Other mistake: When Ben Affleck is helping the play actors rehearse a dance and Gwyneth Paltrow starts dancing the woman's part (even though she's supposed to be a man), Ben Affleck yells, "Are you a lady, MISTER Kent?" instead of "Master Kent," as men are all referred to throughout the film.
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
1 other mistake
Directed by: John Madden
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Geoffrey Rush, Joseph Fiennes
Continuity mistake: Halfway into the film, Shakespeare is holding Viola's face placing his hands around her jaw, looking closely at her. When the angle is behind Viola, we see that her hair gets caught around his left hand's fingers. The angle changes to a wider side angle and his hand has no hair around, even though he hasn't moved it at all.
Queen Elizabeth: Have her then, but you're a lordly fool: she's been plucked since I saw her last, and not by you. Takes a woman to know it.
Trivia: Rupert Everett/Christopher Marlow 's name does not appear at any point in the credits at the end of the film. This was due to Everett's decision.
Question: How did Will not recognise Viloa in her boy disguise? Even in disguise, you can clearly see it's her, and she didn't sound like a boy.
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Answer: In real life, Viola, of course, would be recognized as a female in disguise. However, in literature, film, opera, etc, it often is necessary to employ what is known as a "suspension of disbelief." That is, the author expects the reader or audience to know something is impossible, unlikely, or completely unreal, but they have to accept a certain premise in order to allow the plot to unfold. We go along with the idea that no one realizes Viola is actually a woman, so that we can enjoy the overall story.
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