better. Well, by matter of deduction I have decided on Macbeth!

It's been a couple of years since I saw it, so my mind is not fresh about who the main characters are. Let's see how this goes (I don't think that my ages match up at all):

Macbeth: Oscar Isasc

Lady Macbeth: Keira Knightley

Macduff (I might be confusing him with Duncan): Domhnall Gleeson

Malcolm: Timothee Chamelet (Do I like him as an actor? No, not really. But for some reason I picture Malcolm like this)

Is that everyone important? I think so. Let me know who else I should cast in the comments!

Also, I was thinking that I have such an original cast when I realized that: Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson are in STAR WARS together (Keira Knightley was in SW too, but the prequels, not the sequels), Domhnall Gleeson and Keira Knightley were in Anna Karenina (2012) together (I haven't seen it yet), and Oscar Isaac and Timothee Chamelet are going to be together in the upcoming Dune movie. Oh well, I tried.



I tag:
Hamlette @ Hamlette Soliloquy
Megan @ The Pen and The Cross
Ivy Miranda @ Revealed in Time


Thanks to PioneerGirl for creating this and tagging me! What do all of you think of my answers?What are your thoughts on Shakespeare? Thanks for reading!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Gnomeo and Juliet (2011)

Hello!
Today is the last day of Hamlette's We ❤ Shakespeare Blogathon (check out the Master Post HERE)!

I've had so much fun writing my other two posts, but this has been my favorite. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it! The button I chose to put here is another Romeo and Juliet retelling, but this is my favorite of all the ones that I have watched!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

Gnomeo and Juliet (2011):

Based on: Romeo and Juliet - by William Shakespeare.

"The story you are about to see has been told before...a lot. And now we are going to tell it again...but differently."

This story is about next door neighbor's garden gnomes. Like their owners they are bitter enemies. It's the blues vs. the reds! They like to show each other up by racing lawnmowers down the alley. When the blues's mower gets wrecked by a red, two blues, Gnomeo and Benny, plan for revenge. They are also very proud of their gardens. The leader of the reds is very protective of his daughter, Juliet. She spots a rare flower and decides fetch it to prove to her father that she doesn't need to be protected. Gnomeo and Juliet meet and fall for each other without knowing the other's color! As it is later pointed out, "It's doomed."

Genre: Romance, Comedy.

Length: approx. 84 minutes.

Costumes: 7, there is one gnome that goes around without really any clothes on, and we see people's underthings, but besides that they are good.

Script: 9, no bad words that I recall!
"How romantically tragic."

Crew:

Directed by: Kelly Asbury

"'Okay, I'm thinking of a movie that is one word and it sounds like "spider".'

'Is it "Spiderman"?'

'You're good!'"

Written by: Kelly Asbury, Mark Burton, Andy Riley, Kevin Cecil, Emily Cook, Kathy Greenberg, Steve Hamilton Shaw, John R. Smith, & Rob Sprackling.
Starring the voices of:
James McAvoy as Gnomeo.

Emily Blunt as Juliet. 
"'When will you realize that you are delicate?'
'I'm not delicate!'"
Matt Lucas as Benny.

Jason Statham as Tybalt.
Ashley Jensen as Nanette. (She is on the red side, but she is actually green because she is a frog.)
Jim Cummings as Featherstone.
Michael Caine as Lord Redbrick.

Maggie Smith as Lady Bluebury.
Patrick Stewart as William Shakespeare.
Stephen Merchant as Paris.

Ozzy Osbourne as Fawn.
Kelly Asbury as Red Goon Gnomes.
Dolly Parton as Dolly Gnome.
James Daniel Wilson as Fishing Gnome.

Animation: 9, as you well know, I'm not a fan of digital animation, but I love this!!

Music: 10, they did such a good job with this! All of the music is based on Elton John's and for "Your Song" they changed the words to make it for garden gnomes. But, my favorite part is when the character Benny is hitting buttons. Each button he hits makes a noise and he plays out the opening for "Benny and the Jets"!

Music by: James Newton Howard, Chris Bacon, and Elton John.

Quotes: 9, "Oh, Gnomeo, Gnomeo, are we really doomed to never see each other again? Why must you wear a blue hat? Why couldn't it be red like my father? Or green like a leprechaun? Or purple, like...uh...like...um...like some weird guy?"

Sorry, I had to put this picture here because the face she makes when she says "weird guy" always cracks me up.

Notes: This movie is so great! It has so many Shakespeare references! They live on Verona Drive, their owners names are Miss Montague and Mr. Capulet, we see references/Easter eggs to the plays As You Like It, The Tempest, Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew, and I think there is one for King Lear, but I'm not familiar with that one so I'm not positive. They even changed some of the lines in Romeo and Juliet to make them fit!
"I don't know, a weed by any other name is still a weed."

Storyline: 8, there is some crude humor, suggestive things, separation, dealing with revenge (though it shows that it is bad), and the gnomes fight a bit.
"Other people's hate destroyed my love, and I could do nothing about it."

Overall Score: 8.5!

Bonus thoughts: I do know some people who don't like it, but I do, and they did a really good job making this!


A huge thank you to Hamlette for hosting this! I had a great time. Once again, go check out the other posts HERE!

Thanks for reading! Have you seen this movie? What do you think?

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Strange Magic (2015)

Hello!
It is now on the sixth day of Hamlette's We ❤ Shakespeare Week! Go check out all the fun at the Master Post HERE.

This is my second of the three posts I am doing. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to post three days in a row! If I had followed my planning this would have been up days ago, but things happened. Anyway, here it is! But, why this one for a Shakespeare Blog Party? Keep reading to see!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

Strange Magic (2015):

Inspired by: A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Roland, a fairy looking for power, convinces Sunny to go into the Dark Forrest to find Sugar Plum fairy and ask for a love potion. Roland plans to use it on Marianne to be then in the path of the throne, but Sunny truly loves Dawn, Marianne's sister, but she doesn't love him. Things happen and Dawn ends up in the Bog King's dungeon, while being in love with the Bog King! Marianne goes to rescue her sister.

Genre: Fantasy, Romance.

Length: approx. 99 minutes.

Costumes: 7, there are some creatures not wearing anything, and nothing is wonderful, but it's okay.

Script: 8.

Crew:

Directed by: Gary Rydstrom
Written by: David Berenbaum, Irene Mecchi, Gary Rydstrom, & George Lucas.
Starring:
Alan Cumming as Bog King.
Evan Rachel Wood as Marianne.

Meredith Anne Bull as Dawn.

Elijah Kelley as Sunny.

Sam Palladio as Roland.
Maya Rudolph as Griselda.

Kristin Chenoweth as Sugar Plum Fairy
Alfred Molina as The Fairy King.
Bob Einstein as Stuff.
Peter Stormare as Thang.
Kevin Michael Richardson as Brutus.
Llou Johnson as Pare.

Animation: 8, there are some things that are a little gruesome, and I'm not a big fan of digital animation, but it is okay.

Music: 8, so there is a lot of popular music in this movie. "Can't Help Falling in Love", "Stronger", and, of course, "Strange Magic".

Music by: Marius de Vries

Quotes: 8.

Storyline: 7, there is kissing, crude humor, some suggestive things, a character that seemed to be a guy the whole time turns out to be a girl. I think that's it!

Overall Score: 7.5!

Spoiler Alert! From now on there are spoilers for Strange Magic and A Midsummer Night's Dream.

For the blogathon:

So, why am I reviewing this during this week celebrating Shakespeare? It is mostly a Beauty and the Beast retelling, but it is also inspired by A Midsummer Night's Dream. How so? Well, here are some similarities.:
1. Obviously, the love potion!
2. The fairies! AMND has the queen of the fairies, Titania, and Marianne is in the line of the throne.
3. The Imp vs. Puck.

(Why doesn't it have a name? He's a pretty big character).
The mischievous one! Puck, for the fun of it, makes Titania fall in love with Bottom (when he doesn't have his usual head). The Imp has a fun time of dusting anyone he sees with the love potion and the whole forest is in turmoil.
4. The father character wants his daughter to marry a certain person, but she refuses.
5. There are references to other Shakespearean characters. There is Sugar Plum, and Brutus.

What do you think? Is it close enough?

Thanks for reading! Make sure to swing on over to Hamlette's Soliloquy for all the fun!

MovieCritic

We ❤ Shakespeare Week ~ The Tag!

Hello!
Today is the second day of Hamlette's week long party celebrating The Bard! I am not the #1 fan, but I do enjoy his plays a lot! Go check out the Master Post HERE.

The Questions:
1. When and how did you first encounter Shakespeare's plays?

I seriously can't tell you. I have been watching his plays for as long as I can remember. I think it started with The Merry Wives of Windsor, but the first one I remember is either The Merchant of Venice or Two Gentlemen of Verona (I know I've seen both of them, I just always get those two mixed up).


2.  What are your favorite Shakespeare plays?  (Go ahead and list as many as you like!)

Know that I am not familiar with all of them, only a few! This is not in any particular order.:

~Macbeth (I'm still figuring it out, but it is pretty powerful!).
~A Comedy of Errors (Classic!).
~A Midsummer Night's Dream.
~Much Ado About Nothing.
~Twelfth Night.

Source

3.  Who are some of your favorite characters in his plays?  (Again, list however many suits you.)

Again, no particular order:
~Don Pedro (Much Ado About Nothing).

~Pretty much every other character in Much Ado About Nothing.
~Puck (A Midsummer Night's Dream) [He is hilarious!].
~Viola (Twelfth Night).
~Pretty much every other character in Twelfth Night.
~Horatio (Hamlet)


4.  Have you seen any of his plays performed, whether live or on film?

*cracks knuckles* Mwahaha, I've seen a lot.

I have seen performed live (note, a lot of these were a long time ago):
The Merry Wives of Windsor (Though I remember nothing about it).
Two Gentlemen of Verona.
The Merchant of Venice.
Julius Caesar.
Twelfth Night (I've seen it twice!).
Romeo and Juliet.
A Comedy of Errors.
Hamlet.
Macbeth.

I have seen films of:
Hamlet (1996).
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999).
Much Ado About Nothing (1993). The best!!!!!

This is the best part of the whole movie.

And part of Romeo and Juliet (2013).
And many other spin-offs.


5.  Have you read any of his plays?

I have read one: Twelfth Night. I was really disappointed because there was this part in the first play I saw that I really loved, but wasn't in the actual play or the second play I saw! It must have been from something else, but I don't know what.

Oh, and I've read the first act of Macbeth while I was waiting one time.

I know, I know, I need to read more!


6.  Share a dream cast for one of your favorite Shakespeare plays.

This kind of question is always so hard! Twelfth Night with Kenneth Branagh as Sir Toby Belch, though, he is probably too old. I have no clue for anyone else.

7.  What draws you to Shakespeare's plays?  (Language, themes, characters, the fact that they're famous, whatever!)

I have always loved being able to watch a live play, so being able to do that has been really great! The tragedies are really powerful, and the comedies (though they sometimes have the same elements) always make me laugh! It is amazing that they have lasted this long and still have such impact!

8.  Do you have any cool Shakespeare-themed merchandise, like t-shirts or mugs or bookmarks, etc?  Share pictures if you can!

I actually don't! Both my sisters do.


9.  How do you go about understanding his language?  (Do you prefer copies with translation notes, look things up online, or just read so much stuff written in Elizabethan English that you totally know what everyone's saying?)

With watching the plays you can sort of figure it out because it is in context, but reading was harder. I usually ask my mom or sister (aka the English language specialist) if I can't figure it out.

10.  What are some of your favorite lines from Shakespeare?  (Maybe limit yourself to like ten, okay?)

"If music be the food of love, play on, give me excess of it;

that surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die." 

~ Opening line of Twelfth Night.

"And though she be but little, she be fierce." 

~ A Midsummer Night's Dream.

"For there never was yet philosopher that could endure the toothache patiently." 

~ Much Ado About Nothing.

"If we shadows have offended,

think but this and all is mended--

That you have but slumb'red here

While these visions did appear.

And this weak and idle theme,

no more yielding but a dream,

Gentles, do not reprehend." 

~ A Midsummer Night's Dream.

"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,

Than are dreamt of in your philosophy." 

~ Hamlet.

"Who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscover’d country from whose bourn

No traveller returns, puzzles the will

And makes us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;" 

~ Hamlet.

Okay, story time. After I saw the play, I was able to go to a workshop and it was all about the famous soliloquy. I had never actually given much thought to it and was surprised to learn what it was really about! They broke it down and this part has been my favorite part since. There is a reason that it is so famous, Shakespeare had a way with words!

"Can honour set-to a leg? No.

Or an arm? No.

Or take away the grief of a wound? No.

Honour hath no skill in surgery, then? No.

What is honour? A word.

What is that word honour? Air." 

~ King Henry IV. 

I haven't seen or read this, but the quote is fabulous!

"He hath a heart as sound as a bell and his tongue is the clapper; for what his heart thinks his tongue speaks."

 ~ Much Ado About Nothing.

"If I were as tedious as a king, I could find it in my heart to bestow it all upon your worship."
~Much Ado About Nothing.

"We came into the world like brother and brother,

And now let's go hand in hand, not one before another." 

~ A Comedy of Errors.

My sister and I say this almost everyday.

There you have it! Make sure to go check out the other posts HERE.

Hamlette is also hosting a giveaway! There is some pretty neat stuff there (dibs, it's all mine. [Just joking!]), so go check that out HERE.

And just head on over to Hamlette's Soliloquy for games and all other kinds of cool stuff!

Sorry that this post is kind of boring image wise! I couldn't find any images that I liked. Thanks for reading!

MovieCritic