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.

Tea, Coercion, and Conciliatory Acts

 Fun Fact:

Frederick Lord North was 38 when he became prime minister in 1770. Corpulent with large features and a bulbous head, he was famous for his wit, literary anecdotes, and historical references. Prior to becoming PM, he had supported the policies that led to the revolution in America. Although he took a more conciliatory policy when he took office, his policies regarding the East India Company tea precipitated the rebellion. 

The East India Tea Act of 1773 was designed to make tea cheaper in America and increase revenues from the tea tax, thus upholding the right of Parliament to tax America. It seemed like a win-win. While England viewed the right to tax as fundamental to parliamentary supremacy, the Americans regarded any direct tax as a tool for tyranny.

The Americans responded by dumping the East India tea into Boston Harbor. North escalated the tension by imposing the Coercive acts, intending to make an example of Massachusetts; instead, it made North despised in the colonies. The sanctions failed to isolate Massachusetts, uniting the colonies in opposition. 

In February 1775, North introduced his Conciliatory Proposal to Parliament to avoid escalating the conflict. The idea was to allow the colonies to tax themselves--provided they made a sufficient contribution. Parliament would not give up the right to tax the colonies but would suspend the exercise of the right. As you might expect, it was a hit neither with Parliament nor the colonies. Franklin said it was akin to a highway man bringing his hat to the window for you to fill sufficiently to spare him the trouble of rifling your pockets himself.

Although North showed tremendous political courage in submitting the proposal in direct contradiction to the King's wishes, it was too little too late as parliament and the people were set on demonstrating supremacy, and it didn't address other issues that concerned the colonists. 

The heavy losses at Bunker Hill in June 1775 made North believe that a successful military conquest of the colonies was not a likely possibility. 

The above is condensed from The Men Who Lost America by Andrew Jackson O'shaughnessy -- Chapter 2 or 3, I think.

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I spent most of yesterday researching and writing a short story. Don't leap to the conclusion that I finished; it's not even half done. The weather was too cold to do anything outside, and will be worse tomorrow with temperatures coming in at -20.

A fellow author's having a difficult time, being hospitalized at the moment. Give her books a look and choose one or six to start with. Here's a link to Rex Regis, a series starter.

Writing Buddies

 

The characters and items pictured above have been my writing companions for a few years now. On the left is what may be an Aztec death whistle. It makes a sound like rumbling wind or growling jaguar. There are two stone dice from Texas, some poker chips from a production I was in, one white plastic die, an Eiffel Tower replica (not actual size), and a dragon I found at Walmart. The two flanking denizens not only assure that I focus on my work, like the other items, they also have special functions.

The stone dice are a reminder  that the protagonist can't always succeed--even sure things are subject to chance. Even when he does succeed, there must be high probability that he won't. The plastic die suggests that after a failure or a success, there may be more unanticipated possibilities that can change the earlier result. A little luck never hurts. The chips represent the idea that a good story requires rising stakes. Eventually, the protagonist has to go all in.

The Eiffel Tower replica is a reminder to write stories that stand out from the rest of the landscape. The real tower was assembled in two years, two months, and five days. Although that was record time for the age, it's a reminder that a quality project takes time. The Eiffel Tower is made of wrought iron from the Pompey forges in France. The metal was refined through a process known as puddling, which creates almost pure iron. Eiffel claimed it was the best and most robust of materials--another thing it has in common with my stories. It was the first building to reach 1,000 feet in height and remained unchallenged for 40 years. (These facts and more about the tower can be found here). Don't forget, the tower symbolizes Paris, a city of mystery with countless faces. Stories there may rise to the tower's lofty pinnacle or descend to the dark catacombs. Whether in Roman, Viking, medieval, or modern times, Paris makes a fabulous setting. Anything can happen in Paris. A great story has no limits, and the boundaries of every setting and genre can be expanded.
 

What about the monsters? The Aztec death whistle conjures images of human sacrifice with bloodstained altars, stone knives, and naked hearts offered to the sun. Sometimes a story should tear your heart out--or at least nick it. On the one hand, it's death at the hands of evil or deceived fanatics. With the dragon on the other hand, it's have death by fang, flame, and claw. A good story should have some fire to it, with multiple ways to land the protagonist in jeopardy. The antagonist or difficulties must be formidable; it helps if they seem insurmountable and are complicated by a serious case of awesome. 

Finally, note that the death whistle and the dragon bookend the tableau. They remind me to get the protagonist into some peril or adventure early--it helps the reader get interested--and to have a powerful finale. Those monsters on the flanks also symbolize the terrible choices the characters must face. Awful consequences and uncertainty torment the protagonist. The big decisions turn on the small hinges of character and necessity. All the alternatives have their risks and drawbacks. The monsters are Scylla and Charybdis. The true hero sometimes must place his hope in something beyond himself and his own abilities, and trust that he has made the right call--just like the writer does.

Remember, time is running out to get the first three books in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series for only 99 cents each. The first two books lead to the thrilling finale in the third.

Jeff Chapman

 Interview with Jeff Chapman

Author of

The Great Contagion, The Sniggard's Revenge, Last Request: Victorian Gothic, and more

Please tell me a little about your current work in progress.

I’m working on a novel in my Merliss Tales fantasy series. Merliss is the spirit of a young woman who has been trapped inside the body of a gray cat. She had been training to become a healer/shaman, so she retains some magical abilities, but she lives as a cat. The magic which transferred her spirit to the cat gives her physical body an unusually long life. We’re talking thousands of years. Merliss aids her human companions in their battles with disease and supernatural threats. I’ve written two novels in the series (The Great Contagion and Cat Sidhe) and a short story “The Water Wight.” My work in progress is The Breath of the Sea, which is set several centuries in the future from the first two novels. The story concerns an injured mermaid and a dying girl who befriends the mermaid. Merliss is drawn into events to protect the mermaid.

Where did you get the idea for this book or series?

The Merliss Tales were inspired by a cat that my family adopted off the street. Smokey arrived at our house one day begging for food. She was sick and starving. After a trip to the vet, we had a new cat. Smokey possessed several old battle scars. One of her ears was notched and two of her four canines were missing. This gave me the idea for a character based on an old soul in a cat’s body. Merliss was born.

Do you write in more than one genre?

Yes, in addition to fantasy, I’ve written weird westerns, steampunk, horror, historical, and stories that are just weird.

 Tell me about something that you believe makes your writing unique or worthy of attention.

The Merliss Tales feature a cat as the primary protagonist. I call it fantasy from a cat’s eye view. Much of fantasy is written from the perspective of people at the top of the social order. Many of my fantasy stories focus on characters in less exalted positions. I’m aiming to tell the story of events from the perspective of the man in the trench as opposed to the general directing the army.

Is there anything about your personal history or personality that manifests strongly in your writing?

I’ve always found stories of premature burial especially terrifying. This fear was the premise for my historical novella Last Request: A Victorian Gothic. I also love cats. So, it’s not surprising that I’ve created a fantasy series centered around a cat and cats make frequent appearances in my other stories.

 What else would be helpful for readers to know about you?

I have a couple degrees in history, and I enjoy reading and watching documentaries about historical events. My interest in history has guided me toward the fantasy genre. I love looking at the past. Fantasy gives us an opportunity to make up a new past.

Excluding your own work, what underrated author or book would you recommend that more people read? Why?

They should check out Simon Kewin’s The Genehunter. It’s a dark story about a time in the future when human cloning and human-machine integration become commonplace. Kewin gives a compelling glimpse of where humanity’s darkest desires might take us when paired with the technology to get us there.

Which of your books do you most highly recommend? Why?

The Great Contagion. The story is dark and gritty at times and told completely from Merliss’s perspective. More than a few reviewers have said it’s unlike any fantasy they’ve read before.

Which break, event, decision, or fortuitous circumstance has helped you or your writing career the most?

I wouldn’t describe the events as fortuitous, but I faced some serious health issues a few years ago which reminded me of my mortality and refocused my efforts on pursuing my writing dreams.

What question do you wish you would get asked more often?

Have you written any vampire stories?

Yes, I published a short story titled “The Princess and the Vampire.” It’s about a spoiled princess who wants to take a vampire as a lover, but first she wants him to be de-fanged, literally, as in his fangs removed. The love affair doesn’t go according to plan.

 Do you have a catch-phrase or quote that you like? What is it? And why do you choose it?

I've all my wisdom teeth
Two up top, two beneath
And yet I'll recognise
My mouth says things that aren't so wise

That’s a few lines from “The Bereft Man’s Song” by the Crash Test Dummies. It’s part of my email signature. I do have my wisdom teeth, but they don’t always impart wisdom. Seems appropriate to place at the end of an interview.

Links:

http://www.jeffchapmanbooks.com/

https://www.facebook.com/JeffChapmanWriter

https://www.goodreads.com/JeffChapman

https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jeff-chapman

https://www.amazon.com/Jeff-Chapman/e/B004YQ2ZWW

https://books2read.com/ap/n0Qjkw/Jeff-Chapman

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Thanks to Jeff for participating.

My news for the new year is from a list about last year. My story "Tokens of Moonlight and Mist" made the Tangent Online Recommended Reading List of 2024. The story is in Cirsova Magazine Issue 21/Winter 2024.

I'm between short stories at the moment, having submitted one yesterday and not having commenced another. I've also got Antonio and Rip nagging me for attention for the stand alone novella of their adventure in the islands and perhaps Mexico in search of Johnny Coyne and Catalina with the matter of the stolen ship and munitions to increase their ardor for the chase. Rip wants the ship. Antonio wants Catalina.  It will be book 7 in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series. If you haven't read the prequel to the series, In Death Bedrenched, you can find it on the first of the links below. Check out the other deals too.

Free Science Fiction and Fantasy

DystopianThrillers

Pick a free book to review

 

Little Omnibus battle

 Let's return to the Omnibus bill of 1850. Stephen Douglas succeeded where Daniel Webster had failed and brought the provisions through the Senate in small bites instead of at a single gulp. Getting the provisions through the House would be another battle.

The laconic and handsome Linn Boyd would spearhead the effort in the House. Howell Cobb of Georgia was Speaker of the House, which contained members who were often hot-headed and undisciplined. Cobb picked Boyd from those clamoring for attention on August 29. Boyd moved to add creation of the New Mexico and Utah Territories as an amendment to the Texas border bill. He soon dropped the Utah amendment, and argued, so that none would doubt where he stood, that he was for union and the Constitution. He proclaimed that he was for union not only as protection against foreign aggression, but "for the more important reason that it protects us from on another."

Joseph Root of Ohio wanted to add the Wilmot Proviso to the bill. McClernand rose to oppose the motion. Cobb repeatedly ruled the Southern members out of order on their attempts to delay the bill. Boyd, with Douglas' constant help, battled against the chaos that reigned in the chamber. Votes swayed back and forth. The bill's fate teetered on the edge between success and failure. 

On September 5, Boyd refused to allow any more amendments to be offered for his bill for fear that they would cause the bill's demise. He moved previous question to call for a vote on the bill, but the question failed. "Long John" Wentworth of Illinois wanted to send the bill back to committee to add selected amendments. Cobb ruled that his proposed amendments could be considered separately. After an amendment calling for the Wilmot Proviso to be implemented in the new territories was voted down, Cobb ruled against a second division of Wentworth's motion, reversing his ruling on the basis that it had applied to a new motion, which Wentworth's motion had then been, but with a number of votes having taken place since, the motion was no longer new and could no longer be divided. Thus the only vote left on the motion was whether it should go back to committee. Cobb's ruling was upheld by a vote, and Wentworth's motion and amendments were defeated. 

Robert Toombs then proposed an amendment which, although hidden in innocuous terms, would establish slavery in the New Mexico Territory, but the trickery was detected and nullified by slashing some of the language from Toombs' proposal. 

September 6, Cobb recognized Volney Howard of Texas, who moved for reconsideration of a third reading of the compromise bill, which had been voted down the day before. The vote carried. Finally, the bill itself could be voted on. The little omnibus bill passed by 108 to 97.

The next day the California Statehood bill passed. After heated debate, the Utah Territory bill also passed. The fugitive slave bill passed on September 12. 

Washington celebrated. Stephen Douglas gave an impromptu speech, declaring the nation united from shore to shore with the mighty west as the connecting link. Millard Fillmore proclaimed, "The long agony is over."

The above is summarized from Chapter 26 of Fergus Bordewich's America's Great Debate: Henry Clay, Stephen Douglas and the Compromise that Preserved the Union.  

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I finished a short story yesterday. By "finished" I mean the first draft is complete. I'll do a read through and send it to my Skirmish Team for comments and criticism before I submit it. It's tentatively titled "A Stardust Memory."

 I also finished Jed the Dead by Alan Dean Foster. I had heard good things about it, and it was on sale for a buck or two. The story is about Ross Ed who finds a dead alien in a desert cave on his way from Texas to California. He continues his journey and encounters people along the way who help or hinder him. The government definitely falls into the hindering category. He ends up on the run from the military, people who want to use the alien to attract other aliens, and those looking to make big bucks from the intergalactic corpse. I have to admit that I couldn't get attached to Ross Ed or any of the other characters, and the story, although intriguing at times, couldn't consistently hold my interest. The text of the ebook had errors on almost every page, as if the book had been scanned with faulty OCR technology. I'm a fan of Foster, but this one didn't reach me. I give it 3 out of 5 road kill rabbits.

Don't forget, the first trilogy in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series is on sale, as is Smoke. See the links at the top of the page.

See How They Run

 

See How They Run, 2022, directed by Tom George and written by Mark Chappell, stars Sam Rockwell as Detective Stoppard and Saoirse Ronan as Constable Stalker. This parody of the murder mystery genre is actually funny. We've recently watched A Haunting in Venice (2023), and Murder on the Orient Express (2017); within the past year we also saw Knives Out and its forgettable sequel. I would rather rewatch See How They Run than any of those others. It has been too long since I saw Death on the Nile (2022) (which I enjoyed tremendously) for me to include that one in my comparison.

See takes place in the 1950s with a murder after the party celebrating the 100th performance of Agatha Christie's "The Mouse Trap." All the theater people as well as those connected with the possible movie based on the play are suspects. There's a certain predictability to events and to the humor--it is a parody of a formulaic genre, after all--and the ultimate callback is all the more satisfying for it. There are sufficient twists to keep one wondering. Even though I had guessed who the murderer was near the beginning, there were enough developments along the way to make me question my confidence on the selection. My guess was based on what I know about the genre, rather than any clues given to that point. 

Rockwell, better known to me as Guy Fleegman from Galaxy Quest, plays a subdued, perhaps depressed, Inspector Stoppard in stark contrast to the excitable and overconfident Constable Stalker played by Saoirse. She's worried about the sergeant's exam. He's concerned that she jumps to conclusions. Naturally, more murders follow the first and motives multiply. The execution of reveal subverted expectations and seemed like a subtle nod to Clue without the confusing nonsense. I give it 5 out of 5 spiral notepads.

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I note that the first three books in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series are only 99 cents each through the end of the year. Get them now, or use your Christmas loot to add them to your library. It is the first trilogy of the series, forming a single fantastic story arc. The paperbacks make great gifts too.

These are my short stories published this year:

"Monica on my Mind" actually came out in 2023 in PinUp Noir 2.

"A Matter of Letters" came out this year in Wyrd West.

"Freedom on Wheels" came out in Road Trippin'.

"Letters in the Mail" came out in Wyrd West Cursed Canyon.

"Love under a Purple Sky" came out in Space Cowboys 6 Fission Chips.

"Tokens of Moonlight and Mist" is in Cirsova Magazine #21 - although it was the first short story I sold, it is the last one published this year.

Cirsova Magazine also recently purchased my short story "Drown Melancholy" for publication in the fall of 2025.

Smoke is on sale, along with many other good tales - find it in this multi-genre sale 

Merry Christmas! - Remember, 5 star reviews are great Christmas gifts for writers.  

 

There she is

 

"There she is!"

Christmas and New Years are visible through the Mutara Nebula. I'm doing my part to help you navigate the holidays without functioning sensors. Don't get caught in two-dimensional thinking.

The first three books in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series are on sale for only 99 cents through the end of the year. The three form a great story and set up the confrontations in the next three books. It's flintlock fantasy with kick -- and dragons.

Smoke is at a reduced price for Christmas too. If you enjoyed Smoke, you'll want to read "Monica on my Mind," which is a short story that takes place shortly after the events in the novel.

Here's a Christmas sale on books in a variety of genres.

 

And finally, the magazine above with my story "Tokens of Moonlight and Mist" just came out.