A new Kenneth Branagh film you haven't heard of? With good reason. Unless you happen to be a) in Hollywood prostituting your talent but would rather be in theatre (Shakespearean, of course) or b) in theatre, yourself (that includes students), you are likely to be prodigiously bored by this endlessly self-referential ode to life on the boards. Branagh wrote and directed this homage, populated with stereotypical characters (the blowhard, the aging drag queen, the devoted struggling leading man/director [read: Branagh, self-idealized], etc.), and a tired workhorse of a plot (will a ragtag band of actors be able to successfully mount a version of Hamlet to open on Christmas Eve?) The usual adversities are introduced and overcome: financial hardship, cast bickering, matters of the heart (no...wait...these are actors; matters of the ego). Ho hum. Not a necessary purchase. (R. Pitman)
A Midwinter's Tale
(Columbia TriStar, 98 min., R) Vol. 11, Issue 6
A Midwinter's Tale
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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