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Ethan
Hawke, one of the rising stars of Hollywood, is no stranger
to reworking the classics. He starred in a modern version
of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations in 1998.
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| "Surely
he must be the son of God." Wrong film but Bill
Murray delivers his lines in similar fashion. |
Playing
Hamlet, however, is a different kettle of fish.
To give him credit, Hawke pulls this off in a film which
tries hard but doesn't quite reach the peaks of William
Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.
It's
not helped by bad performances from actors who should
know better. Bill Murray stands out.
There
are plenty of killings in Hamlet, but Mr. Murray
does his best to murder the character of Polonius, Ophelia's
father, long before he's accidentally shot. Wooden delivery
would be too kind a description.
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| It's
show down time. Hamlet and Laertes size each other
up. |
The
modern day plot revolves around the death of the President
of the Denmark Corporation. His wife swiftly marries his
uncle Claudius much to the concern of the dead president's
son Hamlet.
His
suspicions are confirmed when the ghost of his father
informs him that he was poisoned.
Hamlet
heads down a road which will be tragic for all concerned.
Director
Michael Almereyda's previous credits have hardly set the
cinema world alight. The chances are this version will
have to make do with being shown in more arty venues.
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To
be or not to be. Shall I hire Die Hard or Rambo?
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That's
a shame because there are certainly some nice touches.
Modern methods of communication are a constant theme.
Characters talk to CCTV's, Hamlet learns of Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern's orders to kill him by checking their
lap top and Orphelia is wired for sound to enable Claudius
to spy on his nephew.
Most
memorable of all, however, is Hamlet's delivery of the
famous "To be or not to be" soliloquy. Hawke
delivers the lines while walking through a Blockbuster
video store!
It
takes a while to adapt to a film which has a modern setting
but remains loyal to Shakespeare's text. It also takes
time getting used to these lines being delivered with
an American accent. But if you are a lover of the Bard,
Michael Almereyda's interpretation is worth investigating.
Competition
time
Win a copy of Shakespeare's Hamlet, complete with
a picture of Ethan Hawke on the cover! We have four to give
away.
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