Hamlet - Mel Style

 

 Who knew Mad Max made an appearance in Hamlet?

It's Franco Zeffirelli's 1991 adaptation of Shakespeare's moody prince, starring Mad Mel as the perturbed prince, crazy Glenn as Queen Gertrude, Helen Bonham Carter as the tormented Ophelia, Alan Bates, and Ian Holm. I believe the latter is Polonius, which would make Bates the Step-King.

I was delighted to see this one come up on the suggested viewing list. I've already seen two or three Hamlet adaptations and I've watched Branagh's 4 hour marathon a couple times. How does Zeffirelli's version stack up against that of the actor/director who tackled not only Hamlet, Henry V, Much Ado about Nothing, and who knows which other of William's plays?

Zeffirelli gets off to a great start by having a cooler sounding name and a movie short enough that I don't have to take a break in the middle to renew my passport. So, he's got those things going for him.

On the other hand, Branagh didn't have crazy Glenn, so that's a point for him. What have I got against Glenn? Nothing really. She's a fine actress. My distaste for her is purely subjective and probably irrational. That's just the way it is. I preferred Branagh's Julie Christie in the role.

However, Zeffirelli came back with Helen Bonham Carter in the role of Ophelia. I have to approve of the choice. She looks like she's about fourteen in this movie, but she played the character less over-the-top insane than Kate Winslet's Ophelia. I preferred Carter's more demure and sympathetic interpretation of the drown-bound maid.

As for the poisoned daddy of Hamlet, Zeffirelli's ghost-king, played by Paul Scofield, lacked the impressively frightening and motivating presence of the scenery-chewing Brian Blessed.

Alan Bates just doesn't have much to work with in Zeffirelli's adaptation. He's the villain but lacks opportunities to be villainous, his fratricidal deed having preceded the beginning of the play. In Branagh's marathon, Derek Jacobi gets a little more to work with. I have to give the character to Branagh.

As for Polonius, I think I'll call this role a draw. I like both Bilbo Baggins as well as Tom Good/Hector MacDonald in the role. They both proved adept at catching a sword behind the tapestry, which was their primary purpose, so the young Laertes could return with visions of vengeance dancing in his head.

 "Alas, poor Yorick!" The skull had the same number of lines in both adaptations. As for the graveyard scene, Zeffirelli's was good enough. Branagh's was what? It's difficult to remember what I didn't like about it now. Was Billy Crystal too deep into the role to speak clearly enough to be understood? Can't say. I don't remember. I'll have to decline to give points either way on this one.

Laetes returns to avenge the death of Polonius and gets further motivation when his sister Ophelia decides to dabble in underwater poetry. Nathaniel Parker fills the role without as much venom as exhibited by Michael Maloney in Branagh's version. It's a close call, but the duel has to be the deciding factor. Branagh's brings more excitement and tension. It's the climactic scene of the play, and Branagh nails it.
 

Of course, the big lacuna in my comparison to this point has been the lead actors. Mad Mel versus Henry V, Australia versus Great Britain. They both measure up at 5'10" and were about the same age when they elected to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. I admit that I liked Gibson's portrayal. However, Branagh enjoyed a bigger set and a more comprehensive role. He got a lot more screen time than Gibson and had more impressive sets about which to hurl his intemperate outbursts and indulgent monologues. He created a more complete character because the director elected to perform the entire play. Branagh wins this one by virtue of getting to make the important decisions.

Looking back over the score, I count a 4-4 tie, but the calculation is premature. We're not done yet. There's much more to consider. Branagh did the whole play. He had all the characters, and more importantly, he had Charlton Heston--that alone gives him the victory for the better adaptation.

I recommend Zeffirelli's version as a great way to familiarize oneself with the basic plot and the main characters without distractions. It's a streamlined abridgment that carries the audience through from start to finish with an unobstructed view of all the major landmarks. Branagh's Hamlet, like Shakespeare's play, wends its way through the landscape, leaving the main road to explore every copse and goat trail along the way. It's a complete experience--if you've got the time and your passport is new.

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Enough about The Bard. Let's talk about me. I signed a contract for publication of a short story yesterday and finished writing another new story too. I've sent the new one to my Skirmish Team for a quick review. The story contracted for publication is "A Stardust Memory" and comes out next month in a sultry murder jazz themed anthology in ebook and paperback. I'll post the cover when it's available.

Hamlet - A Study in Poison

 First, if you want some Memorial Day thoughts, you might enjoy this post about my visit to the American Memorial in Normandy.

 

 I recently did a re-watch of the 4 hour opus that is Branagh's interpretation of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Kenneth Branagh stars as the titular character. I believe there was some discussion about his wanting to be or not to be the lead but he finally elected to suffer the slings and arrows of the outrageous role. Brian Blessed plays Hamlet's dad. Julie Christie plays his mum, and Derek Jacobi is the murdering uncle/stepfather. Kate Winslet plays my least favorite character: Ophelia. Richard Briers takes the role of Polonius. Billy Crystal, Robin Williams, Judi Dench, Gerard Depardieu, Jack Lemon, and the magnificent Charlton Heston also appear. 

You would think that a film with such a fantastic cast would be absolutely fabulous. You would be right. It is. I would rather watch even an hour of this masterpiece than any other adaptation I've seen--except maybe Strange Brew. I doubt there will ever be a sillier yet entertaining version than Strange Brew.

I'm no edumacated critic or expert on all things Shakespeare, but I did notice a few things about Hamlet this time as I watched it over four or five sessions of thirty minutes to an hour each--over a period of a few weeks. I was struck by the poison theme in the play.

Hamlet's father is slain by poison poured into his ear--sort of like what the news media has been doing to the country for the last several years. (That was uncalled for. This isn't a political piece, but when I see a connection, sometimes it just slips out). The entire kingdom is poisoned. The king's ghost tells Hamlet of his murder--thus infecting the youth's mind against his mother and stepfather with the toxin of revenge. Hamlet goes on to poison Ophelia's well-being by mistakenly killing her father, sending her mixed messages about his love for her, and finally rejecting her. 

 As you might expect, she takes it all rather badly and eventually drowns her sorrows along with herself. 

As a result of two family members meeting their demise, and Prince Hamlet being the obvious common denominator, her brother Laertes has his heart poisoned against Hamlet. 

Claudius seizes the opportunity to continue poisoning Laertes against Hamlet and encourages him to slay Hamlet with--you guessed it--poison. Claudius arranges a fencing match between Laertes and Claudius. During the course of the match, Laertes has his sword tipped with poison. Not one to leave a good murder to chance, Claudius also prepares a poison pellet in the chalice from the palace (or maybe it's the flagon with the dragon--it wasn't stated, but I know it wasn't the vessel with the pestle) which he proposes as a congratulatory refreshment for Hamlet after scoring a touch against Laertes. Hamlet succeeds in scoring on Laertes, but puts off his quaff from the toxic tankard. Instead, his mother Queen Gertrude guzzles from the brew that is cruel. The fencing match goes full Outback (i.e., no rules) and Hamlet takes a wound from Laertes' poisoned blade. He disarms Laertes and, in returning the blade to Laertes, switches swords with his enemy. Shortly thereafter, Hamlet, being a gifted artist, draws blood on Laertes. Gertrude dies, Laertes dies, confessing his treachery and Claudius' subterfuge before he expires. Hamlet

 hurls the poisoned blade through Claudius' back and pours the last of the poisoned wine into Claudius's mouth, inserting curses and invective into Claudius' ears all the while. The murderous uncle thus receives all he gave, reaping that which he sowed. Hamlet finally stops talking and succumbs to the poison wound.

Unfortunately for the kingdom, one who has not been poisoned, Fortinbras, 

 completes his sneak attack invasion of the nation and the palace as the remnants of the royal family enjoy their final repose on the palace parquet.

I must say, it was a terrific conclusion with the sword fight and folks dropping dead of poison. I highly recommend it; five stars given, but I suggest you refrain from any offered refreshments.