Absurdly overrated! Fails to meet expectations.

Rating: Null/10 (7 May 2002)

I saw this film with the expectation that it would live up to all its raving, especially by the Academy. I was grossly disappointed. If I actually identified everything I found unappealing in this film, I would exceed the 1,000-word limit, so I will only point out a few things.
The overly sentimental outpouring of love between Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes ruined this movie for me. (It was enough to trigger the upchuck reflex of even the strongest of stomach.) She, while not a BAD actress, was certainly not good enough to win the Oscar that year. (I maintain strongly that the award should have gone to Cate Blanchett, who was brilliant in "Elizabeth".) He, on the other hand, cannot even hope to reach the level of cinematic excellence that his brother, Ralph, has. The lack of facial expressions he brings to the role makes his character flat, and completely uninteresting to the point that one can hardly recognize that he is the main character of the story.
"Shakespeare in Love" was a great blunder, and I fail to see why the Academy gave it seven Oscars. Perhaps this is another reason the Academy Awards are taken less seriously year after year.