Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990)

Two minor characters from the play 'Hamlet' stumble around unaware of their scripted lives and unable to deviate from them.

Director:

Tom Stoppard

Writer:

Tom Stoppard

Stars:

Gary Oldman, Tim Roth, Richard Dreyfuss

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Oldman	...	Rosencrantz
Tim Roth	...	Guildenstern
Richard Dreyfuss	...	The Player
Livio Badurina	...	Tragedian
Tomislav Maretic	...	Tragedian
Mare Mlacnik	...	Tragedian
Serge Soric	...	Tragedian (as Srdjan Soric)
Mladen Vasary	...	Tragedian
Zeljko Vukmirica	...	Tragedian
Branko Zavrsan	...	Tragedian
Joanna Roth	...	Ophelia
Iain Glen	...	Hamlet
Donald Sumpter	...	Claudius
Joanna Miles	...	Gertrude
Ljubo Zecevic	...	Osric

Storyline

Showing events from the point of view of two minor characters from Hamlet, men who have no control over their destiny, this film examines fate and asks if we can ever really know what's going on? Are answers as important as the questions? Will Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (or Guildenstern and Rosencrantz) manage to discover the source of Hamlet's malaise as requested by the new king? Will the mysterious players who are strolling around the castle reveal the secrets they evidently know? And whose serve is it?

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Plot Keywords:

destiny | dialogue driven | title based on shakespeare | shakespeare's hamlet | based on play | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 February 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Eles Morreram

Filming Locations:

Slovenia

Box Office

Gross USA:

$739,104

Company Credits

Production Co:

Brandenberg,WNET Channel 13 New York

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally, the two leads (who appropriately spend the movie mixing up their own names) were cast the other way around.

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Goofs

At a given point, Guildenstern says something on the lines of Hamlet being a king and a friend with a good memory. Hamlet never becomes a king and in fact he is a prince.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are riding horses down a path - they pause]
Rosencrantz: [to Guildenstern] Umm, uh...
[Guildenstern rides away, and Rosencrantz follows. Rosencrantz spots a gold coin on the ground]
Rosencrantz: [to horse] Whoa - whoa, whoa.
[Gets off horse and starts flipping the coin]
Rosencrantz: Hmmm. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads. Heads.
[Guildenstern grabs the coin, checks both sides, then tosses it back to Rosencrantz]
Rosencrantz: ...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Pink Flamingos (2011)

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Soundtracks

Seamus
Performed by Pink Floyd
Courtesy of EMI Records UK Ltd.

User Reviews

Must see

A wonderfully witty film masterfully transferred from a marvellous stage script to the screen.

The dialogue is constant and highly entertaining, the meshing of Stoppard's modern day speech of the original parts of the story and Shakespeare's original Hamlet practically seamless and masterfully worked.

Gary Oldman gives a superb performance as Guildernstern (or is it Rosencratz - and, at the end of the day, does it matter?) outstanding in a fabulous cast. All in all this film cannot be recommended highly enough.