Hamlet (1996)
Country: US
Technical: col/scope 70 242m
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Richard Briers, Michael Maloney
Synopsis:
The prince of Denmark learns from his father's ghost that he is the son of a murdered king, and that he must kill his uncle to set the times in joint.
Review:
Branagh's third Shakespeare film was the one we were waiting for - and dreading - in equal measure: such an august text, and so much to live up to, it was bound to be either a folie de grandeur or succès d'estime. It is closer to the latter, but the decision to opt for 70mm, a text without cuts, and a star in every speaking part make it a close run thing. The problem is a ponderousness that risks cutting the very microcosmic, introspective aspects of the drama loose from their moorings, and the director's decision to block soliloquies via a simple slow track-out, accompanying an actorly crescendo, becomes repetitive. Nevertheless, with this script, and this much talent, there are inevitable felicities. The search for a definitive filmed Hamlet continues...
Country: US
Technical: col/scope 70 242m
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Richard Briers, Michael Maloney
Synopsis:
The prince of Denmark learns from his father's ghost that he is the son of a murdered king, and that he must kill his uncle to set the times in joint.
Review:
Branagh's third Shakespeare film was the one we were waiting for - and dreading - in equal measure: such an august text, and so much to live up to, it was bound to be either a folie de grandeur or succès d'estime. It is closer to the latter, but the decision to opt for 70mm, a text without cuts, and a star in every speaking part make it a close run thing. The problem is a ponderousness that risks cutting the very microcosmic, introspective aspects of the drama loose from their moorings, and the director's decision to block soliloquies via a simple slow track-out, accompanying an actorly crescendo, becomes repetitive. Nevertheless, with this script, and this much talent, there are inevitable felicities. The search for a definitive filmed Hamlet continues...
Country: US
Technical: col/scope 70 242m
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Richard Briers, Michael Maloney
Synopsis:
The prince of Denmark learns from his father's ghost that he is the son of a murdered king, and that he must kill his uncle to set the times in joint.
Review:
Branagh's third Shakespeare film was the one we were waiting for - and dreading - in equal measure: such an august text, and so much to live up to, it was bound to be either a folie de grandeur or succès d'estime. It is closer to the latter, but the decision to opt for 70mm, a text without cuts, and a star in every speaking part make it a close run thing. The problem is a ponderousness that risks cutting the very microcosmic, introspective aspects of the drama loose from their moorings, and the director's decision to block soliloquies via a simple slow track-out, accompanying an actorly crescendo, becomes repetitive. Nevertheless, with this script, and this much talent, there are inevitable felicities. The search for a definitive filmed Hamlet continues...