William Shakespere’s classic text is usually cut for theatrical or cinema performances, Kenneth Branagh’s 1996 production goes the opposite way, restoring every possible word over a mighty 242 minute running time. Branagh himself essays the student who returns home to find his father dead and his mother Gertrude (Julie Christie) in thrall to his uncle Claudius. Elsinore is depicted in majestic fashion, and the cast, combing Charlton Heston, Ken Dodd, Robin Williams, Richard Briers and Jack Lemmon, is as highly eclectic as it sounds. Casting Brian Blessed as Hamlet’s father typifies the larger-than-life feel of this epic production, one more jewel in a film laden with glittering elements, woven together to create a great record of the definitive revenge story.
Hamlet 1996 ***
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