Article: In Kenneth Branagh's `Tale,' humor is half-told.(VARIETY)(Review) (movie review)

According to the advertising for "A Midwinter's Tale," Kenneth Branagh was trying to adapt the nonsense of "This Is Spinal Tap" to Shakespeare by making a pseudo-documentary about a ragtag theatrical troupe's attempts to mount a production of "Hamlet."

Branagh, who writes and directs but does not appear in the film, got it half right: The play is very funny, but he fails to carry off the spoof documentary.

Neither achievement is surprising in light of his background. From "Henry V" to "Much Ado About Nothing" to the recent "Othello," he has brought Shakespeare to the masses. One suspects that in his younger days he encountered some inept shoestring ...

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