Ethan Hawke stars in this modern update of Shakespeare's classic play. He portrays a young filmmaker in New York City who struggles to gain power of his deceased father's company, even as the new boss (Kyle MacLachlan) manages to take total control of the proceedings. Michael Almereyda's (NADJA) film is another stylized adaptation of the Bard's words, featuring standout performances by the entire cast. For other modern Shakespeare adaptations, see Baz Luhrmann's ROMEO AND JULIET and Julie Taymor's TITUS.
Rating: R (MPAA) Rating Reason: Some violence. Runtime: 112 minutes DVD Code: Region 1 US, CA Genre: Dramas Color: B&W and Color Rating: DVD Features:
Region 1
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
Interactive Features:
Scene Access
Interactive Menus
Diane Venora, Karl Geary, Jeffrey Wright, Liev Schreiber, Steve Zahn, Ethan Hawke, Dechen Thurman, Paul Bartel, Sam Shepard, Samuel Shepard Rogers, Casey Affleck, Bill Murray, Julia Stiles, Kyle MacLachlan
Michael Almereyda
Ethan Hawke stars in this modern update of Shakespeare's classic play. He portrays a young filmmaker in New York City who struggles to gain power of his deceased father's company, even as the new boss (Kyle MacLachlan) manages to take total control of the proceedings. Michael Almereyda's (NADJA) film is another stylized adaptation of the Bard's words, featuring standout performances by the entire cast. For other modern Shakespeare adaptations, see Baz Luhrmann's ROMEO AND JULIET and Julie Taymor's TITUS. () "...Voluptuous and rewarding...[a] vital and sharply intelligent film..." New York Times () "...Conceptually vivid..." Variety () "...A visual knockout....Thou wilt be dazzled..." Rolling Stone (06/08/2000) "...Ingeniously and divertingly updating Shakespeare to corporate New York....HAMLET benefits from playfully iconographic casting..." Film Comment (03/01/2000) "...Jangling and incisive..." -- Rating: A Entertainment Weekly (06/16/2000) Theatrical release: May 12, 2000 (NY/LA).
Godfrey Cheshire of the New York Press and Elvis Mitchell of the New York Times each named HAMLET the best film of 2000. () "...An insistently tricky piece of conceptual art....The impromptu tone is often charming..." Sight and Sound (01/01/2001) "...Almereyda has infused HAMLET with such a contemporary sensibility that today's audiences can't help but relate..." -- 4 out of 5 stars Box Office (04/01/2000) "...Almereyda imagines HAMLET taking place in present-day Manhattan with such vigor, insight and originality that the power and immediacy of his film makes Shakespeare accessible in an exciting and provocative manner..." Los Angeles Times (05/12/2000) "...Bill Murray is a good choice as Polonius....It demonstrates how Shakespeare, who in a way invented modern English, has so dominated it ever since that his meanings are always broadly clear to us, even despite unfamiliar usages..." Chicago Sun-Times (05/19/2000) |