As said many times, have always had a lifelong love of animation, old and new. Disney, Studio Ghibli, Hanna Barbera, Tom and Jerry, Hanna Barbera, Looney Tunes and also the works of Tex Avery and Fleischer. With a broader knowledge of animation styles, directors, studios and how it was all done actually love it even more now.
Have also loved William Shakespeare's work from an early age, remember very fondly reading various parts aloud in primary and secondary school English classes when studying the likes of 'Macbeth', 'Much Ado About Nothing' and 'Twelfth Night' and various film adaptations such as Kenneth Branagh's 'Much Ado About Nothing' and Roman Polanski's 'Macbeth'. So a large part of me was hugely intrigued by 'Shakespeare: The Animated Tales', with such a high appreciation of both animation and Shakespeare. There was also the worry of whether Shakespeare would work as short animated adaptations compressed and condensed, when some much longer adaptations have suffered.
It was wonderful that 'Shakespeare: The Animated Tales' not only lived up to expectations but exceeded them. All my worries of whether it would work quickly evaporated when it absolutely did work and brilliantly.
Even with the short length, the essence and spirit of 'As You Like It' (again not one of my favourite Shakespeare plays but still shows his mastery of language, characterisation and storytelling) are brought out brilliantly. It does suffer a little from the condensation (hence the slightly lower rating compared to the previous episodes), with it not always being clear what's happening for anybody unfamiliar with the story. Little though is incoherent which is a big achievement.
Shakespeare's colourful and thought-provoking language is as colourful and thought-provoking as one would hope, so many recognisable moments with all their impact. All in a way to appeal and be understandable to a wide audience, being easy to understand for younger audiences (of which the series is a perfect introduction of Shakespeare to), with such complex text and story elements a lot of credit is due. Adults will relish how the text is delivered, the many quotable lines and how well the essence of is captured.
Younger audiences and adults alike will marvel and be entranced by the often hilarious comedy, the sparkling wit and the playful tone. Yet there is still an intensity and emotional core. There shouldn't be any confusion and there is nothing to scare youngsters. The characters are true to personality and handled with great respect.
The visuals are very appealing to look at, colourful, meticulously detailed, nicely rendered and atmospheric and perfectly suited to the various characters and tone of the play. The music is never inappropriate and suits the pastoral comedy setting beautifully, the narration is never over-explanatory or annoying, neither is it dumbed down. David Burke voices it in a distinguished fashion.
Sylvestra Le Touzel, Nathaniel Parker, John McAndrew and Christopher Benjamin stand out of the high calibre voice cast, Le Touzel and McAndrew being dignified and Benjamin and particularly Parker on villain duty that never gets over the top.
All in all, another fine animated adaptation if one of the weaker faring ones of the series. 9/10 Bethany Cox
Have also loved William Shakespeare's work from an early age, remember very fondly reading various parts aloud in primary and secondary school English classes when studying the likes of 'Macbeth', 'Much Ado About Nothing' and 'Twelfth Night' and various film adaptations such as Kenneth Branagh's 'Much Ado About Nothing' and Roman Polanski's 'Macbeth'. So a large part of me was hugely intrigued by 'Shakespeare: The Animated Tales', with such a high appreciation of both animation and Shakespeare. There was also the worry of whether Shakespeare would work as short animated adaptations compressed and condensed, when some much longer adaptations have suffered.
It was wonderful that 'Shakespeare: The Animated Tales' not only lived up to expectations but exceeded them. All my worries of whether it would work quickly evaporated when it absolutely did work and brilliantly.
Even with the short length, the essence and spirit of 'As You Like It' (again not one of my favourite Shakespeare plays but still shows his mastery of language, characterisation and storytelling) are brought out brilliantly. It does suffer a little from the condensation (hence the slightly lower rating compared to the previous episodes), with it not always being clear what's happening for anybody unfamiliar with the story. Little though is incoherent which is a big achievement.
Shakespeare's colourful and thought-provoking language is as colourful and thought-provoking as one would hope, so many recognisable moments with all their impact. All in a way to appeal and be understandable to a wide audience, being easy to understand for younger audiences (of which the series is a perfect introduction of Shakespeare to), with such complex text and story elements a lot of credit is due. Adults will relish how the text is delivered, the many quotable lines and how well the essence of is captured.
Younger audiences and adults alike will marvel and be entranced by the often hilarious comedy, the sparkling wit and the playful tone. Yet there is still an intensity and emotional core. There shouldn't be any confusion and there is nothing to scare youngsters. The characters are true to personality and handled with great respect.
The visuals are very appealing to look at, colourful, meticulously detailed, nicely rendered and atmospheric and perfectly suited to the various characters and tone of the play. The music is never inappropriate and suits the pastoral comedy setting beautifully, the narration is never over-explanatory or annoying, neither is it dumbed down. David Burke voices it in a distinguished fashion.
Sylvestra Le Touzel, Nathaniel Parker, John McAndrew and Christopher Benjamin stand out of the high calibre voice cast, Le Touzel and McAndrew being dignified and Benjamin and particularly Parker on villain duty that never gets over the top.
All in all, another fine animated adaptation if one of the weaker faring ones of the series. 9/10 Bethany Cox
