Twelfth Night: Or What You Will (1996)

Director:

Trevor Nunn

Writers:

Trevor Nunn (adaptation)
William Shakespeare (play)

Release Date:

25 October 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Before Priscilla crossed the desert, Wong Foo met Julie Newmar, and the Birdcage was unlocked, there was...

Plot:

Brother and sister Viola and Sebastian, who are not only very close but look a great deal alike, are in a shipwreck...

Plot Keywords:

Cross Dressing | Mourning | William Shakespeare | Shakespeare's Twelfth Night | Shakespeare

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Imogen Stubbs	...	Viola
Steven Mackintosh	...	Sebastian
Nicholas Farrell	...	Antonio
Sydney Livingstone	...	Captain (as Sid Livingstone)
Ben Kingsley	...	Feste
James Walker	...	Priest
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Olivia
Nigel Hawthorne	...	Malvolio
Mel Smith	...	Sir Toby Belch
Imelda Staunton	...	Maria
Toby Stephens	...	Duke Orsino
Alan Mitchell	...	Valentine
Peter Gunn	...	Fabian
Richard E. Grant	...	Sir Andrew Aguecheek
Tim Bentinck	...	First Officer

Also Known As:

Twelfth Night

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild thematic elements.

Runtime:

134 min

Country:

UK | Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Brazil:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:U | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Cotehele House, St Dominick, Cornwall, England, UK

Company:

BBC Films

Trivia:

In Twelfth Night, the character of Orsino is several years older than Viola. However, at the time of the film's release, Imogen Stubbs (Viola) was 35; 8 years older than Toby Stephens (Orsino), who was 27.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: Feste's guitar playing for Cesario (Viola) and Orsino does not match up with the soundtrack.

Quotes:

Feste: Good madonna, why mournest thou?
Olivia: Good fool, for my brother's death.
Feste: I think his soul is in hell, madonna.
Olivia: I know his soul is in heaven, fool.
Feste: The more fool, madonna, to mourn for your brother's soul being in heaven.

Movie Connections:

Version of Twelfth Night, or What You Will (2003) (TV)

The best

This is, quite simply, the best production of a Shakespeare comedy ever filmed. The plot is delightfully absurd, the acting brilliant, the direction superb. It is the sort of comedy you can watch over and over again.