Shakespeare in Love

I, usually, do not like period based movies. And that too, a fiction that involves real life characters. It may have been true, as the authenticity of history and the knowledge levels of historians are always debatable (After all, those who wrote history may not have been aware of all the facts!)

But it is a very nice perspective that they have brought out through this movie. Needless to say, the story has been very well-treated, and the actors have done justice to their characters. The movie captures your attention right from the beginning till the end. The end scenes are especially worth a mention. The director manages to up the tempo of the movie as it progresses, and you are left to get absorbed in the theatre scenes (even though you can predict what's going to happen next, you still maintain a pin-drop silence to watch the actors enact the scenes).

And the best part of the movie is the way they have dealt with the concept of love. It has refrained from the jingoistic glorification of love (Love conquers all, Love is necessary for world peace, etc.). In fact, it has brought it out in as much practical manner as possible. You will not disrespect the feelings and emotions that has been portrayed as love, even though it borders on the edges of lust. One of the protagonists is married and away from family for an eternity, whereas the other is about to get married according to her parents' wishes. They are divided across the class and age barriers. Still they are able to cherish their love and live the moments in their present.

The cravings that they have towards each other transcends everything, and the two are able to bring out the best in each other. Both are in a symbiotic relationship letting each other achieve their dreams. One gets to showcase her acting potential, and the other gets the inspiration to pen one of the greatest stories.

And as is the fate with any great love story, it all ends up very realistically. It is not a coincidence that most of the greatest love stories of all time have all had tragic endings - with the protagonists either dead, or separated from each other.

Wonder, if that's true in real life too. Dead or alive, it is not everyone who's lucky enough to experience such a great feeling. Love, truly, is an emotion worth dying for.