I did not see this coming! Looks like it’s time for somebody to try A Midsummer Night’s Dream on the big screen again:
Interesting. Looks like they’re going with the original text, which is always a good way to start in my book.
The biggest name attached appears to be Rachel Leigh Cook (Hermia) who seems like she’s kept busy, but was really “big” back in the days of Dawson’s Creek and She’s All That. Trivia? I continually confuse “She’s All That” with “She’s The Man” and assume that it’s a Twelfth Night adaptation. I suppose Hamish Linklater (Lysander) is also a big name now, he’s had steady primetime TV work for years now (Legion, Fargo, The Crazy Ones, New Adventures of Old Christine, Ugly Betty…)
What I’m worried about is the trailer shows none of the Rude Mechanicals at all. I came away from it worrying that they’d be entirely cut. Luckily the IMDB page does list credits for all of them so they’ll definitely make some sort of appearance.
Oh! I knew this guy looked familiar! Fran Kranz (Bottom) is one of Joss Whedon’s gang, and played Claudio in Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing. That could be cool.
Anybody know more about this movie? IMDB dates it 2017, but the YouTube trailer appears to be brand new and it looks to be arriving in theatres July 13. No clue if it’ll be in wide release or not (but I really doubt it).
Is it possible to make a good movie version of Midsummer? Or is it just too ridiculous (unless you go animated)?
Looks like it premiered at the LA Film Festival in 2017. The Hollywood Report reviews it positively, but I don’t know how I feel about modern-day, LA-set Midsummer.
I’m cautiously optimistic, here. The trailer makes it seem interesting. However, I had similar hopes for Joss Whedon’s home movie version of Much Ado About Nothing.
Casey Wilder Mott, the director, seems to be pretty much an unknown. This is his second directorial credit in the IMDB–the other was a short. He also lists himself as a writer for this Midsummer.
On the bright side, it is playing at the Folger Shakespeare Library on June 28.
http://events.folger.edu/single/EventDetail.aspx?p=5599&_ga=2.56952876.700923729.1526316597-1885112924.1509043237
Somehow, I doubt the folks at the Folger would schedule something truly bad.
I’m willing to give it a chance. I watch most anything that will use the original text, but I admit I don’t usually like modern day treatments of Shakespeare. Won’t hurt to give it a shot!