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Modern adaptations of Shakespeare
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The video with Mel Gibson acting as Hamlet is the best one. Both the actors are great and they're what makes it more interesting to me. I think the next best video is the one with David Tennant playing as Hamlet. The actors are both good, but what I didn't like is that Claudius and Polonius were watching Ophelia and Hamlet through a camera. The 3rd best video is the one with Kenneth Branagh. He's a good Hamlet, but I didn't think the kissing part fit the scene. Lastly, the modern version was the least most interesting. I didn't like the actors or the way the theme of it was set up.
What can we say about Hamlet that has not being said before? Almost nothing and we do not consider ourselves worthy of even commenting on such an incredible play. What we can say for sure is that its tragic tones still serve as a referent for the modern theater. The play has approximately 4,000 lines, and since the story is tightly knit, it is hard to choose parts to cull, as it has to be done carefully in order to the play keep its original meaning. In the same way, it will depend on which format we are planning on presenting the play, if it will be presented at a theater, we might keep closer to the original. On the other hand, if the cuts would have to be done for a movie, we would have to cull it severely, so it fits the timeframe.
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.
One of the most emotional and moving scenes in William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet is in Act III, Scene I lines 90-155 in which the title character becomes somewhat abusive toward his once loved girlfriend Ophelia. It is interesting to examine the possible motives behind Hamlet's blatant harshness in this "Get the to a nunnery" scene toward the easily manipulated and mild mannered girl. While watching Kenneth Branagh and Mel Gibson's film adaptations of the play, the audience may recognize two possibilities of the many that may exist which may explain the Prince's contemptible behavior; Kenneth Branaugh seems to suggest that this display of animosity will help the troubled man convince his enemies that he is in fact demented, whereas the Mel Gibson work may infer that Hamlet's repressed anger toward his mother causes him to "vent" his frustrations upon Ophelia, the other female of importance in his life.
Hamlet the Play and the Movie 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.
It is said that Shakespeare wrote plays, not scripts. His work was meant to be read aloud and not just read. This became apparent while I watching the BBC 's 2009 version of Hamlet. I choose this version because the director Gregory Doran put a modern twist on the classic tale. The director’s display of contemporary technology, dress, and presentation of relationships enhanced the idea that Hamlet’s madness was simply a dramatic act.
Hamlet prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare is probably one of the most studied fictional pieces in history. It has become the very pinnacle of literature, and despite the commonality of the play there are many renditions that offer a different artistic interpretation. One rendition, in particular is Franco Zeffirelli’s 1990 film translation starring Mel Gibson as Hamlet. Shakespeare’s original Hamlet follows the heartening life of young Hamlet in which he is often portrayed as a whiney young man that spends his time moping around the castle teetering on the brink of insanity. Zeffirelli’s departure from the norm brings to light a different side of the character that is often overlooked in mainstream productions. Choosing to create a visual Hamlet and heavily cut text has lead to some attention-grabbing changes in the plays structure. Franco Zeffirelli’s film is significantly different with the play. For example, he added the funeral scene at the beginning. He uses a different order with the scenes and parts of scenes, most long speeches are cut, and sometimes gives one characters lines to another. Even though these changes could offend the devoted Shakespearean researcher, they mainly are there to build up the action and cut down the plot.
“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,
Although each movie has its own identity, there are some specific elements of the mise-en-scene that are apparent throughout every film. Some movies are better able to represent there elements such as the wardrobe, imagery, camera work and casting. After going through the main parts of each Hamlet film in my opinion the Hamlet by Kenneth Branagh was the most successful and the least successful was Almereyda’s version with Ethan Hawke. It didn’t seem like it would appeal to most Hamlet viewers. The element of the mise-en-scene stack up for Branagh’s Hamlet and makes it the best one. Hamlet has come a long way since first being written and these movies have only pushed it in a forward direction for many generations to enjoy.
Presentation of main themes can alter the audience’s perspective on characters. In William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet and Franco Zeffirelli’s movie version of Hamlet there are apparent differences between the presentation of the theme death. A key difference between the play and the movie is how each medium showcased the character’s deaths. In turn, this changes the audience 's point of view of the characters and their traits. The differences between the execution of the deaths in the well known play Hamlet and Franco Zeffirelli’s cinematic interpretation of Hamlet are through the portrayal of Hamlet (I)’s death and funeral, the hysterical grieving of the Queen and Ophelia, as well as the perspective on the death of the royal couple which reconstructs the understanding of the characters and their personalities.
Instead of a grand tragedy of a royal house, the modern Hamlet is a detective story about a dead rich guy and his son the beginner detective. Yet, the acting of the actors and the special effects more or less manage to make up for the flaw. Bill Murray who plays Polonious is harsh and tight. Ethan Hawke is illustrated as a weak and normal prince. Julia Stiles does not do Ophelia any justice. Ther...
In the documentary "The History of Hamlet", an episode in the series The South Bank Shows, many renowned directors, who attempted directing Hamlet by William Shakespeare, were interviewed. They gave many insightful opinions about the genius of the play. But one statement by the Russian director Yurie Lyubimov appealed to me the most; amidst poetic verse, he stated Hamlet is "a collection box" (VHS).
Unlike many other adaptations of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Franco Zeffirelli’s version shows Hamlet portrayed in an upbeat light. Zeffirelli strays away from depicting the character as a lost soul—doomed, in a sense, from the very start, and instead chooses to give audiences a healthy and happy Hamlet, who, as film critic Robert Ebert writes, has “nothing fundamentally awry until everything in his life goes wrong in one swift motion”. Hamlet’s character Mel Gibson is known for his robust and physical acting style, and breathes energy into the character of Hamlet. Ebert also goes on to note that choosing Gibson for the leading role was not coincidental because Gibson possesses “the ability to deflect seriousness with a joke” (Ebert). Gibson
Out of the whole play, the scene that struck me as the most memorable was the scene where Hamlet sees his father and makes everyone that is with him to swear that they won't speak a word of what they saw to anyone or anything. They are all sitting in a circle and Hamlet asks them to swear and then the lights dim and a red light turns on. Then a big ominous voice pounds down from above (it is hamlet's father) and commands them to swear. This happens many times until all the people say that they will swear.(it is also quite comical.). The scene where hamlet kills Polonious was just as I had expected it to be, where as the scene where hamlet makes his famous "to be or not to be?" speech was nothing like I had expected.
Robert Icke’s production of Hamlet starring Andrew Scott at the Harold Pinter Theatre from the Almeida. I saw this play twice in its final weeks, and recently rewatched the filmed version from the BBC. All I can really say is this production was phenomenal. I have seen my fair share of Shakespeare adaptations in my life but this was by far the best. The actors performed with incredible subtlety, the language seemed so easily understandable and was the most naturalistic portrayal of Shakespeare I have ever seen. The actors brought out the reality in the play despite its melodramatic themes and the language seemed much more conversational rather than presentational, which was extremely effective considering it was Shakespeare dressed in a modern
In writing Hamlet, William Shakespeare plumbed the depths of the mind of the protagonist, Prince Hamlet, to such an extent that this play can rightfully be considered a psychological drama.