Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Movie review: Hamlet 2

By Alex Bentley

Hamlet 2

Dana Marschz is a failed actor-turned-high school drama teacher. Shortchanged in the talent department, Dana still harbors ambitions and passions. At work, that is; his personal life, with his dissatisfied wife Brie and their boarder Gary, leaves much to be desired. At Tucson's West Mesa High School, Dana sees himself as an inspirational teacher. But his adaptations of popular films, as performed by his top students Rand and Epiphany, are not resonating. When his latest--re-creating Erin Brockovich--is dismissed by the ninth-grade drama critic and his department is targeted for closure, Dana must reach deep into himself for creativity. After much perspiration, he conceives a sequel to Shakespeare's Hamlet--a musical-theater extravaganza that will disdain both political correctness and dramatic credibility. Rallying and rousing his class, Dana casts a wider net by recruiting transfer students like Ivonne for key roles. With rehearsals underway, objections from school officials and the community are soon raised, but Dana will not be denied his freedom of artistic expression. After all, "to thine own self be true." Dana gets unexpected support from ACLU attorney Cricket Feldstein and his favorite actress, Elisabeth Shue. Above all else, he fervently believes that his opus must be staged, and nothing can break his optimistic spirit.

Source: Cinema Source

• Showtimes and more on Hamlet 2

Unnecessary sequels and Hollywood practically go hand in hand, so it was only a matter of time before someone took on one of Shakespeare’s greatest works, right? Okay, relax, Hamlet 2 is not that movie, although don’t be surprised if someone else gets inspired by it and actually attempts such folly.

Hamlet 2 is actually the story of Dana Marschz (Steve Coogan), a failed actor who’s now teaching his “craft” to the students of fictional West Mesa High in Tucson, Arizona. When even that starts to go south thanks to budget cutbacks and an overbearing principal, Dana makes one last attempt to make something of himself, writing Hamlet 2 for his students to perform (think time travel and childhood molestation, and you’re just beginning to get the idea of the musical – yes, musical).

"Why are we in this movie, David?" "Beats me, Catherine."

The film is actually the inverse of most movies that have a ton of buildup and no payoff. Hamlet 2 doesn’t get consistently good until the very end, and even then it throws in a few perplexing moments. One could almost consider it to be a spoof of an inspiring teacher movie like Dangerous Minds (which is directly referenced more than once) as Dana’s class consists of two serious (white) drama students and a bunch of mostly Latinos who may or may not be thugs. However, the inconsistency of the film never gives the audience a hook to grab onto; sequences showing the musical coming together are interrupted by sojourns into Dana’s personal life, which are like massive stop signs halting the movie’s momentum.

A string of non sequitur extended cameos wind its way through the movie, a move that would be funnier if any of them actually made sense. Catherine Keener’s talents are absolutely wasted as Dana’s wife, Brie. Her role is almost as unnecessary as you get and could’ve been played by any no-name actress. Even more of a waste of space is David Arquette, who contributes monosyllabic lines as Dana and Brie’s roommate and could’ve just as easily been played by a monkey. Elisabeth Shue plays “herself,” supposedly now trying to make her way as a nurse after getting sick of Hollywood, a joke that doesn’t really resonate since she’s been in plenty of movies lately (someone like Jennifer Grey would’ve been much better).

"Rock me, sexy Jesus!"

The arrival of the actual musical can’t come a minute too soon, and the humor and inappropriateness it contains are jarring considering the rest of the film never reaches that level. With songs like “Rock Me, Sexy Jesus” and “Raped in the Face” (context, people, context), the segments of the musical we see are both inspired and a sign of what might have been. One last cameo by Amy Poehler as an ACLU spokeswoman brings things back to earth, though; just another example of how the film makes so little out of so much talent.

Which brings us back to Coogan – never heard of him? If so, it’s not that surprising. He’s a Brit known mostly for his TV work, although he’s been trying to make it in movies on this side of the pond for a few years now. This role follows quickly on the heels of his appearance in Tropic Thunder, and his role in that film makes much more of an impact than most of his starring role in Hamlet 2 (literally and figuratively). Not saying he doesn’t have talent, but in these two cases, less Coogan is definitely better Coogan.

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