Review of Hamlet (1996) by Serena S — 15 May 2008

This is the only film of [i]Hamlet[/i] that contains the full four hours of William Shakespeare's masterpiece and gives a unique feel to the whole story. Not many directors could pull this off without boring their audience but Kenneth Branagh's skillful use of bravora film style and stunt casting allows people to see the importance of the scenes that are cut out.

Examples of this include Gerarde Depardue as Reynaldo who's entire purpose in the film was to simply say "yes my lord" as Polonius asks him to spy on Leartes. Also included is Billy Crystal as the grave digger, Robin Williams as Osric, Jack Lemmon as Marcellous, and Charlton Heston as the actor.

Branagh's performance of the Act 4 scene 4 soliloquy is nothing short of cinematic marvel as the camera slowly pulls back as the intensity grows. It is a scene that literally made me want to jump out of my chair and start applauding.

Kenneth Branagh is the only film maker that understood the importance of every scene in this film and knew how to convey that importance to the general audience. This is a must see for everyone who enjoy's good story telling, brilliant acting, and incredible direction.