Hamlet

Based on Tony Richardson's theatrical production at the Roundhouse Theatre in London, this film is a powerful adaptation of William Shakespeare's epic tragedy. Eschewing the big-budget production values of other film versions, it instead focuses on great performances from Nicol Williamson as Prince Hamlet, Anthony Hopkins as the villainous Claudius and rock-and-roll singer Marianne Faithfull as Ophelia. Newly remastered.

Shot during the day at the Roundhouse Theater, where the cast was performing the play in the evening, Tony Richardson's adaptation of the Shakespeare classic stars Nicol Williamson as the eponymous prince. The well-known play of the Danish prince consumed with self-loathing for his inability to avenge his father's death at the hand of his uncle, King Claudius (Anthony Hopkins), receives a few twists from the innovative director. Budget limitations forced Richardson to make due with limited sets and props, requiring most of the backdrops to be veiled in darkness, with the actors emerging from the shadows and vanishing into them in two-shots and close-ups. Richardson also introduces the notion of embodying the presence of the ghost as a powerful light. Given such a setting, Williamson gives an electric performance as the prince. His is an acerbic rather than an vulnerable Hamlet, by turns ironic, dyspeptic, and sardonic, as he lashes out at those who surround him, unsure whether it's humanity or fear that stays his hand. Hopkins, Mark Dignam, Judy Parfitt, Gordon Jackson, and Roger Livesy all contribute to a strong ensemble.