Technology In Hamlet Analysis

Technology and communication are equally critiqued in Michael Almereyda 's Hamlet. Telephones in Almereyda 's Hamlet act as a means of interruption and represents Hamlet 's isolation from his environment. Hamlet 's inability to communicate and connect are explored through the use of telephones in the film. The use of telephones mirrors reality and provides a new way of communicating while producing a new form of isolation. Media and technology are frequently featured throughout the film. Almereyda’s depiction of Hamlet is centered around an intellectual youth who 's disillusioned with his life and the values that the contemporary world forcefully pressures everyone to adapt to. Hamlet would rather reflect on his memories and create films than

Hamlet and Ophelia rarely speak to one another, favoring to communicate with visual imagery instead. The only occurrence when their conversation is heard is when Ophelia is forced to talk to him with the hidden mic attached to her. Both Hamlet and Ophelia seem to lack genuine communication skills, implying that conversations seldom have depth. Hamlet attempts to connect to Ophelia after listening to a Buddhist monk discussing the idea of inter-being and connecting with things outside of yourself. Hamlet is inspired by what the Buddhist monk says and attempts connecting with Ophelia through writing and art, which implies that works of art express a deeper level of connection and are perhaps more profound than anything he could say in conversation. Claudius uses phone call conversations as a way of spying on Hamlet. The conversation between Claudius, Gertrude, Guildenstern, and Rosencrantz demonstrates both public and private space. At once the conversation impedes the intimacy between Claudius and Gertrude and exploits it through the sense of surveillance, which is developed by the high angle shot looking down on the bed. This scene shows that the power of corporations permeates every part of life and that power gives a sense of sexual pleasure to those who have

Throughout the conversation, a phone rings in the background several times. The characters catch notice of the incessant ringing but attempt to ignore it. This scene implies that technology impedes communication and demonstrates how technology permeates everyday life. Hamlet 's fax to Claudius shows how little interpersonal relation skills he has but is also conducted in a business-like manner. Hamlet is using the very form of communication that he despises. In the same scene, Gertrude tells Laertes of Ophelia 's death in a fairly news like fashion. The ability for news to spread so quickly shows how technology allows people to connect quickly while also indicating that most news that travels fast is bad news and often becomes a public spectacle. The use of telephones in the film show a lack of interpersonal communication, especially with Hamlet. Hamlet internalizes the majority of his thoughts and rarely speaks to other characters in the film. This allows for the film to critique the kinds of conversations that the characters take part of as vapid. The kinds of communication represented in the film lack substance and is over-saturated by mass media. Isolation and alienation are prevalent themes scattered throughout the film. Almereyda 's Hamlet is a poignant depiction of a fragmented postmodern world that culturally devalues