A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Directed by William Dieterle and Max Reinhardt
1935/USA
Warner Bros.
First viewing
Puck: Lord, what fools these mortals be!
This big-screen adaptation of the popular Shakespearean comedy has its plusses and minuses. The story takes place on the eve of the marriage of the Duke of Athens to the Queen of the Amazons. Four young lovers congregate in a wood on the same night some rustics are rehearsing for a performance at the wedding feast. The king and queen of the fairies and their minions amuse themselves by playing tricks on the mortals and each other. With an all-star cast, including Olivia de Havilland in her stage debut as Hermia, Dick Powell as Lysander, James Cagney as Bottom, Joe E. Brown as Flute, Mickey Rooney as Puck, and Anita Louise as Titania, Queen of the Fairies.
This film was not a box-office success and I can see why. It takes some getting used to. The production is absolutely beautiful and brilliantly conveys the enchanted world of the fairies. The film is gloriously scored to Mendelssohn’s incidental music for the play, as orchestrated by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. The cinematography by Hal Mohr and art direction by Anton Grot are spectacular.
In my opinion, the performances are much less successful. This film was based on a Max Reinhardt production at the Hollywood Bowl and I attribute some of the truly weird acting choices to Reinhardt. For example, the fairy characters, and especially Puck, shriek, laugh, and make strange noises to convey their other-worldliness. It is very odd. Mickey Rooney’s performance was downright irritating, almost embarrassing, for me. Cagney and the other rustics are pretty good. Of the lovers, de Havilland is the standout.
The film won Oscars for editing and cinematography. Hal Mohr had not been nominated and was the first and only recipient to win an award based on a write-in vote. It was also nominated for Best Picture.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEqx-aTbwlA
General Release Trailer
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