Attention parents: this is not to be confused with "High School Musical"...There's a moment near the end of Hamlet 2 when Elizabeth Shue (in a terrific "return" to the screen) is sitting in an audience watching the stage production of "Hamlet 2". She's laughing out loud and clapping while the people around her are simply staring in baffled amusement, as if their brains are working overtime trying to pay attention to the musical while also figuring out why she's laughing so much more than them. The scenario is a pretty accurate depiction of my time in the theater watching Hamlet 2. Boisterous laughing would explode from different corners of the theater at different times, and all I could is nervously smile and wonder why I was missing so many of the jokes.
Writer/Director Andrew Fleming (Dick, Nancy Drew) infuses enough easy comedy in his story of a washed-up actor turned high school drama teacher to make Hamlet 2 a light summer flick, but it never quite reaches the level of hilarity that you could rightfully expect from its cast, which includes Steve Coogan (Tropic Thunder), Catherine Keener (Into the Wild), Amy Poehler ("SNL", Baby Mama), Shue, and Melonie Diaz (Be Kind Rewind), who seems to be challenging Ellen Page for the number of high school-age characters she can play in consecutive movies.
The most glaring problem in Hamlet 2 is that the entire weight of the comedy is on the shoulders of Coogan, and it's a load that he can't sustain on his own for 92 minutes. The supporting cast is simply there to receive his jokes (most of which are immature and inane), and none of them offer much on their own. Compare this with the rich characters in something like Waiting for Guffman (which could have produced multiple spin-offs), and you have an idea of how one-dimensional Hamlet 2 is. Moreover, its efforts at poking fun at high school drama programs, Dangerous Minds, and even Elizabeth Shue's career aren't as clever as they should be. In fact, two of the funniest jokes happen to come at the expense of the city of Tucson, AZ, simply because they are two of the jokes that we don't see coming a mile away.
If there is a highlight aside from Coogan's performance, it's the climactic performance of the musical's outrageous showstopper "Rock Me Sexy Jesus," which, while irreverent, is not as outwardly offensive as it may seem. Ironically, had we seen more of the actual stage production of "Hamlet 2", it may have made for a better movie.
I'm still on the fence about this one. There's nothing much coming this weekend so maybe I'll have a look.
ReplyDeleteIt's too bad because I like Coogan. He was kind of wasted in Tropic Thunder
Sad to hear it falls short, but I'm not surprised, either. I still have to see Tropic Thunder and several other films out there.
ReplyDeleteI have wanted to see this forever, and I cannot wait until I do.
ReplyDeleteHe's definitely not wasted here, Craig, but everybody else is. This isn't nearly as smart or funny as Tropic Thunder, but it's not a complete waste of time. How's that for a ringing endorsement.
ReplyDeleteI've just read Evan's review, which is great, and I think this could be one that some people will love while others just shrug their shoulders. It's probably best seen by those who were in their high school's drama program.
You're confirming my overall lack of caring much about this one. Gracias.
ReplyDeleteDe nada. See it for Coogan, skip it for everything else.
ReplyDeleteLike the others, I'm sorry to hear it's not all that great. Coogan is great, and this may just go to show how difficult comedy is to pull off.
ReplyDeleteAnd, an apt comparison to "Waiting for Guffman"
Yeah it's usually not a good sign when you're constantly wishing you were watching another movie instead, is it, Rick?
ReplyDeleteChristopher Guest, where have you gone...
This is one of those films where I could read a total pan and a glowing praise and agree with each of them. Daniel's pretty much spot on here - the weight is completely on Coogan's shoulders, you end up feeling like there should have been more given the cast, and the finale seems too short. I'm wondering if anyone will come out calling it the greatest comedy of all time, but so far I'm reading pieces like Dan's here and my own - slightly in favor or slightly against.
ReplyDeleteYou summed it up perfectly, Evan. For or against, it's likely to fade just as quickly as it came. No way it holds up as the real season starts in September.
ReplyDeleteCount me among the slightly in favor. Not sure if I'll bother reviewing it, but it made me laugh more consistently and left me more satisfied than Pineapple Express.
ReplyDeleteInteresting Daniel that you've compared your feelings on H2 to Foot Fist. I see exactly what you're saying, though I have to say I liked this one much better. I only wish I'd laughed as much at FF as H2.
Once again, there's no accounting for comic taste.
Well in that case I'm glad you saw it, Craig. I knew there was no point in trashing this just because it didn't leave my stomach aching from laughter. Some people will connect with it. Same goes with The Foot Fist Way, for that matter, which, as I might have mentioned, seems funnier to me in hindsight now that I've seen McBride be amazing in Pineapple Express and Tropic Thunder. I could see myself laughing more if I saw Foot Fist again. How that makes sense, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteI was probably one of the laughers in your theater. That said, I didn't truly enjoy it until the stage production at the end.
ReplyDeleteI'd much rather people laugh hysterically at Hamlet 2 than at the violent war movies that I see in the theater (and I'm not talking about Tropic Thunder).
ReplyDeleteThe end was definitely the high point here.
I was hoping you were going to say that you were Elizabeth Shue. Not in real life, just in your theatre-going experience.
ReplyDeleteHaven't seen it yet but I just KNOW I'm going to like it. Damnit, it's Coogan!
Trippy, Scott. I should commission Elizabeth Shue to write a review of her performance as Elizabeth Shue in this movie.
ReplyDeleteCoogan delivers - there's no question. You'll just have to see how much of the rest gets you going.