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Reviews
More Strange Than True (2016)
This is sadly the worst indie, micro-budget film I have ever seen.
This is sadly the worst indie, micro-budget film I have ever seen. The director destroys Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream through his confused, experimental attempt to fuse surrealism, comedy and paraphrased extracts from the original text. After 10 minutes of watching his work, it is clear that Shakespeare's masterpiece has been misunderstood, and that the director's comprehension of the text is superficial. The opportunity, for example, to modernise Shakespeare's exploration of the difference between appearance and reality is there but is squandered.
Because the film is difficult to follow, due to its lack of visual variation and choice of shots, the film feels disjointed and clumsily put together. Maybe even rushed. It looks as if it was shot in a basement with no proper lighting or professional equipment. The cinematography, in part due to the poor lighting, is a disappointment - a shame as the film could have been, at least, a visual delight. The music is bad and the actors look like they belong on stage. They are terrible too.
I assume the director is a beginner, so perhaps all credit to him for at least trying! However, it is a perfect example of awful filmmaking - and a great example why the leap from amateur to professional filmmaking eludes the vast majority.