Strange Brew

If you thought Strange Brew, starring and directed by Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, was just a buddy comedy about two Canadian brothers in an endless quest for beer and donuts--you weren't paying attention. Because it's also HAMLET.

My husband picked this up and watched me watching with eager anticipation, until the first mention of Elsinore Castle made me say, "How Gothic." Then he burst out: "IT'S HAMLET!"

And it's true. This beer comedy is a ... subtle?... retelling of the Bard's story. Pam, heiress to Elsinore Brewery, is trying to figure out how to run a business and to figure out what REALLY happened to her father, when along come two bumbling hosers to help her out and, if they can manage it, get some free beer. Looney and with just a little bit of a love story, this is one of the few comedies that is still funny years after its release. And we know that's because they picked a good story as their basis, right?

If you haven't seen this, and you like Shakespeare adaptations, check out this forerunner of all the other strange buddy comedies.