Like The Rocker, another one
of this late-August cinematic-dumping-ground weekend’s many
releases, Andrew Fleming’s Hamlet 2 is a tough movie to
review in that it’s a straightforward comedy that doesn’t
attempt anything earth-shattering, stylistically or
substantively. How much can I blabber on about a motion-picture
that I don’t aggressively hate and, at the same time, don’t find
to be particularly striking? What I can say about Hamlet 2,
however, is that it’s actually funny, a trait that instantly
separates it from the rest of said dumping-ground’s film crop,
especially the aforementioned stale Rainn Wilson vehicle.
Lead actor
Steve Coogan plays Dana Marschz, a high-school drama teacher who
routinely churns out theatrical-interpretations of Hollywood
movies that nobody sees or participates in and even the shrimp
of a school-newspaper critic hates. (The viewer is offered a
glimpse of his take on Erin Brockovich.) Due to the lack
of interest in his program, Dana is told that Drama will be axed
from the curriculum at the end of the year and with it will go
his job. Desperate to save his career and his class, he rallies
his newfound unenthused Hispanic students (who are only taking
the course because all the other electives have been cancelled)
to put on a sequel to Hamlet in which the many dead
characters from Shakespeare’s original work return to the stage
in a time-machine to (among other things) sing and dance with
Jesus and Hillary Clinton.
In his most
bombastic role since his movie-stealing turn opposite Alfred
Molina in 2003’s Coffee and Cigarettes, Coogan is the
most prominent reason for Hamlet 2’s success in spite of
its simple nature. He plays his character in a subdued fashion,
but hits all the right subtle notes along the way. Consider, for
example, a sequence of clips in which Dana writes the script for
his gotta-be-stellar play. Coogan turns something so simple as
the look of confusion his character exhibits while staring into
a blank, uninspiring computer-screen—and pet-cat when the animal
enters the frame—into a tremendously entertaining action. There
isn’t anything especially remarkable about his face-work during
the bit, but it’s goofy and unique and highly amusing, certainly
good enough to sustain a few minutes of screen-time. Coogan
maintains the same sort of moment-for-moment exuberance
throughout Hamlet 2, becoming audaciously effective as he
is allowed to become increasingly ridiculous as the movie
progresses. When it’s time for Dana’s play, which becomes
incredibly controversial due to its sexual and sacrilegious
content, to be performed, Coogan’s work is nearly electrifying.
Outside of
Coogan’s central tour-de-force, Hamlet 2 overcomes the
trappings of its conventional structure by always offering
engaging and quirky supporting characters. First introduced are
Brie (Catherine Keener), Dana’s distant hippy-dippy wife, and
Gary (David Arquette), the boarder the couple has taken in as a
means of supplementing Dana’s low income from teaching. Not too
long into the movie, it becomes obvious that Brie and Gary will
have an affair, which isn’t very funny in and of itself given
that it isn’t our sympathetic protagonist’s best interest, but
it comes across as such because of the way that Keener and
Arquette deliver the material. Fleming and South Park
scribe Pam Brady’s script lends itself to such an approach.
Also spicing
matters up are Dana’s most memorable new students, Yolanda
(Natalie Amenula) and Ivonne (Melonie Diaz). The former
character awakened me to the fact that slapsticky gags that
force a person to fall in every way humanly possible can still
be handled in an amusing manner; between Amenula’s performance
and the situations developed, Yolanda’s chronic (and sometimes
hard-hitting) slips pack an unexpectedly riotous punch. Most of
the intrigue concerning Ivonne generates from Diaz’ performance,
which further proves that the young actress has a bright future
ahead of her in Hollywood. Diaz is effortlessly charming in one
of the film’s smallest but most memorable roles.
Rounding out
the notable list of supporting cast-members, SNL’s Amy Poehler
puts on a scene-stealing performance as an ACLU attorney who
comes to Dana’s aid when his play is shunned by conservative
school-board members and parents. (Did I mention that musical
accompaniment for the already-subversive material is provided by
the local Tucson, Arizona Gay Men’s Chorus, which looks every
bit like you’d picture it?) The character doesn’t lend to the
movie forming an external political-position on censorship,
wisely functioning as a tool for Fleming and Brady to poke fun
at both the Right and the Left by highlighting the lunacy of
what could very well pass for a real ACLU-battle. Poehler
hilariously plays the attorney as a conniving attention-grabber,
desperate to go after anyone who might be opposed to Dana’s
“expression of free speech.” She’s frantically outrageous and
consistently hysterical.
Oh, and then
there’s Elizabeth Shue playing herself as a washed-up actress
who goes into nursing to get away from the spotlight! But I’ll
let you experience that story-thread for yourself. Impressively
zany as it is—especially in terms of Coogan’s interaction with
Shue—I can’t say it leaves much room for critical analysis.
Looking back
at the first paragraph of this review, I realize I may have been
foolish in predicting that it would be a difficult one to write.
Yes, Hamlet 2 may be similar to The Rocker (which
was nearly impossible to waste 600+ words on) in that it doesn’t
take any big chances. However, I think I overlooked the film in
claiming that I didn’t find it “particularly striking.” The
reason that it is funny is that it is fresh; this just
isn’t readily apparent because the movie discovers said
freshness in unexpected places, not in story-based flourishes.
In fact, the review has come to me rather easily because I like
a lot of small things about the movie. Hamlet 2 may not
amount to much in the end, but it’s humorous and thoughtful
enough to pass for a welcome artistic diversion.
-Danny Baldwin, Bucket Reviews
Review Published on: 8.22.2008
Screened on: 8.13.2008 at the
Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas in San Diego, CA.
