Hamlet (1996)

Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Julie Christie, Kate Winslet

When Barack Obama saw a United States of America on the edge of a fiery pit, he did not stop himself because the task was too large. He simply tackled the task head on and achieved more success for this country in 6 months than any president ever...combined.

Mr. Jack Walker and myself had a similar situation on our hands. We discovered that only 2 mainstream American films run over the 4 hour mark. We saw two treacherous mountains in our path to glory. Rather than hide in fear, we took the first mountain head on. As it was on a glorious Friday night, Mr. Jack Walker and I sat through 4 hours and 2 minutes of Shakespearean bliss in the form of Hamlet.

Overall the film was well done. Compared to the 1990 Mel Gibson version (dir. Franco Zeffirelli) this version used the same dark context, and placed it in a much brighter, visually pleasing aesthetic. (Writer's note: 1st use of aesthetic in this blog). Furthermore, Billy Crystal and Robin Williams make strong cameos in the film.

The main talking point for this movie is it's incredible length. Kenneth Branagh may have been overly ambitious to think an unabridged version of Hamlet would work on film. My main complaint is that the text clearly works for a play and not the fast paced world of cinema. When the characters use exquisitely worded, long winded monologues, and descriptions, it made me yearn for simple lines. Instead of the "To be or not to be" speech, I had wished Hamlet would simply say something along the lines of "I'm sad, I might kill myself."

Teapot and myself deserve many congratulations for sitting through this epic.

Rating: 5