Great Success... Almereyda

While all three film versions of William Shakespeare's Hamlet present interesting variations (whether in time, cultural examination, and actors) of a man unhappy with his life, only one film stands out as a true representation of cinema. Surprisingly, Almereyda's version, which takes place in 2000, trumps the 16th century movie by Zefirelli as well as the Victorian era version by Ken Branagh because of its creativity. For example, in the other two films, the setting (whether it be a courtyard or a hall) is so hackneyed that viewers are left wondering why they aren't watching a National History special on Medieval Times. This differs from Almereyda' s version in that Elsinore "castle" is really a hotel and the "kingdom" of Denmark is a corporation. This makes those who have read the play interested to see how the story fits into the a present-day setting. Further, Hamlet's representation in Almereyda's version is the best because Hamlet's personality in the film truly makes the audience feel that he is "naturally" in distress. In the other films, Hamlet, especially during the soliloquy, appears to be forcing such famous lines as "frailty, thy name is woman". This contrasts with Almereyda's natural way of expressing a soliloquy in a movie- Hamlet's thoughts are being expressed verbally while he works as opposed to him saying the lines to himself . Almereyda's portrayal of the soliloquy is the best because it is representative of what would really happen in any movie. These subtle differences ultimately go a long way as Almereyda's film version takes down the cliched and ineffective representations of Zefirelli and Branagh.