I don't usually find myself enjoying Shakespeare. I mean that's not to say I don't enjoy versions of it (I liked Romeo + Juliet),but I never took to the entire thing. The odd dialogue as well as stories that don't seem to mesh. And here I am telling you to watch this movie. I don't know what it is. Is it the sweeping style of the movie? Is it the emotional performances? Is it the production design? I don't know. What I do know is that Kenneth Branagh's 4 hour, and 2 minute unabridged version of Hamlet is a great movie, and 4 hours never flew so fast. Hamlet has the story of Hamlet. Hamlet finds out that his uncle has killed his father, and married his mother, and seeks his revenge. Sure it's simple stuff, almost uninteresting, but it's not the story,but the way it is presented in this version of Hamlet that is amazing. I feel sleepy when I watch the actors on the stage do this kind of production, and yet here all of them have a wild amount of energy toward the project. Kenneth Branagh who plays the titular character, near the end of Act IV has a monologue where all the camera does is zoom out from him. He's standing still,and speaking. And yet there is an energy to the speech. He knows how to deliver these lines. You start to feel this energy, and it builds, and builds into a wild rush. And that's only one moment of the film. This starts at the very beginning of the film, and builds as the twists, and turns of the story develop. And it's not only Branagh that knows how to deliver these lines. This right here is a star studded cast. Jack Lemmon (okay maybe he messes up a little), Billy Crystal, Kate Winslet and they even got Charlton Heston in this. All of these people, and quite a bit more. They all are giving their all into the movie, and when you just sit back, and see the film as the sweeping drama that it is it's just fantastic. I must credit the production designers, and cinematographers too. The shots of the castle are beautiful, and the castle itself is as well. There is a main room with a balcony that runs across the room that is so well designed, and elegant that just watching as the cameras weave about it is interesting. People I know that I am often to generous with movies. I can even say that of myself, but I know if a film is entertaining or not, and this is one of the great entertainments. I give Hamlet a 10 out of 10.
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December 2017
CategoriesAuthorHello welcome to FilmAnalyst. My name is Stephen Tronicek, and I really like movies. This is a way to get my opinions out to people. Thank you for visiting. |