Movie: Hamlet

Release Date: May 4, 1948

Director: Laurence Olivier

Starring: Laurence Olivier

Personal History: Never Watched Before

Rating: 6 Oscars out of 10

If you followed my 365 Day Movie Challenge you probably already knew that I was a fan of William Shakespeare. Although both ‘Shakespeare in Love‘ and ‘Romeo + Juliet‘ made my list of favorite movies of all time, it is reading his plays more than watching his movie adaptations that make me a fan. ‘Hamlet,’ a film that is probably not going to make my favorites list, is a great example why this is the case.

Nominated for seven Academy Awards and winning four including Best Picture, ‘Hamlet’ is by no means a bad movie. The simple fact is that it doesn’t live up to the tragedy of its source material. The costumes, set design, cinematography and the acting are all superb. Even the overuse of slowly dissolving one scene into another, a trick that sometimes annoys me, was used effectively here. Every character at one point is slowly dissolved into another scene giving them the illusion of an apparition or ghost. Most of the characters end up dead by the end so was this done purposely or coincidental? If only Mr. Olivier were here to discuss.

Speaking of the screen legend, I applaud Laurence Olivier as he makes a return here on my Academy Award Best Picture movie challenge. Not only did he act in the lead role, but he directed the movie as well. Nominated for both categories, he won in the acting category. I always say that the actor and director categories really go hand in hand. Sometimes it is the director that deserves the award that the actor takes home. Watch ‘Dreamgirls’ and try to prove me wrong that the Oscar should be sitting on Bill Condon’s shelf and not Jennifer Hudson’s.

Like I mentioned, the film ‘Hamlet’ just doesn’t seem to live up to Shakespeare’s words. Yes, it is a four hour play and of course things need to be edited out for the movie, but the omission of some characters and changing of the text is quite questionable. Kenneth Branagh, in my opinion, although still not a perfect film or on my list of favorites, is a far better adaptation than Mr. Olivier’s.