Imagine the most ludicrous, politically incorrect version of High School Musical possible. It would probably look a lot like Hamlet 2, whose cast is led by a Napoleon Dynamite-meets-Zoolander drama teacher (Steve Coogan).
From the opening scene, the movie constantly juxtaposes the serious and the ridiculous. The stern narrator, classical music, and highborn associations of the title are quickly dashed by the acting resumé of the protagonist: degrading infomercials, including awful 80’s style ones for gonorrhea treatment. While the narrator describes acting as the “embodiment of the dreams of man,” this high school in Tuscon is “where dreams go to die.” This failed actor, now directing high school theater, plans to rally his ragtag bunch of students into a stirring new production—Hamlet 2.
Humorous, albeit risqué, comedy and stereotypes abound in the film. All the familiar characters can be found here, from the bi-curious boy to hood gangstas. Scabrous jabs succeed in targeting Jews or Jesus, creating a film not fit for the easily offended, but delightful for those with a more lighthearted approach to religion. Sexual innuendos (a student calling himself ‘Haywood Jablomy’) and some violence (with plastic light sabers) also add to the controversial nature of the movie.
This shallow “sequel” makes little reference to the actual Hamlet. The title a seeming afterthought, the film incorporates only the title character, a similar haunting by his father, and a division into the classical five-act structure (one of which is entitled “Hope is a Demon Bitch”).
The cast’s little known actors portray overly dramatized, though well-drawn, figures, and Saturday Night Live’s Amy Poehler excels. Coogan, as the ridiculously dramatic drama teacher, intrigues the audience, and, surprisingly, creates a believable and sympathetic character. B-list actress Elisabeth Shue sardonically plays herself, adding to the theme of film industry corruption that runs through the film.
A mock of the hoary original, Hamlet 2 is a contemporary comedic farce; taken as such, it is one of the best in this class since Blades of Glory.
