Film Review: A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
Austrian director Max Reinhardt was one of the most influential theatre practitioners of the 20th century, known for introducing Expressionism to the stage. His impact extended beyond the theatre, as he also had a significant influence on the development of German cinema in the 1920s and, consequently, Hollywood. Although Reinhardt had dabbled with film direction in the silent era, his famous debut and the only feature film he directed came relatively late in his career, after his exile to Hollywood, with the 1935 fantasy comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream.
The film is based on the eponymous play by William Shakespeare, or, more precisely, Reinhardt's own 1933 stage adaptation in the Hollywood Bowl, a project known as "Shakespeare Under the Stars." The plot, set in semi-mythical Ancient Athens, follows the intertwining stories of four young Athenian lovers, a group of amateur actors, and the mischievous fairy Puck (played by Mickey Rooney), who, due to the rivalry between fairy king Oberon (played by Victor Jory) and queen Titania (played by Anita Louise), uses his magical powers to create chaos and confusion.
A Midsummer Night's Dream was made by Warner Bros. and represented one of its prestige pictures. Produced by Hall B. Wallis, the film utilized the renowned play as its literary source, classic music by Felix Mendelssohn arranged by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, expensive sets, and interesting costumes that blended the Classic and Elizabethan eras. The ballet numbers were choreographed by the renowned Ballets Russes veteran Bronislava Nijinska, and the cinematography was handled by Hal Mohr, who would become the only write-in winner of the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
The acting in the film varies in quality. Two main cast members were brought from the Hollywood Bowl version – the 14-year-old Mickey Rooney, who appears to have fun playing Puck, and the 18-year-old Olivia De Havilland in her screen debut. James Cagney, as Nick Bottom, is quite enthusiastic in his comedic performance, trying to distance himself from his usual gangster roles. However, Dick Powell, as Lysander, is completely wasted in his role, an assessment he later publicly agreed with. Of the supporting cast, the most recognizable and effective is Joe E. Brown in the role of Francis Flute, an actor who is uncomfortable playing the female role, reminiscent of his famous performance in the classic cross-dressing comedy Some Like It Hot.
Despite the talents involved, A Midsummer Night's Dream is hardly a classic. The reasons might be found in its relatively slow tempo, too many repetitive scenes, and a running time of almost two and a half hours, which would be challenging for anyone but the most enthusiastic audience about Shakespeare and classic Hollywood. Reinhardt, being primarily a stage director, struggled to adapt to the new medium, and the language barrier, as he did not speak English, further complicated the process, with William Dieterle credited as co-director to interpret Reinhardt's direction on set.
The reviews for the film were initially mixed, and the box office results were not impressive, although the film did manage a modest profit, thanks to the established stars in the cast. Today's assessment is unlikely to be much better, mainly because the film didn't age well. The most obvious issue is the lack of colour, which would become a Hollywood standard for fantasy films with such ambition just a few years later. As a result, A Midsummer Night's Dream might be recommended more as a curiosity than a classic.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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