The Many Faces Of Hamlet

Before I put my two cents in on these actor's capabilities and who passed my test on the best portrayal of Hamlet, there were three lines that I was waiting to hear and see how they were portrayed. These lines were "Fie on it", "... Frailty thy name is woman..." and "...to incestuous sheets...". For some reasons these lines really stuck out to me as a time where an actor could really show us a lot of emotions. The delivery of these lines played a part in my critiques of the scenes.



(In order of my favorite to my least favorite)



1. From Tony Richardson's Hamlet (Nicol Williams as Hamlet)- I was really moved by the way the scene was shot using just flickering candles in the background with only Nicol's face being shown. His eyes alone are pretty intense and you can see the emotion of the soliloquy in them. When he says "...Fie on it..." you can really see his disgust and it seemed like he was really passionate about dropping the Shakespearean F-Bomb. His voice cracks when hes reflecting on the disgusting acts done by his mother and uncle, which adds another dimension of emotion. While delivering the "...Frailty..." line he looks directly into the camera and it feels as though hes looking right through me. I like that hes almost punching himself in the head as he continues his lines. I think this video is proof that sometimes its better to strip an actor of any devices and let them completely depend upon their talents.

2. From Franco Zefirelli's Hamlet (Mel Gibson as Hamlet)- This particular scene I really thought I was going to laugh until I peed. I had forgotten Gibson had serious acting skills after all of his DUI's, anti-Semitisim, and outreaching to Brittney Spears. I was pleasantly proven wrong and here is why: It starts out similar to Nicol's performance with just a close up of Gibson which let his face do the acting. He then delivers the "Fie on it" line with a lot of rage which then only continues to build. I like that you see his mother and uncle outside his window because it looks like he's talking over them and is quite ominous in his delivery. The sadness in his voice when reflecting on "...Not two months dead..." is also enhanced by his facial expression which he seems to scoff at. What really sold me on this being my number 2 choice was his delivery on the "...Frailty..." line. You can see hes pist and I must admit I jumped a little bit when he slammed his shudders.

3.From Kevin Kline's Hamlet (Kline as Hamlet)- Here's another one I didn't think I would enjoy much. In & Out happens to be a movie I still enjoy watching and I didn't think I would be able to look at Kevin Kline through different eyes. Although it is poorly shot and the scenery or wardrobe does not add to the scene, his delivery is emotion filled. The emphasis he uses in his delivery of lines is seething, just like Hamlet is. I like that he is on his knees during the "...Fie on it..." line. You really can see he is distraught. I definitely did not like his emphasis on the "...Frailty..." delivery. It was a bit laughable. But I feel like it was recovered through the use of his voice on the rest of the soliloquy. He seemed tormented, psychotic, and restrained all through the use of his voice. If you closed your eyes and didn't watch him, it wasn't terrible after all.

4.From Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet (Branagh as Hamlet)- The master of modern Shakespearean acting has finally failed me. I love Kenneth as every other Shakespearean character I've seen him play- except for this one. I really just didn't feel it at all. He had everything going for him- props, costume, apparently a decent budget to work with, and he lost it for me. He knows how to deliver a soliloquy, and Shakespeare's words roll off his tongue in a magical way but the emotions didn't read on screen for me the way the other's did. Nothing he said caught my attention until he yelled "Not two months married" and then lost it for me when he started talking normally again. I just really didn't get "it" from him. (Plus he kinda sounded like the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz if you ask me.)

Note: I did NOT rank this version of Hamlet because its just well, unrankable for me. I really didn't know where to put it on my list.

From Yukio Ninagawa's Hamlet (Fujiwara Tatsuya as Hamlet)- This was like watching Hamlet on acid for me. It was all just a little bit trippy for me from start to finish. I appreciate the symbolism of the cage for Hamlet's "caged" rage and heartfelt beliefs. I even "got it" while he thrashed around inside the cage. He seemed to be connected to whatever it was he was saying. However, he looked Dracula-esque to me in his cape. Then it got a little stranger while he was holding onto the cage because frankly, his face and body made it look as though he was taking a dump on the stage. I also feel that after his big explosion and rattling the cage in his opening, the rest of the soliloquy should not have been delivered in a corner. I did think it was riddled with emotion and Yukio really felt what he was delivering.