Old Knights in Chain Mail Never Die, They Just Shuffle Off Their Metal Coils: A TB/NTB Review

So I Kind Of Need That Shirt Hamlet's Wearing.

     Whenever someone mentions "Shakespeare", naturally there's going to be that one person that dramatically quotes, "TO BE OR NOT TO BE!" I'm not going to lie, nine times out of ten, that will probably be me. (Of course, having a dad who is like, obsessed with Shakespeare, I actually know where that line is from.)
      What astonishes me though, is that such a line is this well known. I remember once while babysitting a couple of brats, they were asking about the horrors of high school, and then for some reason English class came up. (Along with math and band but let's ignore those for now...)
The eldest child wanted to know what we read. Of course, I said things like To Kill A Mockingbird,  The Catcher In The Rye, and also Romeo and Juliet. He instantly replied, "That Shakespeare thing?" The younger of the two wasn't quite as familiar with that name, but she did say she had heard of him. Her brother was then all "You know? That old guy with the frilly collar who was all 'To Be or Not to Be'". While he was incorrect as to who said that line, it was pretty interesting that a fourth grader (at the time) knew of that quote. Then again, nods to Shakespeare can be seen sometimes in various things that appeal to children. Yes, I'm looking at you, that one episode of Jimmy Neutron that had "Macbeth: In Space". Needless to say, I'm rambling. I tend to do that often. So yeah,

TL;DR: That one line is famous. 



   In the tradition of my previous blog entry, I'm reviewing scenes from various adaptations of Hamlet, only no ghosts this time! Nope, just a conflicted man who is questioning whether or not he should kill himself for he truly believes he will rid his difficulties if he does so...unless it doesn't and now he's really confused.

How fun. 

Speaking of fun...Surprise! I'm judging analyzing not three, but four clips this time. I'll give you a second to get over your initial shock and excitement. 

 Alright! In English class, we had the lovely opportunity to view Olivier's Hamlet,  Zeffirelli's Hamlet, Branagh's Hamlet, and Almereyda's version. 

Without further ado, I present the review of our first version.

He Was On A Rock By The Sea...I'm So Sorry

I'm just going to go ahead and say this was my least favorite of the adaptations. 

    This version is Olivier's adaptation of Hamlet, and it is in black and white. 
Now, don't get me wrong, black and white isn't terrible...if you at least make everything else interesting. (I.e The Twilight Zone. Man I love that show)
   In all honesty, this scene really wasn't grabbing me. I had expected more from such a well known scene. 
  Here, Hamlet sits atop a rock and is by the sea. He's also on said rock on a cliff. There is an obvious fog around him which perhaps represents the fogginess or undetermined thoughts and actions (or rather lack of) Hamlet is currently dealing with.  Throughout the scene, Hamlet speaks in a very soft, yet strong voice. Despite this, I found his delivery the most boring. Hamlet spends a majority of his soliloquy just sitting on the rock looking at his dagger.
   The most memorable part of this scene was the sudden burst of music as Hamlet raises the dagger closer to him. When that happened, I jumped slightly. Why does at least one Hamlet adaptation try to startle you? Rude.
    Hamlet then leaves his rock, and stands back on the ground now in contact with the fog. He turns around and walks into said fog, as if he were leaving his clearly (confused) thoughts, and is entering the fogginess and unpredictableness of reality again.

I See Dead People...

Ah yes, Zeffirelli!
      Zeffirelli, Zeffirelli, night and day, it's Zeffirelli~
*Ahem* Whoops.

Anyways, as mentioned in my previous entry, this version so far is the one I favor. 
   Here, Hamlet is wandering around a tomb as he ponders potential suicide. I don't know, it seems a bit inconsiderate walking around a bunch of people who died unintentionally while talking about how you want die even though it may or may not actually be your time. Either way, Hamlet's in a tomb with dead people, and he's dying to join them. 
   This movie again has Hamlet express his thoughts in a much more audible way. I honestly think this version stresses emotion in the voice so much because the visual aspect of the movie is always so damn dark, you can't quite make out the expressions the people make. Like, chill with the darkness...please.
   One thing I particularly liked, was how the little light there was, was shining down on the dead rather than Hamlet. Perhaps it's just me who thinks this, but maybe it's to emphasize the benefits of being dead Hamlet is thinking of, rather than the negatives of life that he's currently dealing with. 
  

Here's Hamlet Looking Quite...Sharp

    Branagh's take on this scene was the most appealing in aspects of the scenery. Staying true to the actual play, Hamlet ponders death in his house, rather than a rock, or tomb, or extinct movie rental store. 
   The very idea of having a bright room with a contrasting outfit of black for Hamlet is quite nice as it emphasizes just how Hamlet really has entered a dark and macabre mindset. 
    Hamlet speaks to himself in front of a mirror. He's whispering almost, but at the same time, he really has a bit of an 'I'm losing it a bit, but I must remain calm' edge to it.  Hamlet throughout the scene really does not change the volume or intensity of his words, and he continues to stare at himself sharply. He really does appear to be speaking to himself, or rather his reflection, than just thinking out loud.  
    Speaking of sharp, Hamlet has a dagger in this version too, which he points at the mirror several times. It's particularly entertaining watching this as we know Polonius and Claudius are behind the mirror watching and are probably all "what...?"
    The almost unnerving brightness of this scene made it so appealing to watch .

SPEAKING OF APPEALING TO WATCH

CAN WE PLEASE LOOK AT THIS MAN

YAAAS

    The final version we watched was the one by Almereyda. AKA the one with the 'visually appealing Hamlet' Here, we find him wandering amongst the aisles of a Blockbuster. What I find strange (Besides his hat, sorry Hamlet) is that Hamlet was wandering around in the 'action' section of the store. It's funny because despite looking around the 'action; aisle, Hamlet never really takes a movie. He never took 'action', it might appear.
       Not only this, but Hamlet in this version seems to be one of the calmest. While the others have Hamlet shouting or whispering in a sharp tone, Hamlet here simply is walking around and pondering. His thoughts and words seem to be quite level and if anything, he just really sounds like an absolute emo here. Hamlet is in a rather brightly lit store that is advertising movies for the holidays and is full of a plethora of movies with colorful covers. However, he himself is dressed in dark colors, save for a rather simple winter hat. The televisions in the background feature rather action-y scenes complete with fires and explosions and guys jumping around probably dying- wonderful films to bring home for the holidays!
    While I'm not usually a fan of the modern day twist to Shakespeare, I must admit this rendition of his speech was rather well done. 

    

            As for Schwarzenegger's version...

That was BEAUTIFUL

   Conclusion:

   Hamlet's conflicts that had been expressed in this soliloquy are those that sometimes are very much relatable to people all over. The topic of confusion and not knowing what to do are still very much so present in today's world. For the most part, people can sometimes relate to Hamlet's dilemma. No, maybe most people's fathers weren't killed causing you to spiral into madness and a desire to avenge him, but the bare concept of Hamlet's struggles are still present. 

  Many versions of this play exist for the purpose that there's simply so much one can do with the lines and how they can be delivered. Different versions of this play also gives people more of a choice of how to view the play. Some people might find the modern version more appealing and easier to follow than the version done by Zeffirelli. This gives more of an opportunity for people to enjoy the works of Shakespeare

Final Thoughts:


Olivier:
Acting: 3/10
Lighting: ---- (I can't really tell?)
Scenery: 4/10
Phrasing: 4/10
Fog: 10/10
Overall: *** 


 Zeffirelli: 
Acting: 7/10
Lighting: 2/10
Scenery: 7/10
Phrasing: 8/10
Dead People: 10/10
Overall: **** 1/2

Branagh:
Acting: 5/10
Lighting: 8/10
Scenery: 8/10 (It stayed true to the actual description!)
Phrasing: 6/10
Dagger: 10/10
Overall: ****

Almereyda
Acting: 5/10
Lighting: 7/10
Scenery: 7/10 
Phrasing: 3/10
Hamlet: 13/10
Overall: *** 1/2 

Thanks for reading! I once again apologize for posting so late, but hey, it's technically still Wednesday, which is close to Tuesday...so..yeah. 

Peace!