HAMLET (DVD/1990) DVD

Hamlet
Franco Zeffirelli directs his third Shakespeare adaptation (after Romeo and Juliet and Otello) with this film version of the Tragedy Hamlet. The titular prince of Denmark (Mel Gibson), returns home to his family's castle of Elsinore after years of attending school in Germany to find out his father has died and his uncle Claudius (Alan Bates) is the new king. To make matters worse, Claudius has married Hamlet's mother, Queen Gertrude (Glenn Close), whom he has unusually strong feelings for. Hamlet is visited by his father's ghost (Paul Scofield), who asks him to seek revenge for his murder. In order to find out who the real killer is, Hamlet stages a theatrical scene resembling his father's death. Claudius is upset by the production and leaves to arrange for Hamlet's murder. In the ensuing confusion, Hamlet accidentally kills Polonious (Ian Holm) instead of Claudius; Hamlet's lover, Ophelia (Helena Bonham Carter), goes mad and commits suicide; and eventually Hamlet and Claudius both meet their fate. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Cast Mel Gibson as Hamlet Glenn Close as Gertrude Alan Bates as Claudius Paul Scofield as The Ghost Ian Holm as Polonius Helena Bonham Carter as Ophelia Stephen Dillane as Horatio Nathaniel Parker as Laertes Sean Murray as Guildenstern Michael Maloney as Rosencrantz Trevor Peacock as The Gravedigger John McEnery as Osric Richard Warwick as Bernardo Christien Anholt as Marcellus Dave Duffy as Francisco Vernon Dobtcheff as Reynaldo Pete Postlethwaite as Player King Christopher Fairbank as Player Queen

Crew Alan Tomkins - Art Director Michael Lamont - Art Director James Morahan - Art Director Vincenzo Cerami - Art Director Maurizio Millenotti - Costume Designer Franco Zeffirelli - Director Richard Marden - Editor Ennio Morricone - Composer (Music Score) Dante Ferretti - Production Designer David Watkin - Cinematographer Bruce Davey - Producer Dyson Lovell - Producer Francesca Lo Schiavo - Set Designer Christopher de Vore - Screenwriter Franco Zeffirelli - Screenwriter Robin Clarke - Music Editor William Shakespeare - Play Author

Hamlet
Frequent Shakespeare interpreter Franco Zeffirelli gives Hamlet a go with this gritty and unglamorous version, starring Hollywood actors like Mel Gibson and Glenn Close. Gibson may have struck some viewers as quite the wrong choice, destined to be overmatched, but he displays surprising subtlety and range, not to mention wearing the cropped hair and scraggly beard to good effect. The actor's playful flickers of madness (his calling card in the Lethal Weapon movies) translate quite well to the scenes in which Hamlet gleefully toys with those he's trying to confuse. Close and Helena Bonham Carter are effective in the smaller roles of his female tormentors, with Carter offering a particularly touching breakdown scene. Ian Holm is also a scatterbrained standout as Polonius. As he has done in his other adaptations of the Bard, Zeffirelli (the first to filmmaker to cast actual teenagers as Romeo and Juliet in 1968) aims for accuracy in his production design, forgoing the anachronisms some directors use to amplify themes. Hence, the dank Danish castle feels like the genuine article, purposely lacking in grandeur. But the director continues to betray Shakespeare in familiar ways, too; not only does he truncate the text, but he even commits the cardinal sin of blending several scenes, which is usually avoided. It's decisions like this that rob the film of some depth and emotional resonance, not to mention scholarly respect. In fact, this Hamlet was likely an important motivator for Kenneth Branagh in his decision to film an elaborately unabridged, four-hour version of the play six years later. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
 

Alan Bates: British Academy of Film and Television, Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Pic (nominated) Dante Ferretti: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Art Direction (nominated) Francesca Lo Schiavo: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Art Direction (nominated) Maurizio Millenotti: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Costume Design (nominated)

National Board of Review, Best Picture (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: DD2: Dolby Digital Stereo Additional Features: cc Hamlet: An actor's journey Mel Gibson introduces the movie Making of documentary Mel Gibson: To be or not to be Theatrical trailer Subtitles: English, Français & Español MPAA Rating: PG DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 135 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Credits [2:16] 2. Royal Sorrow and Joy [4:53] 3. I Know Not Seems [3:26] 4. Too Solid Flesh [1:43] 5. Family Advice [4:24] 6. Amazing News [5:33] 7. Silent Apparition [3:46] 8. Murder Most Foul [5:28] 9. More Things in Heaven and Earth [4:29] 10. Cause of Hamlet's Lunacy [5:46] 11. Prince and Fishmonger [2:44] 12. Madness in Great Ones [4:33] 13. To Be or Not to Be [1:42] 14. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern [2:42] 15. The Play's the Thing [4:48] 16. Get Thee to a Nunnery [4:54] 17. The Mousetrap Sprung [4:11] 18. Witching Time [6:04] 19. Death in the Queen's Chamber [3:28] 20. Words Like Daggers [2:42] 21. A Visitation [2:16] 22. Bound for England [4:26] 23. Ophelia's Distraction [4:44] 24. Turning the Tables [6:21] 25. Laertes Returns [1:21] 26. Fall into a Weeping Brook [3:47] 27. Alas, Poor Yorick [1:48] 28. Sweets to the Sweet [3:40] 29. Unfriendly Wager [3:22] 30. The Challenge Begins [5:18] 31. Death to Three Schemers [5:54] 32. The Rest Is Silent [6:12] 33. End Credits [2:29]