Master Shakespeare would have liked this, I think.

Rating: 10/10 (24 July 2002)

There were many who were surprised that "Shakespeare In Love" took home the top prize at the 1999 Oscars, surprised that Steven Spielberg's powerful "Saving Private Ryan" didn't win Best Picture.
I'll defend the Academy's decision not by disparaging "Ryan", but by praising both films. "Saving Private Ryan" honors the men who saved the world. "Shakespeare In Love," meanwhile, honors everything that makes the world worth saving-- love, wit, creativity, passion, beauty, and most of all, soul. There isn't a scene in this film that doesn't crackle with the energy of people intoxicated with their ability to express themselves to the world. People create themselves with what they say, and in "Shakespeare In Love," it is a beautiful, sad, wonderful world they make.