Just perfect...

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

I quite enjoyed this adaptation of Shakespeare's most famous play. Moving the characters and locations into the Nineteenth Century might be a bit hard for purists to take but I thought it worked wonderfully. Not being a student of Shakespeare and having never read 'Hamlet', it was intriguing to see how some of Shakespeare's memorable phrases and quotes are used in context, such as my summary line above from Marcellus (Jack Lemmon), or when Polonius (Richard Briers) states to Laertes (Michael Maloney) - "This above all, to thine own self be true...". The film is passionate in it's tale of murder, corruption and revenge and one can feel the rage emanating from the principals as the story progresses.The principal characters are all helmed by terrific actors and Kenneth Branagh as Hamlet is superb in his interpretation, as are Derek Jacobi portraying Claudius and Julie Christie as Gertrude. The celebrity filled cast is at the same time both surprising and in some cases distracting. Jack Lemmon and Charlton Heston virtually melt into their roles, though for modern audiences, the appearance of Billy Crystal and Robin Williams seems both out of place and out of character. One could also say the same for Kate Winslet as Ophelia, though if one is not as familiar with those players, the effect would not be as off-putting. With a finale that almost approaches that of an action thriller, this version of "Hamlet" is more than entertaining for a modern day update. If one enjoys Shakespeare's eloquent exposition of the English language, you can do no better than this film, as one can only marvel at the way the players deliver their lines flawlessly and with ease.

The movie and the book were very simaliar however I was not a fan of how over-dramatized the movie was. For example, Hamlet swung on a chandelier in the movie to kill Claudius, however in the book he just poisoned him. Another example would be when Hamlet threw the sword at Claudius, it went too far. The plot however was still was the same which I enjoyed.

The story of Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare is portrayed excelently in this rendition, which was directed by Kenneth Branagh. The story is fairly simple, a king is killed by his brother, Claudius, and the dead king's son, Hamlet, wants to avenge him. Claudius gets married to the dead king's wife, and Hamlet is enraged. Throughout the story Hamlet falls in and out of love with a philosopher's daughter, while attempting to find himself and decide what to do about Claudius. By the end of the story I was awestruck and the director is fabulous at portraying Hamlet. This movie offers an amazing portrayal of the character Ophelia, and gives great insight to how the characters feel. While this movie is very long, the acting and pronunciation is phenomenal and aid in understanding the story. It follows Shakespeare's views very well, and watchers can definitely connect with the characters. Children will probably not enjoy this film, seeing as how they use a lot of shakespearean language. I absolutely recommend this movie for adults and Shakespeare lovers, it portrays characters well, and shows the entirety of the story clearly. When Ophelia is going crazy, the actor does a fabulous job at showing it, and Hamlet is portrayed excellently. In comparison to the graphic novel, understanding the story is much easier when watching the movie because you can see more of the emotions characters possess. Overall this movie is absolutely phenomenal and I definitely recommend this to all adult fans of Shakespeare.

Hamlet, directed by Kenneth Branagh, is a Shakespearean Tragedy. For the most part, the movie consistently follows the original play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare. Branagh stars as Hamlet himself, also known as the Prince of Denmark. While conflict is stirring between Denmark and Norway, Prince Hamlet is also returning home to find his father has been murdered. If you think that's not enough to dwell on, Hamlet's mother is also marrying his uncle Claudius. Throughout the entire film Hamlet's overall goal is to avenge his father's death; however, when romance and family comes into the equation things tend to spiral out of control. The movie does a fantastic job of representing how Shakespeare is timeless; therefore, this movie is suitable for teenagers and adults. The director has several messages conveyed throughout the movie, but the main point would be revenge isn't always sweet. During the movie, the only thing I did not care for was that the actors were hard to understand. I felt that the actors could have done a better job annunciating and speaking clearly. On a positive note, I liked that the director made it easier to comprehend the plot line by using props and the actors used facial expressions to their fullest potential. Also, it followed Shakespeare's original text very well.The director added a few of his own interpretations to fill a blank where Shakespeare didn't directly state what was happening, but it did not change the plot, in fact it made the movie better. I connected with a few characters because they were dealing with similar emotions that I have had in my life to a certain extent. Even if you have not read much Shakespeare, I think audiences will still enjoy this piece of work because of how timeless Shakespeare is. I have only read two pieces of Shakespeare's work and I still liked the movie because of how relatable the characters are. I do not think this movie is suitable for children under 13 because of the deep topics expressed and talked about throughout the entire movie. A few topics discussed is suicide, murder, sex, rape, death, and poison. If you are looking for a tear-jerking, thought provoking, tragedy, with a little romance, and suspense then this is the movie for you! It is worth the watch.