Twelfth Night, or What You Will (2003) (TV)

Director:

Tim Supple

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play)
Andrew Bannerman (teleplay) ...

Release Date:

5 May 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy | Romance

Plot:

Multicultural version of the Shakespearean tale Twelth Night, Made in modern day society featuring Anglo-Indian cast. |

Plot Keywords:

William Shakespeare | Modern Day | Based On Play

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Parminder Nagra	...	Viola
Ronny Jhutti	...	Sebastian
Chiwetel Ejiofor	...	Orsino
Burt Caesar	...	Valentine
Andrew Kazamia	...	Antonio
Claire Price	...	Olivia
Vic Tablian	...	Captain
Maureen Beattie	...	Maria
David Troughton	...	Toby Belch
Richard Bremner	...	Andrew Aguecheek
Ewart James Walters	...	Priest
Zubin Varla	...	Feste
Vincenzo Nicoli	...	Fabian
Michael Maloney	...	Malvolio
Faz Singhateh	...	Olivia's servant

Runtime:

UK:125 min (including commercials)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Projector Productions

Movie Connections:

Version of Twelfth Night (1974) (TV)

Interesting, melancholic approach to well-known play

First, the acting in this production is excellent, with each actor finding new aspects of the characters in ways you wouldn't have thought of before. Second, the staging is novel and invigorating without being coy and silly in the way some modernized stagings of Shakespeare can be. The multi-ethnic casting adds another dimension of tension and sensuality to the story. If you are familiar with this play, what is intriguing is how this production renders all the lines faithfully, but the text becomes a melancholic, philosophical reflection on life and love--very sweet and moving without being cute. However, if you are watching this instead of reading Cliff Notes, yes, you'll probably have trouble writing your term paper. You will have to pay attention as much as you'd have to pay to actually reading the play. The only real criticism I'd make is that some attempts to be arty with the camera (and editing) don't always succeed.