Rate It
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Rating Averages
My Friends |
Not rated. () |
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All Flixster |
(2212) |
1995 |
3657 |
Female |
(1151) |
1038 |
1903 |
Male |
(1061) |
957 |
1754 |
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| Romeo + Juliet (66%) |
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| 10 Things I Hate About You (28%) |
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| Hamlet (100%) |
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| William Shakespeare's Richard the Second (50%) |
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| The Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (The Bad Sle... (40%) |
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Plot: Modern day adaptation of Shakespeare's immortal story about Hamlet's plight to avenge his father's murder in New York City.
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Recent Reviews
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MCT:June 13, 2008
"Good night sweet prince, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest."
Hamlet is a modern Shakespeare play adaptation that I found to be both visually stunning, but also a compelling and engaging film. Complete with a stellar cast, this is a rare film that shouldn't me missed.
I can't call myself a huge fan of some other films based on one of Shakespeare's plays, but Hamlet has proved as an exception. Director Michael Almereyda has done as Baz Luhrmann did for Romeo + Juliet, in that he has created a very contemporary vision for Hamlet, being set in the modern era. In this case, the film is set in New York City, in 2000. This version stays true to the original play and manages to fit everything effectively within less than two hours (the original play taking four hours to conclude). As expected, it centres around the character Hamlet, now played by Ethan Hawke. The plot could be considered complicated at times and hard to understand, but if you give this film the attention it needs then you will certainly appreciate it's story.
The plot revolves around the experiences and emotions coming from Hamlet, and we get an insight into exactly what is happening at the time. It tells the tragic story of murder, compassion and betrayal, and is put together beautifully with strong acting performances, a stylish score and an enthralling take on Shakespeare's work. The score in particular perfectly matched the events at the time and showed contrast between different emotions and characters. The music reflected the tragic events and seemed even grim at times, with the actor's help, to maintain the intriguing scenes.
Ethan Hawke still remains the youngest actor to have played Hamlet on film, and I think he did it exceptionally. He showed every emotion and seemed to put so much passion into the character; it's hard to imagine anyone to have played Hamlet better for this film. He certainly showed more of the character's darker side, which I found even more interesting to watch. Kyle MacLachlan as Claudius was more of a diverse choice, and yet he still managed to pull off the role very well. Julia Stiles' role was smaller than I would have imagined, but even for her very few scenes she gave a pretty decent performance. There were some other recognisable performances from versatile actors such as Bill Murray, but nothing of an incredibly high standard.
Probably the only flaw of this film was the consistency of the acting standard. At times it is strong, powerful and very connecting.... but for some other scenes it had a standard below mediocre.
Indie director Michael Almereyda has created a brilliant film that should be appreciated and treasured by all who see it. Unfortunately, I can't say that this film is for everyone, but those who don't mind its dialogue and the story by Shakespeare should find it to be an emotional and innovative film. I recommend this to anyone interested, for me it was definitely worth try. -
MCT:September 11, 2007nice modern update on shakespeare's classic story of revenge.
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MCT:September 1, 2007I never found this movie particularly interesting. I remember some of the awesome camera work, but the performances fall flat and the telling of the classic story lacks energy.
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MCT:August 15, 2007Could of been better, shakespeare close eyes immediately, ethan hawke yuck!
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MCT:July 29, 2007God-awful!
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MCT:December 21, 2008
Being a fan of Shakespeare, Its a must to see all adaptations of his work. I understand they wanted to make a new updated version, but something about it just wasn't right. I don't know if it was the cast, or the direction but something was off. Shakespeare's words can never be wrong so the movie is still worth the watch. Just don't expect to be blown away!
Comments
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itbegins2005posted 296 days ago -
