Hamlet (2000)

Modern-day New York City adaptation of Shakespeare's immortal story about Hamlet's plight to avenge his father's murder.

Director:

Michael Almereyda

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play), Michael Almereyda (screen adaptation)

Stars:

Ethan Hawke, Kyle MacLachlan, Diane Venora

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ethan Hawke	...	Hamlet
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Claudius
Diane Venora	...	Gertrude
Sam Shepard	...	Ghost
Bill Murray	...	Polonius
Liev Schreiber	...	Laertes
Julia Stiles	...	Ophelia
Karl Geary	...	Horatio
Paula Malcomson	...	Marcella
Steve Zahn	...	Rosencrantz
Dechen Thurman	...	Guildenstern
Rome Neal	...	Barnardo
Jeffrey Wright	...	Gravedigger
Paul Bartel	...	Osric
Casey Affleck	...	Fortinbras

Storyline

New York, 2000. A specter in the guise of the newly-dead CEO of Denmark Corporation appears to Hamlet, tells of murder most foul, demands revenge, and identifies the killer as Claudius, the new head of Denmark, Hamlet's uncle and now step-father. Hamlet must determine if the ghost is truly his father, and if Claudius did the deed. To buy time, Hamlet feigns madness; to catch his uncle's conscience, he invites him to watch a film he's made that shows a tale of murder. Finally convinced of Claudius's guilt, Hamlet must avenge his father. Claudius now knows Hamlet is a threat and even uses Ophelia, Hamlet's love, in his own plots against the young man. Murder will out?

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Plot Keywords:

murder | guilt | city | ghost | revenge | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 June 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amlet 2000

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$62,253, 14 May 2000, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,568,749, 13 August 2000

Company Credits

Production Co:

double A Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Diane Venora and Liev Schreiber have previously acted in productions of Hamlet on the New York stage. In fact, Venora had actually played the title character in a famous and iconoclastic production of the play. Additionally, she played the mother of Juliet, Lady Capulet, in "Romeo + Juliet", the modern adaptation of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet"

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Goofs

In the fencing bout on the rooftop, Hamlet and Laertes are dressed in modern foil fencing gear (with electric vests) but use épées instead of foils.

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Quotes

Ghost: I am thy father's spirit.

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Connections

Version of Hamlet (2005)

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Soundtracks

Greentone
Written by Chris Jeely
Performed by Accelera Deck
Published by Acceleradeck Music
Administered by Endorphin Records
Courtesy of Endorphin Records

User Reviews

A potent translation

With his stunning new vision of the most revered of Shakespeare's plays, director Michael Almereyda has effectively transposed many of the enduring themes of that classic work to our contemporary hi-tech era. Even if you are not very familiar with Shakespeare's plays or have always been confounded by his verse, one can still appreciate this film for the tremendously inventive ways by which Almereyda has interpreted the core scenes of Hamlet in the context of corporate America. His visually striking translation of scenes like Ophelia's drowning and Hamlet's famous `to be or not to be' soliloquy are a delight and true brain candy. The cast is all around superb, with the classically delivered lines from actors Liev Schreiber (Laertes) and Sam Shepard (Ghost) nicely counterbalancing the very contemporary style of delivery from Ethan Hawk (Hamlet), Bill Murray (Polonius), and Julia Stiles (Ophelia).

There will no doubt be much comparison between this film and Baz Luhrmann's flashy modern remake of Romeo and Juliet. However, whereas Luhrmann's film ultimately fails in going beyond the boundaries of its visually striking presentation, Almereyda's Hamlet proves to be far more than a mere spectacle for the senses. In fact, this is the serious flaw that plagues most of the films coming from young, talented independent filmmakers these days: all style, no substance. Well, this Hamlet has both. By setting the film deep in the heart of a very real and very modern steel and concrete American jungle like New York City, which is infused with the relics of the mass media and cold capitalistic consumerism, Almereyda powerfully enhances for the audience the sense of the desolation of his characters that results from urban isolation. This is a theme that Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai has so masterfully examined with his films Fallen Angels and Chungking Express. In Hamlet, we get a powerful dose of both Kar-Wai's visual flair and the sensitive, crumbling heart that it sheathes.