Shakespeare In Love

Rating: R

Movie Release Date: December 11, 1998

DVD Release Date: December 7, 1999

Plot 411: Will Shakespeare has writer's block until he meets his love Viola, who inspires the play that would become Romeo and Juliet.

Review: After discovering his lover cheated on him, Will Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is unable to write his next play. But, because the playhouse in which his plays are performed is in serious debt, he must sojourn on. He casts a young man named Thomas Kent, who is really a woman named Viola (Gweneth Paltrow), as the lead actor. However, he soon learns that she is a woman and they embark on a torrid love affair. This jump starts his writing juices and he finishes off the play. The play mirrors much of their doomed relationship though as Viola is already promised to someone else (played by Colin Firth). I love that this movie is filled with wit and laughter. They are able to incorporate many of Shakespeare's later plays through references or exact dialogue. It's a creative storytelling style, especially for drama nuts. But, even if you're not familiar with the bard's work, you'll still find this to be a highly entertaining and well-acted rom com. There's support from many superb actors, such as Geoffrey Rush, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Rupert Everett and even Ben Affleck (if you consider him superb).

Watch It: For a great interpretation of history, even if it's not completely accurate.

Skip It: Or hold off until you've read a bit of Shakespeare so you can get the jokes better.

10 Things I Hate About You

Rating: PG-13

Movie Release Date: March 31, 1999

DVD Release Date: October 1, 1999

Plot 411: One sister's social life depends on another's. Money exchnages hands. People fall in and out of love.

Review: Kat (Julia Stiles) and Bianca (Larisa Oleynik) are as different as can be despite being related by blood. Kat, the older sister, is more withdrawn from the high school's typical social structure. Bianca is all too willing to become queen B. When their father (Larry Miller), forbids Bianca from dating unless Kat dates, he thinks this is a good way to deter his young, naive daughter because he doesn't believe Kat will ever date anyone. At school, new kid Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) falls for Bianca from afar and tries everything he can to win her over, including bribing the school jock Joey (Andrew Keegan) and aligning himself with the school outcast Patrick (Heath Ledger). This is one of those movies that started it all for young actors. Looking back on it, it's not one of those ground-breaking performances that'll win you an Oscar. But, it is a teen flick that'll get you noticed . . . and that's just what it did for many of these actors. Based on Shakespeare's The Taming Of The Shrew, this movie was probably one of the better teen rom coms to come out of the late '90s. In a very memorable scene, Ledger sings and dances.

Watch It: For a quick look at where some of the best young actors began their careers.

Skip It: Because you're probably better off watching The Taming Of The Shrew in an original remake instead of an adaptation like this.

Were The World Mine

Rating: Not Rated

Movie Release Date: November 21, 2008

DVD Release Date: June 9, 2009

Plot 411: A gay teen creates a love potion that allows his town to live a day in his shoes.

Review: I don't even know where to start with this one. In general terms, this is a musical, a romance, a coming-of-age flick, a gay and lesbian flick, a comment on society and a homage to Shakespeare all in one. How can this be, you ask? Well, for one, this is definitely an unconventional movie in every aspect. Timothy (Tanner Cohen) is a gay teen who attends an all-boys school. He is bullied and picked on by the other kids. When his lit teacher puts on A Midsummer Night's Dream for the senior play, all the boys must try out. Timothy is selected for the role of Puck, and while he is memorizing his lines, he discovers a hidden love potion within the text. He creates this potion and accidently splashes it on his friend Max's (Ricky Goldman) face. Max immediately falls in love with Timothy, despite being heterosexual. Timothy capitalizes on this power and eventually douses his fellow cast members with the potion. For the first time, he is able to embrace his homosexuality because everyone else is like him. Ok, I think that's enough about the plot. What made this movie completely intriguing was its depth - once you saw beyond all the theater hijinks. I gotta admit, at first I thought this was a completely cheesy movie that happened to have some singing in it. I thought the acting was horrible and the plot ridiculous. It was as if the worst off-Broadway show about A Midsummer Night's Dream was captured on film or like the most inane wannabe artist cooked this movie up for his theater group. I was also disturbed by the stereotypical portrayals of homosexual boys/men. I mean, must every gay guy wear skinny jeans? Do they all have to like techno pop? However, after a while it started to grow on me. The movie is complex, mysterious, artistic and bold. Some scenes looked like they were straight out of live theater. Others looked like they were hand-picked out of late '90s music videos. All were cinematic and magical. The best part of the movie was the play within a play - or movie, in this case. The depiction of an alternate version of Shakespeare's play was great. The costumes and makeup were extraordinarily detailed. Even as I got sucked in by the movie, I was still aware that the acting is pretty iffy. But I could appreciate the movie for what it was trying to do. It was like going to an underground theater group to watch a whacked out performance that is trying to say ten different things at once while being unfathomably deep.

Watch It: With an open mind - and I'm not talking about the gay/lesbian scenes. The entire thing is just pretty out there.

Skip It: If theater going is not your thing. Watching this movie is like going to one of those plays that are more spoken word and performance art than classical acting.