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Shakespeare in Love
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Shakespeare in Love (1998) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   71,683 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 9% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
John Madden
Writers (WGA):
Marc Norman (written by) and
Tom Stoppard (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Shakespeare in Love on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
8 January 1999 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Drama | Romance more
Tagline:
...A Comedy About the Greatest Love Story Almost Never Told... more
Plot:
A young Shakespeare, out of ideas and short of cash, meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Won 7 Oscars. Another 43 wins & 60 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(169 articles)
Shelved! Why ‘Killshot’ Deserved Better
 (From FilmSchoolRejects. 15 May 2009, 9:57 AM, PDT)

Paltrow Picks Coldplay For Party Playlist
 (From WENN. 14 May 2009, 9:15 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
An excellent film in all aspects. more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated R for sexuality.
Runtime:
123 min
Country:
USA | UK
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Certification:
Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Iceland:L | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:14 | USA:R (certificate #36421) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Denmark:7 | Finland:K-12/9 | France:U | Germany:6 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Hungary:14 | Ireland:15 | Italy:T | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | South Korea:18 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Judi Dench won an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for her role as Queen Elizabeth, although she is on-screen for only about eight minutes in four scenes. This is the second-shortest performance to win a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. The shortest ever performance was by Beatrice Straight in Network (1976), as she appeared in only six minutes of the film. more
Goofs:
Audio/visual unsynchronized: The audio for the choirboys in Marlowe's funeral is a line ahead of the visual. more
Quotes:
William Shakespeare: Can you love a fool?
Viola De Lesseps: Can you love a player?
more
Movie Connections:
Spoofed in Monsters vs Aliens (2009) more
Soundtrack:
The Play & the Marriage more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
56 out of 69 people found the following comment useful:-
An excellent film in all aspects., 29 December 1998
Author: Jupiter87

I had high hopes for this film from the first time I saw the trailer. I am happy to say that the film lives up to the previews. Although it is an art house flick of sorts, it manages to be profound and accessible at the same time. So many art house films manage to be merely pretentious, as if aimed at those that want to believe that they are having an intellectual experience rather than those who are really open to one. This film shows that you can make a film of substance that is at the same time very entertaining.

One thing that stood out was the way they showed enough of the performance of Romeo and Juliet so that you could understand what the play is about, without making it a film of the play per se. There are many parallels between the fictional play and the events of the film, and this goes to underscore the relevance of great literature to the human condition. The actual performance of the play was acted so well that there were times when a character in the play was in a fight and I said to myself "they're really fighting, that guy really got stabbed!" So often a play within a movie is acted in a very staged manner, so this was a welcome surprise. And for anyone who is a fan of Shakespeare, it is easy to find little tidbits to reflect upon - such as the fact that Shakespeare himself was fond of the "play within a play" theme that we see in this film.

The performances are excellent throughout, including minor characters. In the midst of tragedy there is genuine comic relief, just as in Shakespeare. The historical details that surround the conjectural main plot are accurate down to the names of the actual people with whom Shakespeare crossed paths. In the end "Shakespeare in Love" causes us to feel as well as think, to think as well as to be entertained.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Shakespeare in Love (1998)
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MY FAVORITE LINE IN THE FILM. Edwardslcn
Tired of the hating towards this film skylab23
How did this beat Saving Private Ryan for the Oscar? patchdyer
Sandra Reinton cuauhtemocfulgencio
Anon? EskimoDoll
Mistake or Wessex being a jerk pepsigirl5184
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