I decided to watch the movie before I read the play so that I could get the characters straight. Just reading the introduction to the play made my head spin with all the different characters and their lovers. Now when I read Demetrius I think "oh yeah, Christian Bale!", or Bottom--the very funny Kevin Kline. Kevin Kline did an incredible job with the character Bottom--hilarious, arrogant, but with a tinge of innocence.
The movie didn't stay very closely to the script, although I think most of the lines were directly from the play. I think it was a smart move to shorten the dialogue because, although their words are very poetic, the characters are can be quite winded. The movie had its funny moments but until the last scene of the play I would've categorized it in Romance rather than Comedy. But, like I said, that was until I saw the last scene where Bottom and a buddies act out the play of Pyramus & Thisbe. That was the most comical, and in my opinion, the best scene of the movie! The movie ended on a lighthearted, romantic, magical note that made the whole experience simply enjoyable. I don't think you could get as much out of A Midsummer Night's Dream without seeing it performed because the visual aspect seems necessary to the overall theme of the play.
Four and half stars for staying true to Shakespeare's vision of love and comedy, creating impressionable scenery and great characterization. It's too bad Hollywood thought it was necessary that the young couples be naked ALL THE TIME. It doesn't show anything, but still, they're naked a lot.
