As You Like It

DVD Features:

• Region 0; Can be played worldwide
• Full Frame - 1.33

Product Description:

This frothy adaptation of Shakespeare's 1600 comedy marks Olivier's first screen appearance in a Shakespearean role.

Description by Image Entertainment:

The Bard's brilliant comedy with Sir Laurence Olivier in his first Shakespearian role. Elisabeth Bergner stars as Rosalind, the daughter of an exiled Duke, who falls in love with Orlando (Olivier), the son of one of her father's courtiers. When Orlando continues to ignore her, Rosalind decides the best way to be at his side is by disguising herself as a boy. Her deception works too well as Orlando would rather be in the boy's company than hers. How Rosalind works out her predicament is part of the fun in this early sound film adaptation of Shakespeare's classic play.

Plot Synopsis:

A screen adaptation of William Shakespeare's comedy of manners about a Duke and a band of his loyal followers, who steal away to the Forest Arden after being ousted by the Duke's usurping brother. There, they are joined by young Orlando and the Duke's daughter, Rosalind. She loves the young Orlando, but since she is hiding out in the guise of a man, she decides to play a trick on Orlando by introducing herself as Ganymede and asking him to prove his love for her.

Plot Keywords:

Classic | Recommended | Romance | Stage Play

Production Notes:

• Additional Credits: Fisher White (Adam), George Moore Marriott (Dennis), Lionel Braham (Charles), Austin Trevor (Le Beau), Cyrril Horrocks (First Lord), Ellis Irving (Second Lord), Lawrence Hanary (Third Lord), Joan White (Phebe)
• Different sources credit both Stuart Robertson and Gavin Gordon with playing the role of Amiens.
• Leon Quartermaine is credited as Dialogue Supervisor, in addition to his role as Jaques.
• The picture opened in London on September 3, 1936 with Elisabeth Bergner getting the star billing. In 1949, United Artistes re-released the picture. This time Laurence Olivier got the star billing.
• Laurence Olivier studied wrestling while preparing for the role of Orlando.
• During production Olivier was playing Mercutio in John Gielgud's production of Romeo and Juliet and spent 14 weeks going from the sound stage in the afternoon to performing on stage at night.
• The text of the play has been edited to fit into a 96 minute format. Touchstone's and Jaques' parts were reduced to small feature roles. The "All the world's a stage..." monologue, however, was retained in full.
• There are discrepancies with regard to the screenwriting credits for the picture. Robert J. Cullen is credited with "Scenario" in two Variety reviews: on September 16, 1936 and November 11, 1936. The November 16th review, however, credits Carl Mayer with "Adaptation" while New York Times credits Cullen with "Adaptation." Also, Variety says the "treatment is sugested by" J. M. Barrie in the September review and "Adaptation Suggested by" in the subsequent November review. The New York Times omits Barrie and Mayer altogether.

Cast and Crew:

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DVD Details:

• Format: DVD
  
• Genre: Comedy
  
• Label: Image Entertainment
  
• Originally Released in: 1936
  
• Rated: Not Rated
  
• Run Time: 1 hours, 36 minutes
  
• Video: Black & White
  
• Region: Region 0 encoding; Can be played worldwide, NTSC-format.
  
• Release Date: July 20, 1999
  
• OLDIES.com Sales Rank: 93,686
  
• Item Number: IMG 5666D
  
• UPC: 014381566628
  
• Shipping Weight: 0.26/lbs (approx); Counts as 1 item for International Shipping.