If it seems like Helen Mirren is the only esteemed British thespian who has never passed through the gates of Hogwarts, that's probably because she might be. So leave it to Julie Taymor to allow Dame Helene to embrace all of her Harry Potter fantasies in the latest incarnation of The Tempest. Accio trailer!
Mirren stars as the gender-changed Prospera (formerly Prospero), the banished Duchess of Milan who attempts to rectify the wrong of being usurped by her brother and sent to a distant island. Naturally -- as those who read the play or Wikipedia can tell you -- she conjures a tempest to bring her persecutors to the island and all hell breaks loose.
The cast is particularly beefy (Russell Brand, Alfred Molina, Chris Cooper, Djimon Hounsou, David Strathairn and Alan Cumming) and Taymor brings her usual crazypants visual flair to the proceedings. As expected, though, it's the wand-wielding Mirren who steals the show. No offense to Maggie Smith, but wouldn't Mirren have made a great Professor McGonagall?
VERDICT: Sold.