Working Body Paragraphs for Hamlet Film

Branagh portrays Hamlet as overwhelmed and defenseless against the oppression of the king, queen, and crowd. When the queen asks Hamlet: “Why seems it so particular with thee?” (1.2.78), Hamlet responds despondently and is clearly experiencing immense pain. His sadness can be seen both by his facial expression, which suggests that he might even cry soon, and by his somber tone. This tone also reflects his clear anger; however, because of the low volume of his voice, Branagh suggests that Hamlet simply does not have the power to fight back against his external oppression. Also, Hamlet wears a simple black coat, which contrasts the spacious and luxurious room. The director chooses to reveal Hamlet hidden, and isolated, implying that he is alone and not understood. After his entrance, when speaking with his mother and Claudius, the scene is shot so that Hamlet has nothing behind him, further demonstrating his loneliness and lack of support. The king, however, is shot in such a way where the whole crowd of people is behind him; this not only establishes support for the king and what he says, but also that he is not just speaking to Hamlet, he is speaking to the crowd. The king is trying to play off a respectful fatherly figure to the people, but we and Hamlet recognize the truth: Hamlet is becoming alienated.

Gibson provides the most pathetic Hamlet: dead dad, new dad who would rather go hunting than talk to him, a mom who has a strange school-girl crush on him, and ----------------------house and camera something--------. This Hamlet is too weak to be angry, instead he is just sad and lives in a little stone house without a door. When speaking, he uses a soft, whispering voice with no energy, and a fragile tone that indicates he is offended. In this film, Hamlet seems less angry, and more miserable with no energy. His mother offers him no support, and instead is depicted as a little girl with a crush on Hamlet. She clearly has high levels of affection, because she kisses him passionately and as if he was her lover. Although she truly cares about him, it offers no support to Hamlet and is essentially meaningless because of her immature nature. The cottage or ‘palace’ that they speak in looks absolutely nothing like royalty, but instead is a stone house with no doors. This could suggest that the king and queen are not fit to be royalty, or suggest that Gibson does not believe they deserve to be royalty. It is an isolated room with no crowd, just the three of them, which implies that the king and queen are genuine with their words. Although possibly genuine, the king leaves early to go hunting, showing his lack of commitment to his new son. After the king leaves, the queen becomes much more physical with Hamlet, unifying the queen and hamlet, but detracting from the unity of the king and queen.

Tennant’s Hamlet is like a rebellious child; he is independent and does not get along with his mother or new father at all. This is the angriest Hamlet, his eyes wander, showing his lack of interest, and he speaks in short, sharp statements. He is sarcastic and speaks rapidly. This suggests that he is detached from his parents and independent. Additionally, the queen does not really care, she is not very sure of her words, which can be seen by her stuttering and seems to be making up her words on the spot. This queen, however, is unified with the king, and tag-teams with him in their quick-fire attacks on Hamlet. Furthermore, the king speaks to the crowd. Often when speaking, he does not even look at Hamlet. One moment of the king’s speech, he clearly makes eye contact with Hamlet and speaks from his heart to Hamlet’s. “’tis unmanly grief” (1.2.98). The one time the king speaks to Hamlet genuinely is to insult him. This serious harshness and darkness can also be seen in the room; it is a large dark room that seems to set the mood of pain and distress. Also, everyone except the women and religious figures are wearing suits. This seems to level the king, Hamlet, and the common people. The king is not dressed exotically and clearly above the rest of the people. Upon everyone but Hamlet’s exit, the regular camera is switched to a security camera, which is slightly raised and looking down on them. This could either be someone or something of a higher power looking down on them, or Hamlet senior watching over from above. Regardless, it adds a spooky effect to the scene.