Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet for Today

The following are journal entries for our reading of Hamlet. Each entry should be completed after we have finished reading and/or viewing that scene in class. The purpose is to prepare you for class discussion; therefore, you should have something written for each entry before we discuss it in class (even if it’s only a question). See Ms. M with questions ahead of time – don’t expect to be given answers in class! Be sure to cite textual evidence to support all your answers – remember to record act, scene and line numbers.

The purpose of this report is to compare and contrast two movies made about Hamlet. I will present and discuss different aspects of the version directed by Kenneth Branagh to that of Franco Zefirelli. During this paper you will be presented with my opinions in reference to determining which version of Hamlet best reflects the original text by Shakespeare. I will end this paper with my belief and explanation of which movie is true to the original play.

The elements the filmmakers choose to use in the film, i.e. the music, location, editing techniques and special effects, help tell the story. Zeffirelli uses his elements to ease the viewer from scene to scene, he is employing the Classical Hollywood Filmmaking technique. A smooth flowing pace, where the viewer does not notice the cuts, plus the music assists in the movements within the cuts. Nothing daring is done in his film, he stays true to the historical appearance of the film, uses ideas that have already been exhibited, such as period piece music and historical costumes. The world famous balcony scene (Act II, scene II) is an example, Zeffirelli employs the same blocking that Shakespeare probably intended. This is one of the few times, Zeffirelli interacts with the locations, and his locations is a town within walls, perceived to be a small town, the location is bare and not crowded.

To play one of Shakespeare’s most complex roles successfully on stage or on screen has been the aspiration of many actors. William Shakespeare’s Hamlet has been the focus on various accounts throughout the 20th Century, each actor attempting to bring something unique and unmarked to the focal character. Franco Zeffirelli and Kenneth Branagh, both film directors, introduce varying levels of success on the screen through downright differences in ways of translation and original ideas. Zeffirelli’s much shorter interpretation of the film is able to convey the importance of Hamlet as a masterwork by using modern approaches to film but still capturing the traditional work behind Shakespeare’s well-known play.

The beginning of Act one opens with a brawl in the street between the servants of the Capulets and the Montagues. The origin of the fight introduces the

Over the course of the past fifty years there have been many cinematic productions of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, some of which remain true to the text while others take greater liberties with the original format. Director Kenneth Branagh’s 1996 production of Hamlet was true to Shakespeare’s work in that the film’s dialogue was delivered word or word as it is presented in the text. In contrast, Franco Zeffirelli conducted his 1990 production of Hamlet in a much more liberal direction in which lines, scenes and characters were omitted from the film. I argue that from the perspective of an individual with moderate knowledge in Shakespearian literature, that the best film versions of Hamlet are those that take the most liberties from the text. I

Franco Zefferelli’s film, Hamlet, adapted from Shakespeare’s text, Mel Gibson’s Hamlet, struts and frets his life in Denmark, convincing almost everyone that he is “mad.” The film bases the question of whether or not Hamlet is actually insane almost solely on Gibson’s acting interpretations, but Zefferelli’s editing choices assist in making the point that Hamlet is not insane, but either in a fog of confusion and anger from his grief, or pretending to be mad to manipulate others.

Shakespeare’s Hamlet has countlessly been formatted into film depictions of the play. Each film seemed to be on one end of the spectrum of either being closely interpreted or completely remodeled a different idea of what Hamlet is. The film version of Hamlet released in 2000 seems to follow closely to the play in some aspects, yet at the same time having its own unique identity Despite there being many differences with the play Hamlet and the film adaptation of Hamlet (2000) by Michael Almereyda there are three categories that really stand out, those are the character portrayal, interrelationship between the characters, and some of the essential themes differ as well. Although there are many differences, one aspect that remains the same is the dialogue of the characters which stays true to the Shakespearean dialect.

William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is one of the most produced plays of all time. Written during the height of Shakespeare’s fame—1600—Hamlet has been read, produced, and researched by more individuals now than during Shakespeare’s own lifetime. It is has very few stage directions, because Shakespeare served as the director, even though no such official position existed at the time. Throughout its over 400 years of production history, Hamlet has seen several changes. Several textual cuts have been made, in addition to the liberties taken through each production. In recent years, Hamlet has seen character changes, plot changes, gender role reversals, alternate endings, time period shifts, and thematic alternations, to

The pair understood that the primal issue with Shakespearean language is that it is often difficult to convey to modern audiences; regardless of the fact that Shakespeare’s plays convey timeless themes and are full of clever and entertaining banter by witty and relatable characters, average people with no prior knowledge of Shakespearean dialect often have troubling following along. Zeffirelli knew that once audiences had a better idea of what was going on, they would be able appreciate the film in the way that many robust Shakespeare fans do. Zeffirelli is known for bridging the gap between original works and ones of modernity, and therefore had no qualms shifting some dialogue and adding in a scene that does not exist in the original play. In this scene, he gave clarification to audiences, as they watch Hamlet, Gertrude and Claudius confront each other during the wake of Hamlet’s father. It is during this fabricated scene that we also see the sexual attraction between Hamlet’s mother and his Uncle, which works to clarify the preceding angst and tension Hamlet holds.

Zeffirelli improves upon some scenes from the play by adding more detail and giving the audience a good visualization. Throughout the play, Shakespeare

There are often times in film and literature where a character reaches the “point of no return.” That is the point when their actions force them to either give up or resolve themselves and move forward. In Franco Zeffirelli's adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet, King Claudius reaches his “point of no return” when he allows his wife to drink the poison he originally set to kill his own step-son. The main plot of Hamlet deals with a young man’s journey to avenge his father’s murder by killing the perpetrator. This plot gets slightly more complicated when the perpetrator, King Claudius, attempts to have the young man, Hamlet, killed. Claudius’ final attempt to kill Hamlet was dropping a pearl containing poison into his drink. When the king’s wife,

Shakespearean plays are often known for their outstanding entertainment and classic comic conflict. In his masterwork, Hamlet, Shakespeare uses these aspects to serve his thematic purpose. He has used comedy throughout many of his historic plays, but in this play, comedy is the drawing point that makes it fun and entertaining, yet clear and intuitive. Generally, his tragedies are not seen as comical, but in reality, they are full of humor. However, these comic elements don’t simply serve to relieve tension; they have much significance to the play itself. The characters of Hamlet, Polonius, Osric, and the Gravediggers, prove to be very influential characters, and throughout the play, they are the individuals that

Hamlet is perhaps William Shakespeare's most famous of his many plays. Even people who have not read the play or seen it performed or watched one of the many film versions knows that basic elements of the plot. Young Hamlet is mourning the death of his father who, as it turns out has been murdered by his uncle so that the latter can take over the throne and marry the queen, his brothers' widow. Hamlet decides to be crazy in order to determine his Uncle Claudius's guilt in the act. Over the course of the story, people die and the play culminates in the final duel between Hamlet and Laertes wherein both young men die as well as Claudius and Queen Gertrude. Nearly every country of the world has created an adaptation of the story to fit their cultural and national perspectives. In the western world, adaptations of Hamlet have been more concerned with psychological or military theories regarding the story more than the inclusion of their unique cultures. Hamlet has been called by some as a universal story because it appeals to such a large array of different peoples. Each adaptation of the play chooses to focus on different aspects of the play in order to draw audience attention to certain points or hidden themes with the filmmakers believe are most important. Director Franco Zeffirelli's 1990 adaptation of Hamlet stars Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, and Helena Bonham Carter. More than any other aspect of the Shakespeare play, Zeffirelli's version of the story

Scene starts with ROS and GUIL sitting next to each other on the black couch, up left stage. Three “barrels” are organized off to their right- the center one in the back, two in the front. You can see Hamlet sitting in the back upstage right, relaxing, and not really doing anything.