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Hamlet 2 in German

 

Hamlet 2 ist eine US-amerikanische Filmkomödie aus dem Jahr 2008. Regie führte Andrew Fleming, der gemeinsam mit Pam Brady auch das Drehbuch schrieb.

Handlung [Bearbeiten]

Der in Tucson tätige High-School-Lehrer Dana Marschz unterrichtet Dramaturgie. Er bezeichnet sein eigenes Leben als eine Parodie einer Tragödie. Marschz erfährt, dass sein Unterricht abgeschafft werden soll. Er schreibt eine Fortsetzung des Theaterstücks Hamlet, die an der Schule aufgeführt werden soll.

Kritiken [Bearbeiten]

Duane Byrge schrieb am 23. Januar 2008 für die Zeitschrift The Hollywood Reporter, der Film sei ein Patchwork der Elemente aus mehr inspirierten Komödien wie Ace Ventura – Ein tierischer Detektiv und Borat. Sein rowdyhafter und unorthodoxer Humor könne für „fürstliche“ Einnahmen an den Kinokassen sorgen.^[1]

Hintergründe [Bearbeiten]

Der Film wurde in Albuquerque (New Mexico) gedreht.^[2] Seine Weltpremiere fand am 21. Januar 2008 auf dem Sundance Film Festival statt.^[3] Kurz nach der Festivalvorführung kaufte das Unternehmen Focus Features das Verleihrecht für fast 10 Millionen US-Dollar.^[4]

Weblinks [Bearbeiten]

• Hamlet 2 in der Internet Movie Database (englisch)
• Kritiken zu Hamlet 2 auf Rotten Tomatoes (englisch)

Einzelnachweise [Bearbeiten]

1. ↑ Zitat auf uk.reuters.com, abgerufen am 25. Januar 2008
2. ↑ Drehorte für Hamlet 2, abgerufen am 25. Januar 2008
3. ↑ Premierendaten für Hamlet 2, abgerufen am 25. Januar 2008
4. ↑ Finally Gets Sales Going at Sundance im Wall Street Journal vom 23. Januar 2008, abgerufen am 25. Januar 2008

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Quint dances along with Steve Coogan’s Sexy Jesus in HAMLET 2 at Sundance!

March 5th, 2008

From Ain’t it Cool News 

Ahoy, squirts! Quint here finally catching up on my Sundance coverage. In the last month I’ve seen somewhere in the neighborhood of 50-60 films theatrically and another half dozen screeners to add onto that pile.

Of all those movies only about a fifth were damn good and of those only a handful that are what I’d call fuckin’ good or better.

HAMLET 2 made the cut.

Steve Coogan. If that name puts a smile on your face, then get in line now. This is Coogan at his finest. If his name got a “Huh?” response, then that’s okay, too. You’ll be a new fan of his once Hamlet 2 hits and then, I’m sure, you’ll dive into the hilarious world of Alan Partridge.

While Ricky Gervais, Martin Freeman, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost broke over here Mr. Coogan was biding his time.

In HAMLET 2, Coogan plays an Arizona drama teacher. In his mind he’s a great actor and in the opening moments of the movie we’re treated to his highlight reel, which consists of bit parts on infomercials and speaking roles in STD treatment commercials.

He gets paid next to nothing, his wife (played by Catherine Keener) is always bitchy to him (she married him and waited for his bit acting career that never came), he’s got a live-in hanger-on (played almost silently by David Arquette) and he’s struggling in a school system that doesn’t value the arts. His classroom has been moved into the cafeteria where his lectures have to compete with the lunch ladies noisily cooking.

In short, his life’s a mess, but he still has a hopeful smile on his face, an almost childlike optimism.

In his new year of teaching he is given a class of delinquents. The irony is not lost on him or the movie as he studies films like DANGEROUS MINDS in order to learn how to make the transition from his pure white-bread theater snob class to a multi-cultural class just trying to get an easy A.

This same year, he finds out that the school has finally cancelled theater and that situation brings the class together to achieve Coogan’s game plan: He’s going to put on a play that is so popular, so good, that the school board will be forced to reinstate the class.

In the past, Coogan’s plays all consisted of stage remakes of popular movies. We’re treated to a glimpse at one of his previous works, a stage version of ERIN BROKOVICH. He has a heated conversation with his biggest critic, the high school newspaper’s entertainment reviewer (a child no older than 12). He asks this kid why he always gets a negative review. The kid simply states that his shows suck. Of course, Coogan breaks down and the kid has to console him and gives him a piece of advice. Do your own thing, don’t just copy everybody else.

With that in mind, Coogan is inspired to create his masterpiece… HAMLET 2. But… everybody dies at the end of Hamlet, right? Aha! Well, that’s where the time machine comes in.

Seriously, the final version that ends up onstage is something they should tour with. You have time travel, historical figures coming in to change the events of the first HAMLET and a dance number involving Christ called SEXY JESUS.

And yes, his main inspiration to sequelize HAMLET is that he thought Shakespeare’s original was too much of a bummer and he wanted a chance to make it happier. He takes the tragedy out of HAMLET, essentially.

I can’t write this up without mentioning a particular actress. One of the secondary stories is the difficulty Keener and Coogan are having conceiving a child. So they go to a sperm bank and while they’re waiting, Coogan bumps into a cute nurse, played by Elisabeth Shue. His mouth hangs open and he says, “Excuse… but you look exactly like my favorite actress Elisabeth Shue.” She smiles and says, “I am Elisabeth Shue.”

And so it goes. She quit acting and became a sperm bank nurse in Arizona… and she’s not a throwaway joke. She is a real character in the movie, playing herself, and boy does she still have it. I’ve had a crush on her since my childhood viewings of ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING and KARATE KID. She’s looking great and is as charming as she’s ever been.

The script was whip-smart, as should be expected from Pam Brady. She works with Trey Parker and Matt Stone a lot on South Park, the South Park movie as well as TEAM AMERICA. She doesn’t disappoint here.

The flick just finished filming in November, so the cut we saw in January I’m sure is still rough. There was a little drag in the middle, but I’m sure they’ll tighten the film a bit before release. Even if they don’t, it’s already hilarious.

It was the biggest pick-up at Sundance, with Focus Features dishing a reported $10 million for it, so you know you’ll see a big release. This’ll be one Sundance movie I”m sure will be at a theater near you no matter where near you is.

Anyway, that’s it for HAMLET 2. Still more Sundance/Santa Barbara flicks to go through before I’m done. Keep an eye peeled, squirts!

 

Leonid Rozhetskin via Wikipedia 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Rozhetskin 

 

Leonid Rozhetskin`s Homepage 

http://leonidrozhetskin.net/ 

 

 

Date of Birth

4 August 1966, St. Petersburg, USSR

Birth Name

Leonid B. Rozhetskin

Trivia

In 2007, he co-founded a movie production company, L+E Productions, with Eric Eisner. Eisner is the son of Michael Eisner, the former Chief Executive Office of The Walt Disney Company. L+E Production's mission is to finance and develop feature-length films.

He is also a board member and founding shareholder of City A.M., London's first free daily business newspaper which covers news on the markets, global and local business as well as contemporary lifestyle features. City A.M. is read by over 100,000 professionals throughout London.

From October 2001 until January 2005, served as Executive Vice Chairman of Norilsk Nickel, Russia's largest mining company and the world's largest miner of nickel and palladium metals. He led the company's efforts on transparency, corporate governance and external investment, including the acquisition of a controlling interest in Stillwater Mining Company, a U.S. miner of platinum and palladium metals. He also pioneered an investment of $1.2 billion to acquire a 20 percent interest in Gold Fields of South Africa. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Norilsk Nickel.

In 1998, he left Renaissance Capital to co-found the independent venture capital firm, LV Finance. The advisory clients of LV Finance included international financier George Soros and founder of CNN Ted Turner. The company invested in a number of highly successful start-up ventures in the media and telecommunications industry, most notably, MegaFon, the third largest mobile phone operator in Russia. He sold his interest in LV Finance in 2003.

In 1995, his focus shifted from the law to financial ventures. He was part of a group that founded Renaissance Capital, Russia's largest and most successful domestic investment bank. While with Renaissance Capital, he led the firm's participation in listing the first Russian company on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1992, Leonid Rozhetskin returned to Russia to open his own law firm, representing clients such as the International Finance Corporation (a division of the World Bank), Credit Suisse, Morgan Grenfell, and The Moscow Times.

From 1992 to 1994, Leonid Rozhetskin worked as an attorney at Sullivan & Cromwell and White & Case, both U.S. law firms.

From 1990 to 1991, Leonid Rozhetskin was a law clerk for Judge Stephen V. Wilson, a federal judge in Los Angeles, California.

In 1990, he graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School.

Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from Columbia University with distinction in 1987.

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Date of Birth

4 August 1966, St. Petersburg, USSR

Birth Name

Leonid B. Rozhetskin

Trivia

In 2007, he co-founded a movie production company, L+E Productions, with Eric Eisner. Eisner is the son of Michael Eisner, the former Chief Executive Office of The Walt Disney Company. L+E Production's mission is to finance and develop feature-length films.

He is also a board member and founding shareholder of City A.M., London's first free daily business newspaper which covers news on the markets, global and local business as well as contemporary lifestyle features. City A.M. is read by over 100,000 professionals throughout London.

From October 2001 until January 2005, served as Executive Vice Chairman of Norilsk Nickel, Russia's largest mining company and the world's largest miner of nickel and palladium metals. He led the company's efforts on transparency, corporate governance and external investment, including the acquisition of a controlling interest in Stillwater Mining Company, a U.S. miner of platinum and palladium metals. He also pioneered an investment of $1.2 billion to acquire a 20 percent interest in Gold Fields of South Africa. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Norilsk Nickel.

In 1998, he left Renaissance Capital to co-found the independent venture capital firm, LV Finance. The advisory clients of LV Finance included international financier George Soros and founder of CNN Ted Turner. The company invested in a number of highly successful start-up ventures in the media and telecommunications industry, most notably, MegaFon, the third largest mobile phone operator in Russia. He sold his interest in LV Finance in 2003.

In 1995, his focus shifted from the law to financial ventures. He was part of a group that founded Renaissance Capital, Russia's largest and most successful domestic investment bank. While with Renaissance Capital, he led the firm's participation in listing the first Russian company on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1992, Leonid Rozhetskin returned to Russia to open his own law firm, representing clients such as the International Finance Corporation (a division of the World Bank), Credit Suisse, Morgan Grenfell, and The Moscow Times.

From 1992 to 1994, Leonid Rozhetskin worked as an attorney at Sullivan & Cromwell and White & Case, both U.S. law firms.

From 1990 to 1991, Leonid Rozhetskin was a law clerk for Judge Stephen V. Wilson, a federal judge in Los Angeles, California.

In 1990, he graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School.

Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from Columbia University with distinction in 1987.

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"Boogie Woogie", co-produced by Leonid Rozhetskin, is supposed to be relaesed this Year. Currently the movies status is in "post production" and there arent a lot of details yet. But just have a look at the casting and find all these famous names such as Christipher Lee or Heather Graham and I think you will waite as desperate as me for the final release.

 

Directed by
Duncan Ward

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Danny Moynihan		novel
Danny Moynihan		screenplay

Cast (in alphabetical order)

	Heather Graham	...	Beth Freemantle
	Amanda Seyfried	...	Paige Prideaux
	Gillian Anderson	...	Jean Maclestone
	Christopher Lee	...	Alfred Rhinegold
	Stellan Skarsgård	...	Bob Maccelstone
	Alan Cumming	...	Dewey
	Charlotte Rampling	...	Emille
	Danny Huston	...	Art Spindle
	Jaime Winstone	...	Elaine
	Joanna Lumley	...	Alfreda Rhinegold
	Alfie Allen	...	Photographer
	Gemma Atkinson	...	Charlotte Bailey
	Simon McBurney	...	Robert Freign
	Jack Huston	...	Joe
	Meredith Ostrom	...	Joany
	Stephen Greif	...	Bobs Lawyer
	Rosie Fellner	...	Rachel Leighton
	Michael Culkin	...	Beth's Father
	Jenny Runacre	...	Mrs. Havermeyer
	Sidney Cole	...	Cabbie
	Jan Uddin	...	Art's Partner
	Gaetano Jouen	...	Himself

Produced by
Katrine Boorman	....	executive producer
Steve Daly	....	associate producer
Matthew Hobbs	....	executive producer
Danny Moynihan	....	producer
Kami Naghdi	....	producer
Leonid Rozhetskin	....	executive producer
Christopher Simon	....	producer
Julia Stannard	....	co-producer
Valentine Stockdale	....	executive producer
Cat Villiers	....	producer

Cinematography by
John Mathieson

Film Editing by
Kant Pan

Casting by
Gary Davy

Production Design by
Caroline Greville-Morris

Art Direction by
Nick Dent

Production Management
Emma Pike	....	production manager
Alex Sutherland	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Alexander Fielding	....	floor assistant director
Caroline Hatchman	....	floor assistant director
Mark Hopkins	....	second assistant director
Alex Oakley	....	first assistant director
Emily Perowne	....	third assistant director

Art Department
Joe Borowski	....	stand-by props

Sound Department
Ken Lee	....	sound mixer

Camera and Electrical Department
Sam Garwood	....	camera operator
Paul Hatchman	....	key grip
Mark Tillie	....	still photographer

Other crew
Lorraine Edwards	....	production secretary
Daniel Fellows	....	location manager
Lewis Partovi	....	production coordinator
Alex Sutherland	....	production supervisor
Brigitte Ward-Holmes	....	assistant accountant

Related;

Leonid Rozhetskin Co-Founder of the L+E Productions Production Company

Leonid Rozhetskin | L+E Productions Film Production 

Category:Film producers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

L+E Productions : Leonid Rozhetskin

Leonid Rozhetskin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

 

Review Summary

Biopic on charmer, Eddie Dodson, who ran a Melrose art deco store owner as a cover for his exploits as a bankrobber. In 1984, Dodson robbed 64 banks in less than a year. Arrested, Dodson served a 12-year sentence and once released, went on to work as caretaker for Jack Nicholson's Malibu home. Eventually, though, Dodson was again arrested in 1999 for bank robbery and died at the age of 54 due to a failed liver. ~ Baseline StudioSystems

Movie Details

"Hamlet 2" sends up suburbia in rowdy fashion

 

 

Hamlet 2

By Duane Byrge

PARK CITY, Utah (Hollywood Reporter) - If art-house theatres still do weekend midnight showings where everyone dresses up as characters from the film, "Hamlet 2" would be a fitting selection. An erratic, freewheeling satire of Middle American mores, it should thrive as a festival curio, appealing to anti-establishment sensibilities.

The film's marketers will face a challenge inducing the word-snobs of the smart set to slum with slapstick entertainment. Still, there's enough rowdy and off-the-wall humour in "Hamlet 2" to perform princely at the box-office, particularly in college-city venues.

A slam-bang patchwork of more inspired comedies, such as "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" and "Borat," "Hamlet 2" centres on Dana Marschz (Steve Coogan), who attempts to teach drama in a Tucson, Arizona, high school. With delusions that he is soaring to great heights like Icarus, this doofus presents high school plays based on his favourite movies, including "Dead Poets Society" and "Mr. Holland's Opus," which appeal to his inflated ego but leave his charges flat. His productions are major fiascos, rightfully skewered by a ninth-grade drama critic.

In one of the movie's many funny lines, Marschz admits that his life is like a parody of tragedy: He's infertile, his wife is having an affair with their roommate, he has father issues, and he's a recovering alcoholic. Not to mention, he's talent-less.

Dramatically, "Hamlet 2" is a twist on the formula of let's-put-on-a-show, with the twist being that no one wants the show, least of all the administration, which has chopped the school's art funds. Even arts-funding advocates would notice that Marschz's grandiose piffles are a major waste. As such, the film unwittingly makes a case for slashing funds for the arts. Lo, and unfortunately we behold, Marschz does smite the school board Philistines (not exactly a difficult target) with a last-ditch rally and a from-the-rafters opus.

Unlike Ace Ventura, Inspector Clouseau or other lovable loonies, Marschz is merely a knucklehead errant. He's a creep, but he's nicely endeared to us by Coogan's funny, fey performance. Among the players, Elisabeth Shue delivers a winning rendition of herself; her appearance as a Tucson nurse who has rejected her show business career is one of the film's best absurdities. Similarly, Amy Poehler is hilarious as a WASP-y, anti-Semitic ACLU lawyer.

Screenwriters Andrew Fleming and Pam Brady have slapped together a string of gags in a hit-and-miss dither. Some of it is quite brainy. There's an appealing anarchic tone and anti-authority bent as well. There also are zany surrealistic moments and a devilish eye for incongruity, especially a rousing rendition of Elton John's "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" as belted out by the Tucson Gay Chorus for the boondocks high school audience.

Director Fleming blasts the production along with keen comic pacing, which performs double duty in masking some of the more dim-witted moments.

Technically, "Hamlet 2" is distinguished by production designer Tony Fanning's sendup of Southwestern suburbia.

Cast:

Dana Marschz: Steve Coogan

Brie Marschz: Catherine Keener

Herself: Elisabeth Shue

Cricket Feldstein: Amy Poehler

Gary: David Arquette

Principal Rocker: Marshall Bell

Octavio: Joseph Julian Soria

Rand Posin: Skylar Astin

Director: Andrew Fleming; Screenwriters: Andrew Fleming, Pam Brady; Producers: Eric Eisner, Leonid Rozhetskin, Aaron Ryder; Executive producers: Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa, Michael Flynn; Director of photography: Alexander Gruszynski; Editor: Jeff Freeman; Production designer: Tony Fanning; Music: Ralph Sall.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

 

 

Leonid Rozhetskin External links

• Leonid Rozhetskin Page on L+E Productions Website
  
• Norilsk Nickel Bio of Leonid Rozhetskin
• Leonid Rozhetskin on IMDB
• Leonid Rozhetskin on Wikipedia

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Everything needs a Wiki Entry, here goes Hamlet 2:

Hamlet 2

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hamlet 2
Produced by	Eric Eisner Leonid Rozhetskin Aaron Ryder
Written by	Andrew Fleming Pam Brady
Starring	Steve Coogan Catherine Keener Amy Poehler David Arquette
Music by	Ralph Sall
Cinematography	Alexander Gruszynski
Editing by	Jeff Freeman
Distributed by	Focus Features
Release date(s)	TBA
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$9 million
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Hamlet 2 is an upcoming comedy film directed by Andrew Fleming and starring Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, Amy Poehler, and David Arquette. It was filmed primarily at a high school in New Mexico from September 2007 to October 2007. The film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and will be distributed by Focus Features. A release date has yet to be announced.

Contents [hide] 1 Premise 2 Production 3 Cast 4 Release 5 Critical reaction 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Premise

A high school is removing its drama department, but a drama teacher (Coogan) writes a sequel to the Shakespeare play Hamlet to save the department.^[1]

[edit] Production

Screenwriters Andrew Fleming and Pam Brady began writing the script in 2003, but they incorporated the Shakespeare play Hamlet into the premise later on. The play shown within the film was written on deadline for production.^[2] The film was budgeted at a little over $9 million.^[3] Production began in September 2007 in New Mexico.^[4] Filming took place mainly at West Mesa High School in Albuquerque, where actual students were permitted to perform as extras in the film.^[5] Filming concluded on Halloween, October 31, 2007.^[6] The film was executive produced by Albert Berger and Ron Yerxa, who also produced Little Miss Sunshine.^[3]

[edit] Cast

• Steve Coogan^[1]
• Catherine Keener^[1]
• Amy Poehler^[1]
• David Arquette^[1]
• Elisabeth Shue^[7]
• Melonie Diaz^[7]

[edit] Release

A rough edit of Hamlet 2 was prepared for the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, where it was a late addition, three days before its scheduled screening.^[3] The film premiered at the festival on January 21, 2008. After the screening, an all-night bidding war took place for rights to distribution, which Focus Features won for $10 million, acquiring worldwide rights to the film.^[1] The purchase of Hamlet 2 nearly broke the Sundance Film Festival record set by Little Miss Sunshine, which sold for $10.5 million in 2006.^[3]

[edit] Critical reaction

Duane Byrge of The Hollywood Reporter described Hamlet 2 as "a slam-bang patchwork of more inspired comedies, such as Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Borat". Byrge described the premise as "a twist on the formula of let's-put-on-a-show, with the twist being that no one wants the show". He thought that the screenwriters had put together "a string of gags in a hit-and-miss dither".^[8]

Edward Douglas of ComingSoon.net described Hamlet 2 as "outrageously funny but it does require a certain type of sense of humor and the ability to laugh at very odd behavior and situations". Douglas thought that Coogan played his character over-the-top, but found that through the film, "you really start to love him". He described the premise as "ludricous" but said, "Sometimes, you just have to turn off your brain and allow yourself to laugh."^[9]

The New York Times noted of the film, "It made sure to take shots at Christians, gays, Latinos, Jews, the American Civil Liberties Union and Elisabeth Shue, one of its lead actresses."^[2]

[edit] References

 

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Anne Thompson. "Focus Features acquires 'Hamlet 2'", Variety, 2008-01-22. Retrieved on 2008-01-24.
2. ^ ^{a b} David M. Halbfinger. "Done Deals Finally Start To Appear At Sundance", The New York Times, 2008-01-23.
3. ^ ^{a b c d} Lauren A.E. Schuker. "Comic 'Hamlet 2' Finally Gets Sales Going at Sundance", Wall Street Journal, 2008-01-23.
4. ^ Francesca Martin. "Great Danes go head to head", The Guardian, 2007-09-12.
5. ^ Megan Martin. "Students learn about making movies from an on-the-set perspective", Albuquerque Journal, 2007-11-06.
6. ^ Dan Mayfield. "N.M. movies make Sundance cut", Albuquerque Journal, 2008-01-11.
7. ^ ^{a b} Gregg Goldstein. "'Hamlet 2' to be among New Frontiers", The Hollywood Reporter, 2007-12-20. Retrieved on 2008-01-24.
8. ^ Duane Byrge. ""Hamlet 2" sends up suburbia in rowdy fashion", The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, 2008-01-23. Retrieved on 2008-01-24.
9. ^ Edward Douglas. "Reviews: The Great Buck Howard & Hamlet 2", ComingSoon.net, 2008-01-23. Retrieved on 2008-01-24.

[edit] External links

• Hamlet 2 at the Internet Movie Database
• Hamlet 2 at All Movie Guide

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet_2"

 

Categories: Upcoming films | American films | English-language films | Comedy films | 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

 

 Via Entertaiment Weekly

If you're a fan of Steve Coogan, that King Leer of a motormouth British comedian who starred in 24 Hour Party People, came to Hollywood (remember his glorious performance as his own trumped-up self in Jim Jarmusch's Coffee and Cigarettes?), and saw his crossover American career do a nosedive before it had even gotten off the ground, then you won't want to miss Hamlet 2, in which he's like the son of Peter Sellers crossed with a more handsome version of Tiny Tim. This is the movie that Coogan cultists have been waiting for — the one that finally lets him cut his inner wildman loose, only within a structure that lends method to his madness.

He plays a godawful failed actor, despised by his wife (a scalding Catherine Keener), who has become a self-loathing high-school drama teacher, and Coogan turns this pathetic yet insistently egomaniacal creature into a loser-nerd of genius. He mugs, he glowers, he hams up his telling of jokes too corny-horrible to print, and — most mesmerizingly — he comes on like a sarcastic geek acting like a swishy queen trying to pass himself off as a ''normal'' heterosexual Middle American.

Make no mistake: The gay/not gay camp-theatrical weirdness is built right into Hamlet 2, which Andrew Fleming has directed and cowritten like a broader, more looney-tunes version of Waiting for Guffman. To save his job, Coogan's lowly drama instructor writes and stages a musical sequel to Hamlet 2, in which a time machine returns the great Dane to life, so that he can save himself and everyone else in the play. As opening night approaches, the show becomes hugely controversial, because it is blasphemous (and demented) in almost every way. Yet really, it's a high school musical that would make John Waters proud. You may wonder what could possibly be funny about a song called ''Raped in the Face,'' but when you see this and other numbers, such as ''Rock Me Sexy Jesus,'' they give off such a happy blast of cluelessness that the show seems to be rediscovering — through its very offensiveness — the unhinged glory of showbiz.

Hamlet 2 doesn't have the exquisiteness of Guffman; with Coogan as its maestro/vamp in chief, it's more like a one-man demolition derby of bad taste. But you will laugh, and, with any luck, you will become a believer in Steve Coogan, who in this film proves as uproarious an anarchist as Sascha Baron Cohen. At Sundance 2008, that's what independence looked like.

 

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Via Entertaiment Weekly 

Sundance Q&A: The Cast of ''Hamlet 2''

Steve Coogan, Elisabeth Shue, and David Arquette talk about their high-school-set comedy, likely to remain the fest's biggest acquisition

STEVE COOGAN (left, with Catherine Keener) on Hamlet 2: ''Ours is a film that makes you laugh. It's not a film that makes you think. But if you want to think, you can''

By the eighth day of this year's Sundance Film Festival, director Andrew Fleming's comedy Hamlet 2 remained the biggest acquisition, selling to Focus Features for $10 million. The comedy revolves around a high-school drama teacher (Steve Coogan) who stages a sequel to Shakespeare's play in order to save his department from budget cuts.

On the afternoon before the film's premiere, EW.com chatted with Coogan and his fellow cast members David Arquette and Elisabeth Shue at EW's photo studio. (Sadly, Hamlet 2 costar Catherine Keener did not make the trip to Sundance this year.)

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Are you excited for tonight's premiere?
DAVID ARQUETTE: I haven't seen it yet, so I'm nervous. It seems like people have been enjoying it, though.

And you play...?
ARQUETTE: I play Gary. I'm the guy who lives at [Steve Coogan and Catherine Keener's] house. They only let me live there because I have a car. They don't have a car. I drive them everywhere. I think I'm supposed to be a trainer in it. I'm very fitness-oriented, but I don't have any actual clients. I have a small part. I only have about 10 lines in it. And I think one of my scenes got cut, too. I was sad. I play a dumb guy in it. Which I tend to do well.

Well, you're playing against type.
ARQUETTE: I hope so. [Laughs] Or maybe I'm just dumb.

[Arquette gets called to get his picture taken. Elisabeth Shue steps up.]

Hello. Are you enjoying Sundance?
ELISABETH SHUE: It's really fun to be back. The most moving time I've had at Sundance was two years ago because Davis [Guggenheim, Shue's husband] premiered An Inconvenient Truth [which he directed] here. That will go down as the most meaningful trip to Sundance. I remember the first screening of An Inconvenient Truth, they gave it a standing ovation. I was crying so much. It still makes me cry thinking of it.

It'll be hard to measure up to that ever again.
SHUE: I know, it'll never measure up to that, but it doesn't have to. I love this movie, actually. It's really funny. Unique and different. And I just think Steve is a brilliant comedian. I want to do another comedy — and with him. [She points to Coogan, who's been sitting nearby, ostensibly minding his own business.] I want him to write me a movie where we can be lovers. [Laughs]

[To Coogan] Would you like to join our conversation?
SHUE: Don't you think he's hot?

He's not bad.
STEVE COOGAN: I'm not too pale for a Brit.
SHUE: With his new haircut! He's got really funny hair in the movie.
COOGAN: It's kind of '80s: long, wavy. I had this long, fair hair. It was dyed and bleached and straightened. And then it got so brittle I just had to get rid of it all.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: [To Shue] How did you like working with the great Steve Coogan?
ELISABETH SHUE: Ah.... It was really incredible. It's so easy.
STEVE COOGAN: We had great chemistry.
SHUE: We did.
COOGAN: We still have great chemistry.
SHUE: I want him.
COOGAN: I want her.

Well, don't let me stand in the way. [To Coogan] So, what about working with the wonderful Elisabeth Shue?
COOGAN: It was tremendous and stupendous and chemically...
SHUE: Destabilizing.
COOGAN: Destabilizing!
SHUE: He plays this has-been actor whose most important role was being in the background of a herpes commercial.
COOGAN: I was in the foreground of a herpes commercial! The herpes commercial was all about me. And I've had a cold sore in real life. Carry on.
SHUE: And then, I play myself, Elisabeth Shue. I've quit the business and I've gone to Tucson, Ariz., to become a nurse. He comes into the fertility clinic where I work and he's so excited to see me, because he's a great lover of film and he thinks I'm just so wonderful.
COOGAN: I'm obsessed with Elisabeth Shue. I metaphorically and literally kiss her ass. And I invite her to my school to give a talk. It's very exciting. She says some very explicit things. I won't tell you what they are. But they're shocking for fans of Elisabeth Shue.

You play yourself — or a version of yourself?
SHUE: It was definitely a version of myself. The first day, I was really self-conscious and nervous because I didn't know anybody. There were no rehearsals so I just showed up and started shooting. But Steve made me feel comfortable because he was so excited to see me in the scene that it just made me laugh every single time. [She laughs just talking about it] I felt like I understood the version I was supposed to play once he started to react to me.

[To Coogan] And your character — was he fun to play?
COOGAN: Yeah, it was a lot of fun. I play kind of a heroic fool whose heart's in the right place, but he's a bit of a jackass and he tries to save the drama department at his school by writing a sequel to Hamlet.
SHUE: It's a musical!
COOGAN: It's a happy version. He figures that the original Hamlet — Hamlet 1 — it's a bit depressing when everyone dies at the end. So he wants he want to do a more uplifting, positive, Hollywood version.
SHUE: Jesus is in it. He comes in a time machine.
COOGAN: Jesus Christ. And Albert Einstein. He travels through time and meets a bunch of people.

Wow, so it's like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure?
COOGAN: It is like that, except that...it doesn't star Keanu Reeves.

How does it feel to be at Sundance with a comedy?
COOGAN: Great. [At film festivals, there tends to be a lot of] interesting, quirky, odd, individualistic, kind of esoteric films that make you sad. Ours is a film that makes you laugh. It's not a film that makes you think. But if you want to think, you can. It's a kind of optional-thinking movie. You don't have to think too much.
SHUE: Not at all.
COOGAN: Not at all, actually

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