To start, both directors took very different looks to the title character. I feel that while it stands alone as a very well made movie and contains great acting performances throughout, i think that it strays too far from the original text and layout of the play. I hope you arent like my daughter and have this due tomorrow. Mel gibson as hamlet wanders an underground morgue, the camera steady and shots short. Ten years later came michael almereydas hamlet, starring the ever angsty ethan hawke. Although kenneths version of hamlets character took action it is not as tragic as hamlets character in the play because by hamlet not taking action it shows how sensitive and hurt he was.
You know the lyrics, so the only possible surprises come from style and phrasing. Which hamlet movie is most similar to the book, which. The film also features glenn close, alan bates, paul scofield, ian holm, helena bonham carter, stephen dillane, and nathaniel parker. Action versus reflection shakespeares hamlet inspired many film directors to adapt the play onto the big screen. The two film versions of act iv of hamlet have many differences and similarities.
Act 3 scene 1 to be or not to be where polonius and the king set up ophelia to give back the love trinkets hamlet gave her, to see if hamlets madness is caused by ophelias rejection. We see that mel gibson s version isnt 100% chronologically correct and doesnt follow the exact script of shakespeare all the time either, however gibson more accurately portrays the probable feelings of hamlet. There is a book version of the hamlet screenplay, amazon uk though this has no notes on the text. Some mscenes have been revised or talks moved starting with one character onto the next, but. Hamlet the play and the movie 554 words 123 help me. In comparison, mel gibson looks like, well, mel gibson. Hamlet by mel gibson 1990 and kenneth branagh 1996 interpret and portray the play by shakespeare in different ways.
What are the differences between the 1990 movie version of. First of all, the play starts with the guards standing at the castle with horatio. Kenneth branaghs version of hamlet is seen covering most of the original text of shakespeare s play of hamlet unlike the mel gibson version which omits many scenes and dialogues. Then put the movie in the vcr and try to read along. Many times there are quite a few differences between the two. Gibson doesnt give us another hamlet as mope, a melancholy dane lurking in shadows and bewailing his fate. The best standard version is probably the arden shakespeare edition, amazon uk.
Mel gibsons performance is wonderfully overthetop, adding to the ambiguity over whether or not hamlet is really mad. The guards and horatio are waiting for the ghost of king hamlet to arrive. I liked how mel gibson played hamlet much calmer than branagh. Various film interpretations have been made of shakespeares hamlet, including the one starring mel gibson and directed by franco zefferelli 1990, as well as other better known ones such. However, the grave scene is more apropiate and is more accurate in scripture.
Hamlet, a tragedy by william shakespeare shows a lot of adaptations to movies. Zeffirellis hamlet employs short takes, the average shot length is 6 seconds, reminiscent of action films. An international coproduction between the united states, the united kingdom, and france, the film. We see that mel gibsons version isnt 100% chronologically correct and doesnt follow the exact. Mel gibson or kenneth branagh who portrayed hamlet. The difference between the setting shows how modern the kenneth branagh version of hamlet is compared to the mel gibson version of hamlet. It runs 242 minutes, the cut version runs 150 minutes.
During this paper you will be presented with my opinions in reference to determining which version of hamlet best reflects the original. Not only does the mood not sustained, but the staging is, well, to bright for such a dismal mood. Most recently filmed in 2000, a modern version of hamlet, starring ethan hawke. There are three main texts of hamlet, the first quarto of 1603, the.
First, shakespeares words dont surprise us as hamlet says. Yeah, hes shouty, like he always is, but i kinda like mel gibson as hamlet. In franco zeffirellis hamlet he seems to have no intention of changing the material of the play or giving it any sort of new unique perspective. Does anyone know the major differences betwee the play book hamlet and the 19901 movie version with mel gibson. The beginning of the mel gibson version is different in the aspect that it started with the funeral of. As a result of these modifications, i felt this version of hamlet movie was more fastpaced and engaging.
Hamlet to be or not to be mel gibson by jay rickards. Franco zeffirellis version of hamlet was released in 1990, with mel gibson playing as hamlet, glenn close as gertrude, alan bates as claudius, and lastly helena bonham carter as ophelia. Hamlet is a 1990 drama film based on the shakespearean tragedy of the same name, directed by franco zeffirelli and starring mel gibson as the eponymous character. Not braided hair braveheart mel gibson, just a short haircut and a light. These vary from close ups to wide angle shots, techniques possible solely with cinematography, that emphasize the darklylit setting. Im doing an assignment about hamlets love for ophelia.
Our group preferred the zeffirelli film because it portrayed a more modern version of shakesperes hamlet and it was easier to follow. When looking at and comparing these two versions of hamlet, a few major differences appear. I appreciated this production over the other hamlet films i have seen, because it was made more interesting through directors shifting camera technique. This made the audience feel better about hamlet because he was actually taking action. Hamlet 1990 dvd mel gibson leads an allstar cast in william shakespeares greatest tragedy, the story of danish prince hamlet.
Mel gibson film version of hamlet usa online essays. Mel gibsons is fun but mel gibson was far too old to play hamlet. We have an efficient customer service that works 247 to assist you. Efficiency analysis of shakespeares the catastrophe of hamlet, prince of denmark my performance analysis is based on shakespeares the catastrophe of hamlet, prince of denmark. Im not sure if we should thank zeffirelli or not anyway, i loved this version of hamlet as a teenager and that was pretty much. Branagh based this film on a conflated version of the hamlet text. Often, when a movie is adapted from a play, there are several aspects which are adjusted or completely lost. Hamlet, prince of denmark, finds out that his uncle claudius killed his. Does anyone know the major differences betwee the playbook hamlet and the 19901 movie version with mel gibson. This version supports the idea that hamlet is only faking insanity around others because if you were to actually slow down the film, you can see that as hamlet is opening the. The movie starring mel gibson and glenn close left out and even added things that were not originally in the play. Free comparison of hamlet mel gibson to hamlet 2000. This production was directed by franco zeffirelli and starred mel gibson, glenn close, alan bates, and paul scofield.
In this version, the direction left out details of the original play and added new scenes in order to make the play more appealing and. A comparison of two movies the purpose of this report is to compare and contrast two movies made about hamlet. While a lot of dialogues were switched around and changed, hamlet attained all the characters attributes to that of the novel mel gibson took on the role of hamlet and made him come to life, at least from what i pictured him to be. Read more comparison of a play within a play in hamlet. Hamlet academy award winner gibson braveheart, lethal weapon films returns home to learn that his father, the king, has recently died and his mother, gertrude glenn closethe stepford wives, fatal attraction, has already married his uncle, claudius alan. Yes, the director everyone loves for giving us the definitive screen version of romeo and juliet 1969 also delivered unto us the first serious actor mel gibson vehicle, paving the way for braveheart and the patriot which are essentially the same movie.
When shakespeare wrote hamlet he did not write in a scene depicting the funeral of king hamlet. Hamlet academy award winner gibsonbraveheart, lethal weapon films returns home to learn that his father, the king, has recently died and his mother, gertrude glenn closethe stepford wives, fatal attraction, has already married his uncle, claudius alan. Ethan halke is hardly a convincing hamlet and julia stiles no ophelia. Now mel gibson s hamlet 1990 is a very good one indeed also, one user says zeferelli, although cut some seemingly vital parts to the play, made it his own, and created a beautiful tribute to shakespeare. Hamlet the movie the time period in which the play and the movie take place in are similar. His relationship with his mother, glen close, seems slightly incestuous and is uncomfortable to watch but offers an interesting reading of the. I saw the 1990 franco zeffirelli mounting of the story of the mad dane years ago and i must admit that it didnt really make much of an impression on me. To be or not to be on the movie is after hamlet talks with ophelia, but on the play is before he talks with her. Rosie morgan history of film adaptations branaghs version versus others hamlet has been a popular tale for centuries, both on the stage and onscreen.
Hamlet was published in two different quarto editions during shakespeares life as well as in the first folio, the complete works edition that appeared within a decade of his death. These editions are known among scholars as q1 the first quarto, 1603, q2 the second quarto, 1604 and f1 the first folio, 1623. In the hamlet interpretation starring mel gibson as hamlet a normal age as hamlet is 30 in the text, interesting conclusions can be made from the analysis of the characters. Hamlet branagh vs gibson i am not a big fan of the 1990 movie version of william shakespeares hamlet, starring mel gibson. In kenneth branaghs version, he takes on the challenge of both directing the film and portraying hamlet. Hamlet william shakespeares hamlet has been filmed and performed on stage numerous times. Mel gibson starred in this version, back when he was a big star who didnt get into shady scrapes at traffic stops.
For this essay, the movie that hamlet is being compared to is the version with mel gibson and glenn close. I will present and discuss different aspects of the version directed by kenneth branagh to that of franco zefirelli. Kenneth branaugh version is gorgeous and i believe the best accomplishment, but im also quite fond of the laurence olivier version. In the mel gibson version of hamlet there has been many scenes left out that was initially from the play. The style of franco zeffirellis hamlet, with mel gibson in the title role, is robust and physical and dont take this the wrong way upbeat. Hamlet in the movie, hamlet was played spot on in comparison to the book. I tend to disagree with the other nayasayers whove responded to your bb thread, re. The value of watching different interpretations is that it can give different perspectives of the same text, perhaps seeing things that others did not catch. The mel gibson film of hamlet leaves out a large portion of the plot of shakespeares play like the fortinbras story in act 4 scene 4. This often depends on the directors point of view as well as the casting director, the 1948 laurence oliviers blackandwhite version of hamlet starting laurence olivier and eileen herlie.
Branagh is rocking some 90s eminem bleach blonde hair with a sharp mustache and goatee. After watching the mel gibson film version of hamlet, consider the powerful dramatic language, lighting, acting skills and styles, and use of setting. Almost all modern editions of hamlet conflate passages from q2 and f1, largely. This version is set in modernday new york, which means he gives the whole to be or not to be speech in the action section of a video store. The modern franco zeffirelli version was produced in 1990 starring mel gibson as the honorable hamlet. However in the kenneth branagh version of hamlet it includes the original version of shakespeares hamlet. With mel gibson, glenn close, alan bates, paul scofield. The film version of hamlet featuring kenneth branagh is a more successful production of shakespeares play of act iv according to its setting, editing choices and character portrayal. If i find something specific to your essay, i will add it. It is estimated that there are over 50 film adaptations of the play massey. Although the movie was released centuries after the play was written, the movie reflected the era that it was created in. Hamlets friends go to speak with the queen and king on the play, but during the movie this scene doesnt appear. We are to compare and contrast kenneth branaghs version of the film with the one starring mel gibson.