Franco Zeffirelli's film is considerably different from the play. He has added the funeral scene at
the beginning, for instance. He has rearranged scenes or parts of scenes, cut most long speeches,
and occasionally given one character's lines to another. Although these changes might offend the
dedicated Shakespeare scholar, they all serve to intensify the action and shorten the plot.
It is easier to see in the movie, therefore, how Hamlet is charged with seeking revenge but
actually achieves justice. Although Hamlet never says that public knowledge of Claudius'
misdeeds must precede his execution, that is actually what happens. Some critics--and Hamlet
himself--accuse Hamlet of being "hesitant." He certainly seems less rash than Oedipus. By
waiting, however, Hamlet does not seem to be a mere assassin or someone who is upset over
having his throne stolen; instead, Hamlet kills someone who is responsible for the death of the
queen and of Hamlet, himself.
>> As you watch the film, you should be aware that this production is much easier to follow than
others--and that Mel Gibson does more to make Shakespeare's language sound like people
talking than any actor before him. Students often mention watching the film once to get the plot
straight--to see what happens, meet the characters, figure out which are allied with Hamlet and
which with Claudius and which others just get caught in the middle.
Most students report watching the videotape again to look for ways in which the staging
intensifies the action or the words being spoken, to listen for "quotable quotes," and to focus on
the staging of particular scenes. Notice, for example, how "three-dimensional" this production
is--characters often eavesdrop on each other from above (such as Hamlet overhearing Polonius
warn Ophelia against him) and the camera often looks down at characters (such as Polonius in
the library) and even swirls around Ophelia. Getting a camera to revolve around Ophelia in an
arc of about 270 degrees called for clearing most of the equipment and staff from the movie set
by building scaffolding above the sort of enclosed courtyard where Mel Gibson and Elena
Bonham-Carter were filmed. This scene was crucial, Zeffirelli said during an interview by HBO
for "The Making of Hamlet," because this scene of divided loyalties, duty vs. love, is where
Ophelia starts to go mad.
Assignment:
Sometimes, when you read a piece of literature and then watch a movie production of it, your
point of view can become skewed. After all, when the AP test rolls around you will need to
focus on the literature, not the film interpretation. In other words, you can get into trouble.
Write your advice for a future student in the class who will be reading Hamlet and then
watching this film version. What pitfalls are important for a student to avoid when comparing
text to film? How can you compare the two media while maintaining a strong focus on the text?
You can be as creative as you like (letter, advice column), but your creativity is not as important
as your insight about the “appearance vs. reality” conundrum when comparing these media.