Shakespeare in love, reality and illusion

The film “Shakespeare in Love” through the use of various film techniques and the way in which it is produced, explores many themes and issues relating to the narrative, one of the most prominent being that of reality vs. fiction.
The statement “This film, in the way it is crafted, suggests that fiction is more important than real life.” is one that is not entirely correct as throughout the film, reality is demonstrated as inescapable and plays a much larger role in the lives of the characters than fiction. The film is teeming with “real life” situations that the director has deliberately included to contrast reality and fiction. These would include bawdiness, sex, love, conflict and loss just to name a few.

The play begins with a scene depicting the harsh reality of Elizabethan London, and this is achieved through the use of different camera shots, angles, lighting and movement. The camera shots are generally taken from eye-level focusing on the frantic hustle and b...