In a corresponding move, the film chips awayat the integrity of Dream’s language by breakingoff some of its defining components and reassign-ing them to other genres and other media
The author argues that the film weakens the original meaning and power of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by taking parts of Shakespeare’s language and repurposing them in musical numbers, fantasy sequences, or other cinematic forms
As with the Neil story-line in Dead Poets Soci-ety, the focal point of the final scenes is Puck’sepilogue and the audience response. The familiarsequence of shots draws all the film’s charactersinto easy harmony. All of Timothy’s doubters anddetractors, together with his supporters, watch inapproving wonder. Donna smiles from the audi-ence and fields compliments about her son. Thecast engages in mutual congratulations, realizingthat they have delivered a first-rate performance,and the audience’s enthusiastic approval grows to astanding ovation when Timothy, like Neil, appearsfor a final bow.
Were the World Mine uses the same cinematic pattern seen in Dead Poets Society: a climactic performance followed by an overwhelmingly positive audience reaction. The final scenes create a sense of harmony and acceptance, showing everyone supporters and former doubters united in admiration for Timothy. The applause and standing ovation serve as a symbolic confirmation that he has been validated and embraced by his community, mirroring Neil’s emotional moment on stage in Dead Poets Society.
That is, while nobody remains under the effects ofPuck’s potions, nobody is returned to the preciseposition he or she formerly occupied. Homosex-uality is not the new standard, but it is accommo-dated in the new understanding of masculinity.
After the chaos ends, the characters don’t go back to their original, rigidly homophobic attitudes. While the town doesn’t become entirely queer, it becomes more accepting, and masculinity is redefined to allow space for homosexuality
he filmreturns to the genre conventions sketched here inmy brief accounts of Shakespeare in Love and DeadPoet’s Society. Despite its various departures fromthe formula, it is finally a traditional, which is tosay ‘straight’, saved-by-Shakespeare story
Story still tells a conventional “saved-by-Shakespeare” story one that reinforces a traditional, heterosexual resolution rather than fully embracing a radical or transformative queer narrative.
in films of this genre, and particularly in Were theWorld Mine, is not the rich, famously flexible con-tent that allows Shakespeare to be mobilized onbehalf of potentially contradictory positions, butthe archaic syntax and diction that give the linesa ‘Shakespeareness
films use Shakespeare more for his recognizable “Shakespeareness” than for the real substance of his ideas
And together, the films demonstrate the flexibil-ity of Shakespeare to accommodate the needs anddesires of whoever is speaking the language
Shakespeare’s works are adaptable and can be reshaped to fit the intentions and perspectives of anyone who uses his language