Futatabi

The first act of Love: As You Like It is a nod to theater, Shakespeare's traditional medium. The set is bare, the action is staged before a curtain, and the actors performances are organic; they ignore any cinematic restrictions by bursting in and out of frame, and challenge the audience by breaking the fourth wall. A Shakespearean song sung in a minstrel style opens the film. The song ends, however, with dissonant chording, signaling to the audience that this is no ordinary Shakespeare adaptation. The first shot features protagonist Rosalind (Angela Gulner) who looks directly into frame with sad eyes. Her cousin Celia (Lenne Klingaman) quickly rushes into frame, throwing her arms around Rosalind and begging her to be merry and find comfort in her love. Rosalind listens only casually, looking around for a distraction. When she locks eyes with handsome Orlando (Matt Jones), she asks Celia - and the audience - What think you of falling in love? The focus then shifts to Orlando and his brother Oliver (Amir Abdullah). Orlando, it turns out, is just as unhappy as Rosalind, but his brother, unlike compassionate Celia, teases him. Tempers flare up and the brothers scene ends in a scuffle, with Orlando taking a dramatic departure from the stage. Before he can fully exit, however, Duke Frederick (Michael Navarra), Celias cruel father, calls Orlando back into the scene, and asks about his parentage. When Orlando replies that he is the son of Sir Rowland, Duke Frederick expresses his disappoint, but Rosalind finds herself more deeply connected with Orlando as Sir Rowland was her dear, banished fathers closest confidant. When she shares a forbidden kiss with Orlando, Rosalind sets the stage for her own expulsion from the theater. As a result, she and Celia have no choice but to throw on disguises, get out of town and open themselves up to a new world, and this is where the story really begins. Love: As You Like It then explodes with color, music and texture. Super 8mm film showcases the funkiness and vibrancy of San Francisco. The first shot after the opening credits features a trio of disguised characters, standing on a hill overlooking the city - Celia in an out-of-character dress and boots, Touchstone (Keith Barletta) in grunge apparel, and Rosalind dressed as a man with a Tom Selleck mustache. Stumbling down the hill and entering the city, Rosalind, Celia and Touchstone first encounter is with sensitive Silvius expounding on his love for unrequited punk love Phebe to video store owner Corinne (Annalisa Bastiani). In Silvius (Alan Kaiser), Rosalind sees a reflection of herself. Meanwhile, Orlando declares his love for Rosalind by writing poorly-composed poetry and stapling it to every tree he sees. Lugubrious stand-up comic Jacques (Hugo Pierre Martin) watches Orlando post these letters and is inspired to do a bit about fools and love and the ages of man in his next stand-up routine, which is met with little acclaim. Back at their apartment, Celia, who has discovered that Orlando is in the city, teases her clueless cousin about the identity of the stapling fool whose bad rhymes preach Rosalinds virtues. Rosalind begs Celia to tell her what she knows, and Celia seizes the opportunity to weave a tale about running into Orlando in Dolores Park. Her story, however, is almost immediately interrupted by Orlando himself. When Rosalind sees him, she decides to take advantage of her disguise and test her loves love. When Orlando reveals that he is horribly lovesick, Rosalind tells him that she can cure him - all he has to do is simply call her Rosalind. After some hesitation, he finally agrees to play by Rosalinds rules, and the ecstatic pair run off to begin their game. Meanwhile, Touchstone pursues his own prey, a seemingly indifferent, blue-hair Audrey. But when he tries to set down rules for them to play by, Audrey (Arielle Brachfeld) throws him a curveball, challenging his playboy view of women and unhesitatingly accepting his rushed marriage proposal. Later that evening, Celia and Rosalind run across a familiar face - Silvius. He is trying to explain to Phebe (Veronica Mannion) how his hurt feelings are the result of her cruel and callous words. She, in turn, mocks his pain and begs him to stop following her. Rosalind feels compelled to stand up to Phebe for Silvius sake. Phebe, however, responds irrationally, falling in love with Rosalinds disguise. After Rosalind and Celia exit the scene, Phebe makes up with Silvius and asks him to help her woo Ganymede (Rosalinds name in the Mission). He, of course, agrees to be her errand boy. Back at the video store, Jacques comes on to Rosalind, who is spared an awkward conversation by Orlandos arrival. After Jacques departs, Rosalind berates Orlando for arriving later than expected. Rosalind takes the game too far, saying that if she were Rosalind, she would refuse Orlandos kiss. Orlando, deeply hurt, rushes out of the store. Rosalind and Celia follow him. They find Orlando brooding in Clarion Alley, and Rosalind comforts him by pretending to be Rosalind in a more coming-on disposition. She begs Orlando to stay after he declares he must go. They agree to meet at eight that night. When eight arrives, however, and with no Orlando, Rosalind comes face to face with her own lovesick heart. She is just about ready to give up hope when Oliver arrives with bad news, informing the girls that Orlando has been hurt in an unfortunate accident. Rosalind collapses under the weight of this information and comes to terms with the fact that it might be time for her to grow up and stop playing games. The next morning, she meets with Orlando, Phebe and Silvius at Treasure Island, and makes them all promises, saying that the next day, they will each marry the one they love. Sure enough, the next day, Duke Senior (Michael Navarra) happily reunites with his long-lost daughter Rosalind and officiates the marriage of the four couples - Phebe and Silvius, Audrey and Touchstone, Celia and Oliver, and Rosalind and Orlando. And they all live happily ever after.