Shakespeare would be pissed

The premise of “Hamlet 2” seems like a ridiculous idea, and this is exactly what writers Andrew Fleming and Pam Brady are counting on.

Their hit-and-miss comedy attempts to offend every social group there is, but sadly falls short in delivering consistent laughs.

The story revolves around failed actor, failed writer and failing drama teacher Dana Marschz (Steve Coogan) who, in order to keep his drama program from being canceled, has written a sequel to Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” where Hamlet and Jesus go back in time to save everyone from dying at the end of the original.

With silly dialogue and catchy songs, including the highlight of the film, “Rock Me Sexy Jesus,” the musical itself is funny. Sadly, the rest of the movie falls a little flat.

Up to the point of the musical, the film drags terribly. The humor and tone are inconsistent, and it seems as if this movie doesn’t know what it wants to be. The acting is solid, the script seems well-written, but the whole endeavor seems to suffer from a lack of direction.

That being the case, this movie’s failure to journey out of the swamp of mediocrity and into the realm of hilarity should be blamed on the director, and no one else.

It is a rare thing when a director’s mistakes are apparent on film, but with a stronger, more clearly defined vision of what “Hamlet 2” should have been, the film would have ended up a lot funnier.

Confusing, inconsistent and attempting (unsuccessfully) to mix dry wit and slapstick, “Hamlet 2” is almost entirely worthless, minus the 30 minutes involving the play itself. Perhaps this is one of those films that becomes funnier with subsequent viewings, but it’s doubtful.

Shakespeare would be disappointed.