William Shakespeare's Hamlet (Two-Disc Special Edition)

hello, all your Shakespeare fans! This version of Hamlet is perfect for the 21st century. The acting is phenomenal, the sets are gorgeous, and faithful to the time period. The clothing may be a little modern, but at least Hamlet isn't running around with a hand gun.

Also, I think this is the most nuanced performance of Hamlet you will see on film. Unlike the 1945 version, Hamlet actually displays more range of emotion, rather than just degrees of melancholy. Also, the delivery of lines is unsurpassed. The pacing, emotion, and tone are perfect. It leaves you feeling as if you have actually experienced his story

I actually liked this movie quite a bit. I always thought that Kenneth Branagh was a good actor, but I also thought that four hours was a bit much, but the movie keeps the plot moving throughout the entire movie. Obviously, it may take about half an hour to catch up to speed with the Shakespearean dialogue, but after watching a bit of it, you'll be surprised at how fast you start to understand more and more of what they're saying.

Hamlet is my favorite play. As a teacher I want an accurate, entertaining version to show my students. This is the best version I have seen, and the only un-cut version I am aware of. Its all-start cast nails every character. Students constantly complain that movies of Shakespeare's plays are always "dark and boring." This can not be said of this version. It uses bright colors and has a modern edge without being "modern day."

The is the best version of 'Hamlet' on DVD. Kenneth Branagh (also directing) is brilliant as the Prince and the whole production is sumptuously filmed in 70mm. It's a stellar cast and the whole play is brought alive gloriously and unforgettably. Richard Briers, Derek Jacobi, Charlton Heston and Kate Winslet all give superb performances. Don't be put off by the length of the production (around 4 hours) because this is so good that time simply flies by. You are drawn into the action and Branagh's genius is to make the play accessible to all. He has done the Bard a wonderful service with this film and it's great to see this released on DVD at last. I can't recommend this highly enough - even if Shakespeare is not really your thing, you will love this. It's a great film of a great play.

This is a Shakespeare play about the prince of Denmark and tragedy surrounding the family. Many people want to say the prince Hamlet is indecision yet he outmaneuvers just about everyone and had depth of vision. Now watch as he discovers who killed the king and how he attempts to get his revenge.

The only negative thing I could think of this Kenneth Branagh interpretation is the costume period is not what I was brought up on in the other versions and books. And Jack Lemmon was sort of a distraction. Now that being said, I never knew how good Hamlet could be until I saw the Kenneth Branagh version. For some reason I never noticed the missing dialog in the other versions until I was treated to the complete dialog in this version. The filled in parts give the story more meaning. I can not go back. Everyone else, even Hamlet (1948) with Laurence Olivier seems like the Readers digest version. I do not think you want to hear comparisons and contrasts of acting styles; so I will just say this film changed what would have been a nice story to actually feel that you are there.

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