Trailer
Plot summary
Viola and her twin brother Sebastian are performers on a ship that is wrecked in a storm. Separated from him, Viola washes ashore in Illyria and believes he drowned. She cuts her hair and dresses as a young man called Cesario to serve Duke Orsino. Orsino is in love with Countess Olivia, who is mourning her brother and refuses his advances. He sends Cesario to plead his case, and Olivia falls for the messenger instead. Viola, who loves Orsino, finds herself trapped between his affection for Olivia and Olivia's affection for her disguise. In Olivia's household, her uncle Sir Toby Belch and Maria scheme against her steward Malvolio, while Sir Toby urges his friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek to court Olivia.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Twelfth Night (1996)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Trevor Nunn's Twelfth Night added a backstory absent from Shakespeare's play: Viola and the other survivors come from Messaline, which is at war with Illyria over trading disputes, so they must hide as fugitives.
- The film opens with extra dialogue in which Feste narrates the shipwreck and the separation of the twins, material not in Shakespeare's play.
