Hamlet 2

I just finished watching a DVD of Hamlet 2. I liked this show very, very much. I thought was very funny and touching and the best faux Shakespeare since Vincent Price’s Theater of Blood. It is a skewed look at the inspiring teacher genre.

I liked it because I identified with the teacher. Not because I am a drama teacher with a lot of father issues, but because he was a man whose hopes, dreams and aspirations for himself were greater than the talent he has. Sometimes I feel like this, but like the hero--I keep trying.

The play within the movie in Hamlet 2 is great--or what is shown of it. It has a time traveling Jesus aiding Hamlet in a quest to change the events that made him the greatest tragic hero of English literature. The performance of the song and dance number “Sexy Jesus” could offend some but it asks an honest question. Can the humble carpenter of the Bible return today and preach to the multitudes or would he have to adopt a sports hero/super model/rock star persona to succeed in a celebrity/media/image/24-hour news cycle centered world?