Were the World Mine

This utterly adorable fantasy musical is one of those tiny movies made simply in a small town and without pretensions other than to enchant... and if you see it in a crowded cinema keen to enjoy then you are really in for a magical experience. I know I am blathering on about this funny whimsical film in the tone of the title and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM terminology, but as I am having fun here with my descriptions, you will as well if you take the time to see and enjoy it as I described above. With it's heart tight in its lovable hero's hairy teen armpit, this DEAD POET SOCIETY locker room version of MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM has more than a whiff of the teen spirit from Baz Luhrmann's Leo/R&J and HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL for teenage boys. If it can be remade with a bigger sound and image quality and retain the hilarious tone and charm then WERE THE WORLD MINE might just cross into mainstream teen and young adult affection with its funny fairy charm intact and actually get world wide applause. Tanner Cohen can certainly sing, Nathaniel David Becker is an ideal love interest for him, and Zelda Williams makes the most hilarious and adorable English teacher with a very keen awareness of what when tweaked will want untold. I loved it and will happily get Pucked again even just for fun.

I was lucky enough to see this film at the official youth screening at the Vancouver Queer Film Fest. Liked it so much I walked in and stood for the second, sold out, screening that followed. Beautiful scenes, good acting, great concept / plot, absolutely rapturous music... this movie made my heart melt, made me fall in love with the two main characters. This is what movies are supposed to do, and Were the World Mine did this beautifully.

This film realizes many a gay boy's high school fantasy, and does it with style and grace. It's poignant, moving. The actors who play Timothy's two best friends nail it. The drama teacher is a woman to be reckoned with. And the two male leads are both gay in real life. I will be buying this one as soon as it comes out. In the meantime I will be listening to music from the film on their MySpace page.

This is a film for the young at heart be you gay or straight or just curious. And did you see that Peter Ustinov 1948 film "Visa Versa"?

If you like modern day fairy tales, musicals and films set in boys boarding schools then enter Shakespeare's Dream for a boy who is different.

After watching it you too may also wonder if this is exactly the sort of film that could be useful to schools since it reverses the idea of what is "normal" when it comes to sexuality.

I particularly enjoyed the way the story unfolds. Very clever. Now you see me now you don't. Like magic!

"All the world's a stage" says the fabulous Wendy Robie between watering her naughty weedy seedlings(no cctv) and standing up to the schools silly head. She's great! If there were more Ms Tebbit's around the world would be a far more enchanting and tolerant place to live. And at the end of the film when she says "Well now that you've had your fun" our dear lovely Puck finds his spell's true implication.

We are left after the curtain goes down resounding like tuning forks! So please watch this film if you haven't already done so and if you have maybe watch it again ... I'm going to.

Though it may be labeled as a gay/lesbian film, this is a witty and lovely takeoff on "A Midsummer's Night Dream." The acting by all the principals, particularly by appealing lead Tanner Cohen, Judy McKane as his mother, and Wendy Robie as the school drama teacher, is first-rate. The art direction, music and especially the cinematography help create a magical quality as the story enters the realm of Midsummer fantasy. Director Thomas Gustafson skilfully develops believable characters, manages complicated plot twists, and never loses the thread of "what if" that is essential to a retelling of Shakespeare's timeless story. Like the characters, you'll be enchanted by this small-budget but high-quality film.

Were the World Mine may not be perfect, but it is inspiring, with a brilliant and durable concept (a queer interpretation and extension of A Midsummer Night's Dream). Like a previous reviewer, I just saw this at the San Francisco Int'l LGBT Film Festival, where it was indeed a solid crowd pleaser and one of my three favorite features in the festival. The film grew from the director's short film "Fairies" (which was also memorable) and I dare say that the music and lyrics, and certainly the lead performers, deserve to have him tighten it up a bit, somehow get lots more money, and carry this forward to a remake a la Baz Luhrmann ("Moulin Rouge") or Julie Taymor ("Across the Universe"). In a way, the material is both weighty and fanciful enough to really need that level of realization to be properly appreciated. As is, though, "Were the World Mine" moved me to tears, made me laugh many times, and made me want to listen to its few songs again, more closely!