Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet Analysis

202 Words1 Page

Hamlet starring Kenneth Branagh exhibits a different approach than most other productions. In the version with David Tennant, we see a slightly modernized way of telling Shakespeare’s story. The director utilizes modern technology to gain a new perspective on the story. Though, it lacks the full context of the play by rearranging and leaving out scenes. This is why I enjoyed the Kenneth Branagh version better despite it being significantly longer. Although, I can not help, but enjoy David Tennant’s better portrayal of Hamlet.
The Kenneth Branagh version has a whimsical feel to it with an artistic set and costuming. The director sticks to the original play very closely except for the draw out final scene. Laertes and Hamlet duke it out in

Show More
Related

  • Branagh And Hamlet Comparison Essay

    1106 Words  | 3 Pages

    During class we have reviewed many versions of the play Hamlet. The two movie versions that I chose to compare on the play Hamlet are the David Tennant version and the Kenneth Branagh version. I chose these two versions because these were the two that most interested me. I believe that some scenes from each movie were better than the other, but overall I liked these two versions just as equally. The three main scenes that stood out to me that I will be comparing are ‘Ophelia’s Mad Scene’, the ‘Hamlet Kills Polonius’ scene, and Hamlet’s ‘To be or not to be’ scene.

    Read More

  • Audience to This Act in David Tennant´s Hamlet

    1254 Words  | 3 Pages

    Everyone knows the story of Hamlet: Hamlet’s father is killed, Hamlet’s mother marries the evil Uncle, everyone thinks Hamlet has gone mad, and almost everyone dies at the end. In David Tennant’s version of Hamlet, the use of the characters’ physical antics, interactions with each other, the stark similarities between the characters, and the way they dress, changes how the audience interprets each character’s actions and contribution to the play as a whole, which then determines how successful this version of Hamlet is.

    Read More

  • Hamlet: Mel Gibson vs Kenneth Branagh

    1124 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet, a tragedy by William Shakespeare shows a lot of adaptations to movies. Hamlet by Mel Gibson (1990) and Kenneth Branagh (1996) interpret and portray the play by Shakespeare in different ways. The two film versions of Act IV of Hamlet have many differences and similarities. Kenneth Branagh’s 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. The film version of Hamlet featuring Kenneth Branagh is a more successful production of Shakespeare’s play of Act IV according to its setting, editing choices and character portrayal.

    Read More

  • Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet for Today

    1803 Words  | 4 Pages

    Franco Zeffirelli's 1990 filmic translation of William Shakespeare's Hamlet is a dramatic telling of the classic story which is as well acted as it is entertaining. Aside from these points, Zeffirelli's (and co-scripter Christopher Devore's) screenplay is an edited, and re-mixed version of the original which has many lines cut, as well as the entire sub plot concerning Fortenbras, completely removed. Franco Zefirelli's private interpretation of Hamlet, although divergent in some ways from Shakespeare's version, still remains a superior rendering, due to the continuity of the screenplay.

    Read More

  • Hamlet the Play and the Movie

    554 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a story about a king that was murdered by his brother and the prince has been asked by his father?s ghost to avenge his murder. The original story line has been altered a few times since it has been written. The original Hamlet the play and the altered Hamlet the movie are shown differently in many different ways. Hamlet the movie with Mel Gibson shows different things than the play, but there are three major differences between the two. The three major differences are in the way both of the productions start out, differences in the scene that the players put on a play, and differences in the way the productions end.

    Read More

  • Hamlet´s Soliloquy Through the Years

    1133 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet. Dir. Kenneth Branaugh. By William Shakespeare and Kenneth Branaugh. Perf. Kenneth Branaugh, Julie Christie. Castle Rock Entertainment, 1996. Film.

    Read More

  • A Range of Interpretations of Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1287 Words  | 3 Pages

    Comments on John Russell Brown’s  Multiplicity of Meaning in the Last Moments of Hamlet   Though I am in almost complete agreement with John Russell Brown's close reading of Hamlet's dying words and with his contention that "Shakespeare chose, very positively, to provide a multiplicity of meanings at this crucial point" (30), I wonder whether his analysis, helpful as it is for an understanding of the text in the study, is equally valid in the theatre. If we were speaking of one of Shakespeare's sonnets I should find it much easier to believe in the co-existence of four or five distinct meanings, even if they "tend to cancel each other out" (27). In performance, however, we might find ourselves rather in the position of Jane Austen's "inferior young man" Mr. Rushworth, who "hardly knew what to do with so much meaning."1 It is true that each actor will have to choose between a range of possible interpretations, as John Russell Brown says--and no-one knows it better!--, but it is also worth paying closer attention to the textual problem involved.

    Read More

  • Hamlet Movie Vs Play

    1353 Words  | 3 Pages

    “I like the movie but it was not as good as the book” is a saying that is said by most people. In most cases, a movie changes drastically from the book it is based on. Hamlet is one of those cases. Although it does not change completely, there are some big differences and similarities within the book and movie. Reading the play and then watching the movie makes it easier to pick out the differences and similarities. Being able to compare and contrast the movie and play of Hamlet might make it easier to decide which one is better or which one gives a better story. The movie and play of Hamlet are different because of the chronological order, parts being left out and parts being added. They are the same in ways through dialogue, characters,

    Read More

  • An Analytical Essay Of The Tragedy Of Hamlet, Prince Of Denmark

    1156 Words  | 3 Pages

    Originally titled The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke, this tragedy has been reproduced more times than any other play written by William Shakespeare (en.wikipedia.org 1 of 9). Prince Hamlet also has the lengthiest appearance of any character in all of Shakespeare's plays (en.wikpedia.org 6 of 9). In the play, Prince Hamlet is caught between balancing his need to avenge his father's death, dealing with the disgust he felt for Gertrude and Claudius' love affair, and maintaining the relationship he has with Ophelia without exposing his plans to kill his uncle Claudius for the murder of King Hamlet.

    Read More

  • Comparison of Hamlet's Soliloquy And The Prince of Wales's Version

    594 Words  | 2 Pages

    To begin with, the resemblance between the texts can be argued due to the fact that in the modernized version some important messages are neglected. An example would be that while in text A nobility and honor are very important factors in the dilemma, in text B these are totally ignored and instead replaced by a purely reasonable choice. This can undoubtedly be seen when comparing the first parts of the texts. In text A Hamlet utters "whether `tis nobler to suffer[...]" which in the modernized version is written as "should [I] just say OK?." Furthermore Hamlet expresses dying while sleeping as a way of ending all the "heartache and [...] thousands [of] natural shocks that flesh is heir to" while in the modernized version it is mentioned as "taking the quick way out" when you are "stuffed up [...] with [all] mess". These two do not convey the same message. In text A the reader gets the impression of mental and emotional depression while text B puts it as if it were just giving up for nothing when you've had enough. The real depth of sadness never gets trough and the reader's opinion might therefore be that it is a hopeless person with no intentions in life who does not really have a valid reason to feel sorry for him/her-self.

    Read More

  • Hamlet And Branagh's Controversy

    816 Words  | 2 Pages

    Marriage has shaped human society over millennia. Despite its perpetual evolution, deep-rooted societal norms continue to dictate the moral aspect of the institution. The original text as well as Branagh’s modern interpretation of Hamlet’s soliloquy “O, that this too too solid flesh would melt”, both effectively highlight the controversy surrounding Gertrude’s new marriage, which resonates with audiences of all time periods, through the characterization of a shameless Gertrude, a theme of immorality in a sudden marriage and Kenneth Branagh’s use of a victimized tone.

    Read More

  • Branagh's Hamlet Comparison Essay

    623 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are numerous Hamlet movie interpretations but Kenneth Branagh’s version is the only unabridged version of the famous play, being just over 4 hours long. Branagh’s bold choices and unique directorial skills make his Hamlet one of the most spectacular Shakespearean films ever made. Even though he keeps all of Shakespeare’s original text, he changes the setting of the play from the traditional Renaissance that Shakespeare lived through, to the 19th century. All in all, the whole adaptation is drastically different to the stereotypical Shakespearean setting, attire and decorations, however in the same time keeping the whole original text.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of Hamlet And Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet

    1613 Words  | 4 Pages

    Different adaptations of William Shakespeare’s works have taken various forms. Through the creative license that artists, directors, and actors take, diverse incarnations of his classic works continue to arise. Gregory Doran’s Hamlet and Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet bring William Shakespeare’s work by the same title to the screen. These two film adaptations take different approaches in presenting the turmoil of Hamlet. From the diverging takes on atmosphere to the characterization of the characters themselves, the many possible readings of Hamlet create the ability for the modification of the presentation and the meaning of the play itself. Doran presents David Tenant as Hamlet in a dark, eerie, and minimal setting; his direction highlighting the

    Read More

  • Comparing the Characters of Faustus and Hamlet

    1761 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hamlet is in fact a play adapted by Shakespeare, not by name. But there are several scriptures that can be identified to being similar to the plot. One is called Saga of Hrolf Kraki. Believed to be Scandinavian. The second is the Roman legend of Brutus. In Shakespeare’s version Hamlet is the prince of Denmark heir to the throne, whose life takes a turn for the worst after his father’s death. This version of Hamlet is the most complex version ever written, because the idea of revenge and bloody deaths was a traditional convention of tragedy plays of the era.

    Read More

  • Hamlet Movie Vs Play

    807 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although this is not true to the play, the movie helps to emphasize certain actions and personalities, like Hamlet’s madness. For example, in Act 2 Scene 1, Ophelia describes Hamlet to her father Polonius, and how he appeared to her ragged and disoriented without saying a word. However, in the Mel Gibson version, we as the audience see the event when that occurred, while Polonius spys on them. Through the movie adaptation, Polonius sees Hamlet’s madness than described to him by Ophelia. Additionally as the audience we a different perspective of that event and we witness Hamlet’s disheveled and mad behavior. It was a brilliant decision for the director to have those lines acted out in its own scene, then to have Ophelia just mention it because the demeanor of Hamlet could not be truly understood. The overall directing heightened Hamlet’s madness and masculinity throughout the play and made scenes more sexual,

    Read More

More about Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet Analysis

Open Document