William Shakespeare wrote many plays, one of which is Hamlet. I saw The Simpsons do a parody once, but I didn’t know the whole story. Also I heard The Lion King’s story was mostly based on the plot of Hamlet. I also thought it was weird to see Mel Gibson in a movie based on Shakespeare’s work. He never struck me as a thespian actor, and it’s odd to see an American actor in a role usually portrayed by British actors and other Europeans.
The story of Hamlet takes place in Denmark. King Hamlet has died, and his brother Claudius has taken the throne and also took his brother’s Queen as his wife. Claudius wonders why Prince Hamlet is still very depressed after a time of mourning has passed. But it seems current events proves to be too stressful for Hamlet’s soul.
Hamlet’s true friend Horatio tells him of a remarkable encounter. He saw a ghost, and not just any random specter. The spirit looked just like King Hamlet, and Prince Hamlet decides to find the ghost himself. He sees his father who tells them that he was murdered by his brother Claudius. To prove he isn’t going mad, he decides to see if Claudius really did commit regicide against his father. Because if it is true, then he wants nothing short of vengeance.
The story of Hamlet is not nearly as good as I had expected. And it also is brought down by dialogue that’s in Early Modern English which hasn’t been relevant in centuries. If thespians and overly-eccentric English teachers want his stories to matter to the newer generations, they need to modernize the speech. That’s like making a Three Musketeers movie specially for a American audience and have it only in French. I will say Mel Gibson was pretty darn good as Hamlet and I also liked Stephen Dillane (most famous for portraying Stannis Baratheon on Game of Thrones) as Horatio. It’s a shame that the movie bored me.
Neko Random 