Twelfth Night (Classic Drama)
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Twelfth Night (Classic Drama) Customer Reviews
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♥♥♥♥♥ |
Good, But It Is Flawed.
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| Many of you probably recall this as the play Shakespeare began to write at the end of "Shakespeare In Love." As far as the movie goes, Shakespeare was to write something where love triumphed after it failed in "Romeo and Juliet." This comedy is often hailed as one of Shakespeare's best comedies. But there are reasons I can not quite place it on the same level as "Comedy of Errors," "Taming of the Shrew," "Midsummer Night's Dream," or "As You Like It." We meet Orsino the duke who is love with Olivia. But Olivia chooses to avoid men. (She never quite got over the death of her brother and father.) We also meet Viola. She has survived a shipwreck but fears her brother Sebastian did not. Fearful of possibly being raped, she disguises herself as a man and enters Orsino's servant under the alias name Cesario. Shakespeare then introduces us to the characters of a subplot. (Maria, Toby, and Andrew.) They will plan a practical joke on Malvolio. Moving on, Orsino hires Viola/Cesario and asks him to woo Olivia on his behalf. And here we have irony both tragic and funny. Viola loves Orsino but must woo another woman on his behalf. And if as this was not difficult enough, Olivia falls in love with her! Later, we see that Viola's brother Sebastian has survived, and we meet Antonio. Antonio is wanted in the area for theft, but his touching loyalty will not allow him to dessert Sebastian. There is a comical scene where Orsino has a man to man talk with Viola/Cesario. Now we come to one problem I have with the play. Maria, Andrew, and Toby plan an over the top practical joke on Malvolio. Malvolio represents the Puritans. Shakespeare did not like Puritans because they opposed his theatre. But there is no denying that practical jokes and ridicule are lower forms of comedy than human misunderstandings such as in "Comedy of Errors." In "Taming of the Shrew," Katherine certainly draws some comments, BUT, if we understand her character, we can see that she really deserves our sympathy. Well, the conspiracy (with the help of a fake letter from Maria) makes Malvolio plan to woo Olivia in an absurd looking outfit. Olivia will think him mad, and he will be thrown in a dungeon to recover his mental health. Moving on, Andrew becomes jealous and wants to fight Viola. (Because Olivia likes her.) In a comical scene, Toby pretends to want peace, but forces the hands of both Andrew and Viola/Cesario. Now here is another major problem I have with the play. Antonio mistakes Viola for Sebastian and saves her. But he is wanted in the area, and the duke's officers arest him. Viola knows she has been mistaken for Sebastian and is happy her brother is alive. Now if she had any element of human decency, she would have indicated herself as a servant of the duke and protested Antonio's arrest. Or if this failed, any decent person would have followed Antonio to the Duke and tried to get Antonio released. Toby, Fabian, and Andrew all have a point when they rebuke her. I am not saying a hero or heroine can't have faults, but this extreme fault was sickening. Moving on, we have some "Comedy of Errors" nostalgia. Olivia mistakes Sebastian for Cesario, and of course there is no problem with this love. In the end scene, Viola and the Duke run into the captured Antonio. To be sure, Viola confesses he rescued her, BUT SHE STILL DOES NOT EVEN ASK THE DUKE TO RELEASE HIM. CERTAINLY, THE DUKE WOULD HAVE GRANTED THIS MERCY TO A MAN WHO HAD RESCUED SUCH A USEFUL SERVANT! The errors of the day are sorted out when Sebastian comes on the screen married to Olivia, and Viola is able to confess her love to Orsino who reciprocates. Shakespeare allows us to infer that Antonio will not be severely punished, and of course Malvolio comes in threatening to get revenge. Overall, it is a good play with intertwined plots, comedy, and enough tragic elemenets to make it plausible, but there are some flaws that prevent me from considering it one of Shakespeare's greatest comedies. |
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