In an attempt to beat his depression, Joe volunteers to help try to save his sister's local church from land developers for the community by putting on a Christmas production of Hamlet, somewhat against the advice of his agent Margaretta (Joan Collins).

[2] Joe Harper, a depressed and down-on-his-luck actor, asks his agent Margaretta D'Arcy to lend him money to put on a Christmastime production of Shakespeare's Hamlet in his hometown of Hope, Derbyshire.

Wanting the rendition to be "free and experimental", Joe holds auditions that attract a variety of performers, most of whom Margaretta thinks are mad.

Recruiting his sister Molly, Joe transports the actors and props their venue: a decrepit church that is due for demolition by developers.

Carnforth cannot remember his lines and often turns up drunk, Tom insists on using outrageous accents for each of his roles, Henry hates sharing a room with Terry, Nina's bad eyesight causes accidents, and Molly is forced to play Hamlet during rehearsals so Joe can direct.

Four days before the tech run, Joe insists the actors do not lose their nerve, and receives encouragement from Nina, who he learns is a widow.

The audience arrives, including Carnforth's mother, Nina's father and Tim (who Henry contacted, telling him that Terry has cholera).

[3] Roger Ebert, noted critic of the Chicago Sun-Times, gave the film three out of four stars, praising the performances and Branagh's screenplay.

He's back on top in the independent arena with A Midwinter's Tale, a film that offers ninety-eight minutes of pure fun re-interpreting the phrase 'the play's the thing'.