Review of Hamlet (1996) by Patrick M — 05 Nov 2010

You get the feeling upon viewing the 4-hour uncut Kenneth Branagh version of Hamlet that William Shakespeare would be proud. Being uncut, every line of dialogue is in the film and what I love about Hamlet is that despite its lenght, every line serves its purpose. That's why it's my favorite of the ten(ish) Shakespeare plays I've read. The cast works extremely well in this. Branagh brings a tremendous tragic element to Prince Hamlet (and yes, he's supposed to; what I'm saying is that he did a hell of a job). Julie Christie is great as Queen Gertrude as well. My favorite performance though is Charlton Heston as the minor role of Player King. He's so great and is the perfect lead-in to Hamlet's "am I a coward" soliloquy. This is an epic piece, a 4-hour tragedy with themes as poignant as its soliloquies. I thought a few parts were a little cheap though, particularly the beginning. If you see it, I think you'll know what I'm talking about. If you're a Shakespeare fan (as am I), you will probably love this movie.

Oh, I'm sure you're wondering about my favorite Shakespeare plays, right?

1. Hamlet (Tragedy).

2. A Midsummer Night's Dream (Comedy).

3. Macbeth (Tragedy).

4. Henry IV, Part I (History).

5. Romeo & Juliet (Tragedy).

6. The Tempest (Romance/Comedy).

7. All's Well That Ends Well (Comedy) seriously, it kinda sucks.

I thought I had read more but I guess not. I saw an outstanding production of As You Like It once though.