YOU'LL like it, but not a lot, as a certain Mr Paul Daniels might say about the latest Kenneth Branagh screen Shakespeare. He's adapted and directed but doesn't appear, leaving the act duties to an eclectic cast of Brits and the odd American.

Considering his version is set in 1880s Japan (but filmed in a garden in Sussex) and opens with a ninja attack that sees the Duke overthrown by his brother Frederick, this is remarkably dull.

Just as having Brian Blessed play both brothers doesn't make it twice the fun, so moving the Forest of Arden to Japan doesn't make it any more interesting. Brotherly bitching, a girl disguised as a boy and an attack by a lion should provoke far more reaction than it does in Branagh's oddly flat staging.

Stars: Bryce Dallas Howard, Romola Garai, Adrian Lester, Kevin Kline, David Oyelowe, Alfred Molina, Brian Blessed, Janet McTeer, Richard Briers
Running time: 127 mins
Rating: Two stars