Customer Reviews

Hamlet [VHS]

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

No one is a bigger Kenneth Brangah fan than I am, but this version of Hamlet (which aired on the Odyssey channel a year ago) far surpasses his grandiose attempt, and is simply the best I have seen, better than Oliver and Gibson and all those others (but still watch 'Discovering Hamlet' if you have a chance...great behind the scenes of a young Kenneth's stage version). But back to this film....it is a wonderful adaptation of the greatest play about modern man ever written, a good solid cutting which, unlike Kenneth's film version, keeps the story moving along and doesn't drag out every line which may have been necessary for the story to be told properly in Shakespeare's time, but isn't as neccessary for the film world of today. But the cutting still keeps everything important and wonderful about the play. Campbell Scott is PERFECT as Hamlet; the makers of this film did not try too hard to update it, but they certainly showed how even more relevant Hamlet is today as the complete and utter picture of modern man. The other actors are great; the actress who played Ophelia (a black woman--another great twist and angle to Ophelia and Hamlet's complex relationship)is brilliant in the scenes when she goes crazy...with the lewd and disturbing songs Shakespeare wrote, she really takes things to another level. The three most memorable scenes....the scene that Hamlet sees his father's ghost (the ghost comes out of the sand with some great special effects); a wonderful staging of the scene where Ophelia helps her father spy on Hamlet; and a stunning adaptation of Hamlet's famous monologue. Such a wonderful version. So worth the extra money if you really want to own a fantastic version of Hamlet. Especially great for teachers who want their English/drama classes how revolutionary Shakespeare really was. And hey! It was on the Odyssey channel so it's completely school appropriate...

I saw Campell Scott's "Hamlet" for the first (but certainly not the last!) time last week for my Renaissance Literature class. I instantly fell in love.

The setting (which is a beautiful house on Long Island, between 1880 and 1920, for those of you who were wondering) is lush, colorful, and exciting, which is a huge change from the typical drafty, cold, dark castle in which we see Hamlet sulking around.

The cast does amazing work with their interpretations -- Campell Scott and LisaGay Harding's being two of the most original I've seen yet -- and are all believable characters, not at all overacted. The cuts in the script are understandable (they had a three-hour limit), and work very well. Polonius works surprisingly well as a respectable elderly right-hand man to the king, rather than a bumbling idiot who likes to hear himself talk.

Also, the music in the film is gorgeous and engaging -- it is contemporary jazz, the main instruments being piano, drums, and trumpet, but it works beautifully with the film. It is rather unpredictable and subtle, in that it doesn't always tell you when you should pay attention to the action. Finally, a sountrack that plays to the intelligence of the audience, rather than pandering to it!

My class was fortunate enough to have Campbell Scott (who is an alumnus of my university) come in and talk with us about the interpretive choices they made while making the film, and after I heard what he had to say, I loved it even more. I highly recommend it for anyone who is a fan of Shakespeare -- it is a fresh, original, believable take on an old classic, but it stays true to Shakespeare's intent with dignity and class. Five stars!

I teach Shakespeare classes to adults and have a personal collection of seven VHS and DVD versions of Hamlet. Campbell Scott is by far the most believable, and my students have chosen it as their favorite version. Claudius is pefect--a smiling smiling villain absolutely capable of secucing his sister-in-law and murdering his brother. The casting of Polonius, Ophelia and Laertes worked well. The second choice of my students is the Mel Gibson, which had been number one until they saw Campbell Scott. The scene in the room where they have stored away all reminders of the old king is brilliant. Great film.

I was moved and fascinated by Scott's performance and direction. I "collect" Hamlets, and am very glad to have come across this one. Scott's version isn't the full text, but the abridgements, to my mind, only highlight the dramatic pulses of this riveting play. Scott brought the Prince to full, round life; I have only wept twice when Hamlet died, and this was the second time. The often-debated madness that overtakes both Hamlet and Ophelia were extremely well-founded and very well-acted here. I cannot recommend this "Hamlet" too highly, especially to someone who is curious about what all the shouting is about but is afraid to run up against Shakespeare. Scott's movie is accessible and eminently watchable.

I admit I hadn't heard of Campbell Scott, but felt I should watch a little bit of it on principle. But -- wow! -- it was so good, I watched it all and can't wait to get the video for myself and a copy for the public library in which I work. I thought it was a very fresh piece of acting by Scott and also the supporting cast. Can't wait to see what the teenagers think of it--it's not as stodgy as the older versions like Jacobi's and Oliver's, and not as long as Branagh's excellent version.

I think this is the best version of Hamlet I have ever seen! It leaves Brannagh and Zeffirelli (no offense to the master) in the dust. I have never cried for the Melancholy Dane before but Campbell Scott had me in tears. It was a very creative time period and I thought that everyone did a fabulous job. Well done Campbell! Hope to see more of your work in the future.

...and I choose this one. I'm another "Hamlet collector." When a friend brought this to me from a yard sale, I read the blurb & thought "Well, have you ever seen a bad Hamlet?" I sat down to watch, & was soon entranced by the production. At three hours, it's a good length - not overly gutted like so many 2 hour productions, not rump-numbing like some "eternity" uncut versions. The casting is imaginative and effective. Finally - a Gertrude old enough to be Hamlet's mother, & an Ophelia old enough not to be jail bait! The "to be or not to be" soliloquy is given a powerful set up - possibly the best I've ever seen. When I began to describe it to a friend, she stopped me because the intense emotion of the scene bothered her. Throughout there are wonderfully original (yet not disrupting) bits of stage action. Most carry an element of surprise, so I won't mention those here, but a striking example comes soon after Polonius' death, when Hamlet is pursued, surrounded and captured by various guards. One guard pulls out a long cord and lashes the Prince's hands together.
I do have one quibble, which is at odds with another review here. I really dislike the musical score. It reminded me of nothing so much as a saloon piano.

You will NEVER find another Ophelia played like this!!! SHE'S AMAZING!!! This is the BEST Ophelia ever and Campbell Scott kick, too. Not sentimental and lame -- totally right on for the intent I've always seemed to read there, but never actually saw till this version!

As a student studying Shakespeare, I have to chosen to watch as many different versions of these films as I like. I watched the Hamlet film with Mel Gibson, and I did not like it at all. I think that it is way to dark, and to tell the truth, I do not think that Gibson did all that great of job with the role. This version of Hamlet though, I love. Campbell Scott did a wonderful job, I really enjoyed watching him play Hamlet. He delivers the lines beautifully, and does an amazing job making you believe that Hamlet was really Human. Gibson's Hamlet seemed to me like a dark haunted creature, but Scott's seemed like a real person.

While the file has it flaw's, like Ophelia, her charecter could have been stronger, and the music did need a little help. It was all in all the best Hamlet I have seen.

Now, I have NOT seen the Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet, which many people say is the best, but I am going to see it as soon as I have the time. I do believe that is this my favorite version.

I thought was a fabulous performance of Hamlet. It wasn't as good as the Kenneth Branagh version, but that is to be expected. Campbell Scott was excellent. he gave an incredibly moving performance. I would recommend this video to any Shakepseare fan or scholar.