Hurrah, a film that the insipid Paltrow didn't manage to ruin

Rating: 10/10 (5 February 2001)

Let's get this clear: Gwyneth Paltrow is a mediocre actress with dodgy voice talent and no (demonstrable) ability to play a part other than "thin pretty spunky vulnerable ice goddess". That's actually not a difficult part to play: you just enunciate clearly even when you're supposed to be in distress, and tilt your head on its side at every opportunity. And Gwyneth does this in spades.
Luckily, her ego driven performance fails to de-rail this enjoyable film, mostly because the rest of the cast flatly refuse to play to her weaknesses and deliver naturalistic and winning performances. The fact that most of the actors don't adopt a Fakespearean accent further distances Gwyneth from the rest of the splendid cast.
And that's the highest compliment that I can give. Much as with Apollo 13, the prescence of an (non)actor that I detest failed to ruin my enjoyment of this rowdy, bawdy and very funny film. Oh, and one last thing, Gwyneth: you're way, way too old to be playing Juliet. :p