Ambitious, but muddled high school musical comedy shake-spears art

The sheer idea of a movie called "Hamlet 2" turns out to be the funniest thing about this new comedy, although an edgy, full-blown high school musical number with the irreverent title "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" (accompanied by a gay chorus) brings down the house in more ways than one.

"Hamlet 2" brims with silly, funny ideas. So many that director Andrew Fleming - whose works range from the hideous horror of "Bad Dreams" to the salubrious shallowness of "Nancy Drew" - seems bewildered about what to do with them all, and muddles through his own overly ambitious screenplay, co-written with Pam Brady.

Is "Hamlet 2" a cheerful assault against arts education excesses? Or against intolerant, anti-arts political groups and conservative school administrators?

Both. Sort of. It's hard to tell exactly what the movie wants to tell us.

"Hamlet 2" instantly dumps the Hollywood obsession with super educators who take on the system for the sake of giving their students a shot at life. (See "To Sir With Love" up through "Freedom Writers.")

Tucson High School drama teacher Dana Marschz (Steve Coogan, the film director who literally goes to pieces in the current comedy hit "Tropic Thunder") has no interest in students, except as worshipful followers, such as the obvious closet case Rand (Skylar Astin) and the piously Christian Epiphany (Phoebe Strole).

In a quick background sketch, we see how Dana's acting career stagnated after a few TV commercials for herpes medication and power juicers.

Dana, the epitome of an insecure drama queen, now lives through his students in drama class, recently forced to relocate in the high school cafeteria and recently overrun by unworshipful Hispanic students taking what they perceive to be an easy elective.

Convinced of his own unrecognized dramatic genius, Dana adapts his own bad plays from popular movies. When his latest production of "Erin Brockovich" takes a beating from a scarily knowledgeable school newspaper critic (Shea Pepe), Dana goes to figurative pieces in front of his patient, quietly suffering wife, Brie (Catherine Keener).

Things get worse when Principal Rocker (Marshall Bell), not a Dana fan, can barely hold his delight while telling the drama coach his contract will not be renewed in the fall.

With his world and ego crumbling, Dana hits upon an inspired idea: Write a musical called "Hamlet 2." True, everyone dies at the end of Shakespeare's classic, but add a time machine to the plot, along with Einstein, Hillary Clinton and Jesus, and voila! Another "Springtime For Hitler" could be in the works.

Except "Hamlet 2," even with its moon-walking Christ (Dana) in the raucous "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" number, is no "Springtime For Hitler."

"Hamlet 2" begins to sputter once Dana takes his student production off campus, and its possibly sacrilegious content creates a media circus with outraged Christian groups attempting to ban it, and with the ACLU (led by a snippy Amy Poehler) out to protect it, no matter how quality-lacking it might be.

"If my Father finds out what I've been up to," Dana's Jesus says on stage, "he'll crucify me!"

The wily Coogan makes for a convincing self-obsessed teacher in the classroom for all the wrong reasons. Yet, his performance often feels overblown, as if director Fleming didn't know when to reel in his star's improvisations or tighten them up in the editing.

Elisabeth Shue scores with a welcome supporting role, playing herself as a Hollywood movie star who has opted to go back to school and get a real career as a Tucson nurse.

Is that the message of "Hamlet 2?" That the entertainment industry has become so soulless that actors need to quit to save their humanity?

Or is it that true art doesn't mollify populations, but provides infrequent but necessary stress tests for community beliefs and institutional values?

Both. Sort of.

"Hamlet 2"

2½ stars (out of four)

Starring: Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, David Arquette, Skylar Astin, Joseph Julian Soria

Directed by: Andrew Fleming

Other: A Focus Films release. Rated R for sexual situations, nudity, drug use. 92 minutes.