What I liked
What I didn't like
My overall impression
This is a weird one. The problem, I think, is two competing ideas- the comic notion of children performing Shakespeare’s “most violent play,” and then their director having a mental breakdown, which is not played for laughs at all. The kids are so good, and present the actual bits from the play so well, I sort of resented the interruptions. The director (credited only as “Mr. Benjamin”) is finely acted, but his going mad doesn’t really ring true, as the kids continue to act around him, and especially as it is supposed to be opening night in front of a room full of parents who would stop things almost immediately. (The latter, at least, could be easily solved by making it dress rehearsal instead). The play goes from somewhat funny to totally off-putting. If the aim was to make people uncomfortable- I guess they win?
