A Midsummer Night's Dream

Michael Hoffman wrote and directed this adaptation of William Shakespeare's comedy, moving the action to a small Italian town at the end of the nineteenth century. Hermia loves Lysander, but her father has promised her to Demetrius, who wants nothing to do with Helena, the woman pursuing him. The four young people slip away into a nearby forest, where Oberon and Titania rule over a fairy kingdom and where a magical flower can make anyone fall for the first person they see upon waking. Puck's meddling with that potion turns the lovers' flight and the fairies' own quarrel into confusion, catching a troupe of amateur actors rehearsing a play for the duke's wedding.

Hoffman's film follows Some Girls, Soapdish, Restoration and One Fine Day among the features he directed. Kevin Kline plays Nick Bottom, with Michelle Pfeiffer as Titania, Rupert Everett as Oberon, Stanley Tucci as Puck, Calista Flockhart as Helena and Anna Friel as Hermia, among a credited cast of 42. It was produced by Leslie Urdang and Ann Wingate for Fox Searchlight Pictures, Regency Enterprises and Taurus Film, on a budget of 11 million dollars, and took about 16 million dollars worldwide.

On IMDb it holds 6.4 out of 10 from roughly 28,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.4 out of 10 from a few hundred votes. A critics' rating of 6.6 out of 10 from 76 reviews places it a little above the audience scores, though all three sit in similar territory. The 116-minute film mixes comedy, fantasy and romance.