Hamlet (1990) (DVD)

I'm not a fan of Mel Gibson as a person, who is a professed homophobic racist. HOWEVER, I do not watch movies to see movie stars, but to be put in the middle of a story and have an emotional experience. And this one knocks my socks off. If you have a hard time understanding the literature of Shakespeare, you will be surprised at how well you'll be able to follow along, thanks to the gifted performances of this cast who suck you right into the storyline and keep you on the edge of your seat. Shakespeare's Hamlet was originally written as a 4-hour stage production but has been amazingly condensed here to half that time without losing anything important. The set locations are marvelous, and the cinematography is top notch Gibson plays a handsome and clever Hamlet, articulating Shakespeare's 16th century English script superbly and passionately and with great force. I felt that he was very believable in the role. Super Star Glenn Close masterfully plays "the beauteous Queen of Denmark", not like a commanding Queen Elizabeth I, but with the meekness and humility of a wife and mother who has gotten caught up in a heinous crime, but with such wide-eyed innocence that one cannot help but completely forgive her in her remorse when Hamlet confronts her about it. One might say that Justice required that she pay with her life for her crime, but even Justice weeps for her as she makes that payment. And priceless is the annoyed look that she fiercely flashes at Ian Holm's Polonius when he tartly says to her, "Stay a while, Madam; I will be faithful!" (Just watch it and you'll understand what he means). Ian Holm (Scribe Zerah in "Jesus of Nazareth", Priest Vito Cornelius in "The 5th Element", Bilbo Baggins in "The Lord of the Rings") proves himself once again to be a master talent in his performance of the intelligent busybody Polonius. Holm fully embodies the character. I think Shakespeare wrote the part for him 400 years in advance. Helena Bonham Carter (Marla in "Fight Club", the Red Queen in "Alice in Wonderland", Queen Elizabeth in the "King's Speech") is completely believable as the pitiable Ophelia; her performance was haunting and makes one grieve for all women whose innocence has been crushed by cruel men.

Not everyone's cup of tea. Zeferelli takes great liberties with the play, omitting vast swaths of dialogue, several scenes, and the character of Fortinbras altogether. He also rearranges the order of several critical scenes, and makes mighty interpretive leaps such as having Hamlet overhear Polonius's instructions to Ophelia that she must not have any further contact with the prince--an understanding that of course colors our view of Hamlet's actions toward Ophelia for the rest of the play. Knowing that Hamlet KNOWS the poor girl is in a hopeless position, acting under her father's direct orders, makes his treatment of her seem wantonly cruel as the play moves forward, rather than justifiable as a manifestation of his paranoia. One failure of this interpretation is that Zeferelli doesn't do much with that knowledge--Hamlet's having overheard Polonius--once having established it. He seems to go on courting our sympathy for the character as if he'd done nothing to lessen it. On the other hand, the director does deliver a film just over two hours long--compared to Kenneth Branagh's four-hour-plus rendition--that is well-acted, properly atmospheric, successful at differentiating critical passages and performances from those which are meant merely to flesh out the plot, and relaxed enough en route that the necessarily intense scenes stand out as they should. (Branagh's version, while great in its own way, is acted by every character in every scene as if he or she were the MAIN character, and the scene itself the very climax of the play--a greater gathering of famous hams, each determined to make the most of his moment in the sun, has rarely graced the silver screen, if ever. Every one of the performances is marvelous--but taken as a whole, the play is exhausting.) My students tend to prefer Zeferelli's film over Branagh's--but add the reservation that if they hadn't already known the play, they probably wouldn't have understood this one as a stand-alone drama. Some of the aforementioned liberties with the play leave holes in the plot--the viewer familiar with the play is kind enough to fill them in, but Branagh's version doesn't require such helpfulness.

This is not only the best performance of Hamlet, it is simply the best rendition of any Shakespeare play that I have seen, either stage or movie. Though it cuts out half the play, it captures the heart of it perfectly. It is exceptionally cast. Although all the major and many of the minor characters deserve special honor in this manner, I will only mention that Helena Bonham Carter was astounding as Ophelia, and that Mel Gibson as Hamlet far surpassed himself. The cinematography is also exceptional. I think it will also be the best of relating Shakespeare to a modern audience, and without the modern gimmicks (which, to be honest, often fall flat). I am looking forward to watching it again.

When I first saw this film I was transfixed. It was my first amazing experience with Shakespeare on film. With the revelations that Mel Gibson is a manic jerk in real life, I am not a fan of him in general, but I once was. Even with my revised negative opinion, this is an incredible film. I still appreciate the talent that Mel Gibson brings to his movies. This is by far his best performance. Watching the extras (which I rarely do) it is obvious that he worked with manic dedication to make Hamlet a person deeper than the words. I am going to be a heretic now: I find his performance far superior to that of Sir Laurence Olivet and Kenneth Branagh. Franco Zeffirelli is a master director. All of the performances are masterful. The costumes and sets are amazing. This adaptation of Hamlet is tight and short. It focuses on the psychology and personality of Hamlet and his family and personal relationships at the expense of the politics and over a third of the play. I am frustrated with much of Kenneth Branagh's complete version of Hamlet, but if you want to see the full the play it is essential. If you want to see the most realistic, personal and compelling version this is the one to watch. Ian Holm and Glenn Close, Helena Bonham Carter are amazing. I am not aware of one performance that is not excellent. I have watched this film about six times. It gets better each time.

I just taught a course on Hamlet for Lifelong Learning and this was one of four film versions of Hamlet I used. This is a very good short version of the play. Mel Gibson does a credible job and the supporting cast is excellent. Glenn Close as Gertrude is outstanding - she shows the giddiness and joy of new love which helps to explain the rashness of her remarriage. Alan Bates as Claudius is likeable and you can see why Gertrude violated canonical law to marry him. This is the incestuous relationship at the heart of the play. Think of your mother marring your uncle. The reason I did not use Olivier's Hamlet is that while it's a good film with great acting - it's a very bad Hamlet. Freud was very much in vogue at the time and Olivier distorted the movie to put overtones of the Oedipus Complex into it. Also the Claudius in this film is obnoxious and there is no reason for Gertrude to marry him or for Hamlet to delay so long. One of the important points of this play is the struggle between the two "mighty opposites" of Hamlet and Claudius. They have to be seen as equals. The best Claudius I have seen is Derek Jacobi in Branaugh's Hamlet (also my favorite version of Hamlet). For a short version of the play, I would definately recommend this Hamlet over the Olivier version. Another point for viewers to note, in Shakespeare's time, a ghost could either be good or evil. Hamlet has doubts about the truth of the ghost's statement until the mousetrap play proves the allegations. At this time Hamlet assumes the ghost is a good, but sometimes an evil spirit can be telling the truth. It is up to the viewer to decide if the ghost is from heaven or from hell.

Brilliant is an often overworked phrase, but in the case of *Hamlet* starring Mel Gibson, the word cannot be used enough. For brevity's sake, I will save Zeffirelli's cudos for another time and place except to say that he has done a good thing. This review is for Chris Devore and his beautiful working and dramturgy of the more than difficult Shakespeare script. Devore somehow makes it better. Were he in London, late 1500's, he would have been a collaborator, making Will's work the pearl it is today. My only plea is that, at some date, we will get to see Gibson give the advice to the players which was omitted so that other pieces could be spared. This may have been Glenn Close's best work. This is not a complaint, but rather a sign that anyting else she may have or has done cannot be any better than this wonderful, small role. Gertrude, the Queen (Close), has an important commentary that must be heard in order for the play to work - Will was no fool - and it needs a Close to do it. Alan Bates has been a staple of English theatre and screen and has delivered many fine parts (such as Gabriel Oaks in *Far From the Madding Crowd*, 1967). As Claudius, the regicide and brother of Hamlet, Senior, Bates makes you believe that his reign could have been noble except for that one small cancer, that flaw in his character - very Clintonian and very believable. I have wanted to kick Ian Holm's ever since Ash hurt Ripley in *Alien*, 1979. I have to keep reminding myself that he really is that believable and that I really don't hate him, It's the character he has created so well. His body of work is repleat with characters of such believability that you forget his name - IAN HOLM - until he does it again, the next time, in the next movie. If films were strictly Hasidic, Holm's version of Polonius would be Kosher. There is not one piece of ham in his entire performance. It is worth the purchase of the DVD just to see him act. Everyone is good in the movie and there is not time to talk about all of them. But a note to those whose noses are airbourne and won't tolerate anyone but Olivier as Hamlet. There are several uneven performances in his excellent movie. There are no uneven performances in this piece. Finally, we come to the mad prince of Denmark. It is most astonishing that I watched this epic again after Mel's dark night of the troll, thrashing about in complete insanity, arguably brought on by hard likker, frustration, and stupidity. Yet with all said, Gibson IS the essential Hamlet. You will find no other actor who delivers the goods the way the Cruiser from the Boozer does. You know this is true, not just by watching the exquisite performance on the DVD, but by Gibson's own marveling at what was accomplished, not because of some actor's raison d'etre, but rather by the actor's very ability to understand that he is dealing with things that go beyond the ken of normal humans. IS Hamlet crazy, or crazy like a fox? And when is he crazy we get to hear Mel say in the devastating interview he made for the DVD release many years gone by. So, enough from me. If you want to see the best Hamlet ever, buy this DVD and feast. - Dick Anderson

When you think of Mel Gibson's career, it is a traverse across infinities of violence. Even his comic, antic cop movies are motivated by violence. Nobody can deny that the heart-sickening violence of the Passion of Christ was the the scene of the flogging of Christ by drunken centurions. Where better to start one's voyage than in Hamlet? Since this is a young Gibson, you can see where he began his trademarked looks. He looks off camera one way while his eyes shift to the other to communicate anxiety, or double think. We have seen this in many of his movies. He communicates the opposite meaning through his roughing Ophelia up while he smiles. Gibson's heart is that of a narcissist player, but here, in his youth, he carries it off. Glenn Close is a wonderful Gertrude. Gibson matches well with her, because she is the best Gertrude I have ever seen. The Polonius character is underplayed, which is unfortunate. He is a slimier character than shown here. His daughter, Ophelia, played by Hellen Bonham Carter, is as magnificient as is Glenn Close. She is the only Ophelia I have seen where I truly believed she was going crazy in grief. Great version of Hamlet!

Mel Gibson is superb!

This is a truly cinematic transposition of the famous Shakespearean play, not just filmed theatre. The outdoor scenes are shot in actual medieval castles and indoor ones in realistic four-sided rooms. Actors are generally not static but moving, and the camera follows them at length, at varying angles. The text itself is edited down to some two hours, and certain lines from omitted scenes are actually transferred to others. In certain cases, such as the sea voyage headed for England, the action is just seen, and no dialogue is uttered. Hamlet, the character, is filled with doubt. So apparently was Mel Gibson with his own performance throughout the shooting. He even asserts in the DVD’s bonus feature that he would like to be in a position to shoot the movie all over again. Was this situation planned by the director, Franco Zeffirelli, so that the movie’s main character appear to be always on a razor’s edge? In any case, this original production is an excellent introduction to “Hamlet” and is warmly recommended to all unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s world.

Spedizione veloce come sempre. Purtroppo mancano i sottotitoli in inglese, che utilizzo per migliorare la conprensione. Credevo fossero presenti in ogni dvd ormai... (se interessa, non sono presenti i sottotitoli in nessuna lingua)

„Hamlet“, eine der berühmtesten Tragödien von William Shakespeare, erzählt die Geschichte des dänischen Prinzen Hamlet, der den Mord an seinem Vater rächen will. 👑💀 Doch sein Zögern, seine Zweifel und politische Intrigen treiben ihn in den Wahnsinn – mit tragischen Konsequenzen. 😱⚔️ 🔹 Warum „Hamlet“ auf DVD ein Muss ist: ✅ Zeitlose Story über Rache, Verrat und Wahnsinn – ein Klassiker der Weltliteratur. 📖🔥 ✅ Großartige Schauspielkunst – je nach Version mit Stars wie Kenneth Branagh, Mel Gibson oder Laurence Olivier. 🎭✨ ✅ Opulente Inszenierung & starke Dialoge – Shakespeares Sprache in voller Pracht! 🏰🎬 Fazit: 💡 „Hamlet“ ist eine tiefgehende, fesselnde Tragödie, die auch heute noch bewegt. Wer Theater, historische Dramen oder große Emotionen liebt, sollte diese Verfilmung unbedingt sehen! 🖤👑 👉 Tipp: Entdecke außergewöhnliche Bildkalender, Puzzles & Leinwände – die perfekte Geschenkidee für jeden Anlass! 🎨🖼️ Erhältlich auf Amazon – einfach nach "Marco Warstat" suchen! ✨🧩

昔見て「メル・ギブソンのハムレットがいいんだよね!」と言っていたけど、今見たらどうなんだろうともう一度見てみました。やっぱりこのハムレットがいいですね〜。

This is my favourite version of Hamlet - just the right amount of anguish and insanity and an outstanding cast.