John Madden	...	(Director)
Marc Norman, Tom Stoppard	...	(Writer)
Geoffrey Rush	...	Philip Henslowe
Tom Wilkinson	...	Hugh Fennyman
Steven O'Donnell	...	Lambert
Tim McMullan	...	Frees
Joseph Fiennes	...	Will Shakespeare
Steven Beard	...	Makepeace - the Preacher
Antony Sher	...	Dr. Moth
Patrick Barlow	...	Will Kempe
Martin Clunes	...	Richard Burbage
Sandra Reinton	...	Rosaline
Simon Callow	...	Tilney - Master of the Revels
Judi Dench	...	Queen Elizabeth
Bridget McConnell	...	Lady in Waiting
Georgie Glen	...	Lady in Waiting
Nicholas Boulton	...	Henry Condell
Richard Greatrex	...	Cinematographer

Comments: I will call this my all-time favorite movie. I don't think I'll ever tire of watching it. Such a smartly written film. People often ask how I can watch a movie over and over again. I tell them it's the same way I listen to a piece of music over and over again. Once you've heard the lyrics to a song you know what it's about, right? Something about the experience just makes your mind and body feel good. Movies do that too.

Summary: Romantic comedy set in London in the late 16th century: Young playwright William Shakespeare struggles with his latest work "Romeo and Ethel the Pirate's Daughter". A great fan of Shakespeare's plays is young, wealthy Viola who is about to be married to the cold-hearted Lord Wessex, but constantly dreams of becoming an actress. Women were not allowed to act on stage at that time (female roles were played by men, too), but dressed up as a boy, Viola successfully auditions for the part of Romeo. Soon she and William are caught in a forbidden romance that provides rich inspiration for his play.