Hamlet poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield, Ian Holm ... see more see more... , Helena Bonham Carter , Stephen Dillane , Nathaniel Parker , Sean Murray , Michael Maloney , Trevor Peacock , John McEnery , Richard Warwick , Christien Anholt , Dave Duffy , Vernon Dobtcheff , Pete Postlethwaite , Christopher Fairbank , Marjorie Bell , Justin Case , Roy Evans , Roger Low , Ned Mendez , Sarah Phillips , Pamela Sinclair , Roy York , Joyce Nettles , Brian Murray , Dana Ivey , Diane Venora , Don Reilly , Josef Sommer , Kevin Kline , Michael Cumpsty , Peter Francis James , Phillip G , Phillip Goodwin , Reg E. Cathey , Robert Murch , Helena Bonham-Carter

Franco Zeffirelli directs his third Shakespeare adaptation (after Romeo and Juliet and Otello) with this film version of the tragedy Hamlet. The titular prince of Denmark (Mel Gibson), returns home to... read more read more... his family's castle of Elsinore after years of attending school in Germany to find out his father has died and his uncle Claudius (Alan Bates) is the new king. To make matters worse, Claudius has married Hamlet's mother, Queen Gertrude (Glenn Close), whom he has unusually strong feelings for. Hamlet is visited by his father's ghost (Paul Scofield), who asks him to seek revenge for his murder. In order to find out who the real killer is, Hamlet stages a theatrical scene resembling his father's death. Claudius is upset by the production and leaves to arrange for Hamlet's murder. In the ensuing confusion, Hamlet accidentally kills Polonious (Ian Holm) instead of Claudius; Hamlet's lover, Ophelia (Helena Bonham Carter), goes mad and commits suicide; and eventually Hamlet and Claudius both meet their fate. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Flixster Users

59% liked it

37,250 ratings

Critics

76% liked it

33 critics

PG, 2 hr. 15 min.

Directed by: Franco Zeffirelli, Alan Bates, Kevin Kline, Brian Murray, Dana Ivey, Diane Venora, Don Reilly, Glenn Close, Helena Bonham Carter, Ian Holm, Josef Sommer, Mel Gibson, Michael Cumpsty, Pete Postlethwaite, Peter Francis James

Release Date: December 19, 1990

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: February 24, 2004

Get It:

Stats: 1,432 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet Hamlet To be or not to be Kenneth Branagh Hamlet as Claudius in Hamlet
Upload a Photo | View All Hamlet Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (1,432)

  • fb733768972
    October 24, 2011
    fb733768972
    This is a very faithful, even if exaggerated attempt to recreate a shakespearean play, centuries after the material. After the good, but less faithful DiCaprio version of Romeo and Juliet, Mel Gibson tries his luck at playing the Prince in "Hamlet." I must say that I am thoroughl... read morey impressed with the outcome of this film. It stays true to most of the originally scripted playwrights and tries to cover new grounds in making it a feature-length film. The pacing is a little slow at times, but I accepted it, because that is how the play already is. Some of the dialogue seems to make fun of shakespearean language which makes a few scenes a little uneven, but the entire story is present and I had a great time watching it. "Hamlet (1990" is a great film!
  • blkbomb
    October 7, 2011
    blkbomb
    Hamlet: The play's the thing, wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king. 

    "Shakespeare's classic tale of vengeance and tragedy."

    I'm not a huge fan of Shakespeare, when it comes to the movie adaptions or just the original plays, but I can enjoy a well made Shakespeare adapt... read moreion from time to time. The only two I've seen that I've liked are both from Zefferelli. He made the ultimate classic, Romeo and Juliet and then his version of Hamlet was pretty good as well. It is the only version I have seen, so I have nothing to compare it to. Still, while I can appreciate this movie, I still can't fully say I like because it just isn't to my taste.

    There's really no reason going over plot because everyone knows the plot before going in. Mel Gibson does do a pretty good job as Hamlet. His soliloquies are pretty good and most of the time when I see an actor do a soliloquy, I want to kill myself. This has all the necessary and annoying elements that come along with Shakespeare. It's overly dramatic and its acting is way over the top in the drama department as well. But that just comes with the territory. Glenn Close and Helena Bonham Carter were also good in their respected roles as Gertrude and Ophelia. 

    Going in you should probably know if this movie is for you or not. Shakespeare fans should adore it, although I guess some of the previous ones are considered better. People who hate Shakespeare will hate it. As far as the few adaptions I've seen of Shakespeare, this would have to be my second favorite. The major scenes of Hamlet are well done, so that in itself makes the movie worth a look.
  • spielberg00
    September 29, 2011
    spielberg00
    I saw around twenty minutes of this and then I just gave up. The "To Be, or Not to Be" soliloquy was boring and overly-dramatized.
  • wildaly14
    July 11, 2011
    wildaly14
    I think this is one of the better versions of Hamlet particularly because of two aspects: Mel Gibson and Helena Bonham Carter. I absolutely think Gibson gives the best "to be or not to be" speech in all the Hamlet adaptations I've seen. Also, I think he portrayed Hamlet as he tru... read morely is with all his broodiness and internal conflicts effectively played out. Bonham Carter is certainly a convincing Ophelia. I didn't particularly care for the angle they gave between Hamlet and his mother, Gertrude (played by Glenn Close). It also cut a lot from the source material, which I didn't particularly like either.
  • cosmo313
    May 12, 2011
    cosmo313
    Zeffirelli just knows how to do this sort of thing, and do it right.

    I like the cast, and they all do a good job, but I don't really think this is my favorite version of the story. It does stray from the material, and it gets a bit boring at times, but all in all, you could do ... read morea whole lot worse.
  • ScoopOnline
    January 20, 2011
    ScoopOnline
    I really tried my best to enjoy the Movie but I just couldnt. I guess because I m not a Hamlet fan. Each to their own.
    You can present me any "Version" of Hamlet, remakes, I still wont enjoy it even not then when the character of Hamlet is played by my fav Actor, infact that wou... read moreld make it worster!

    Shakespeare YES- his Hamlet NO
  • TomBowler
    August 21, 2010
    TomBowler
    Not as faithful to the text as Brannagh's but holds it's own. Full review later.
  • ythelastman89
    January 19, 2010
    ythelastman89
    Honestly, it's the best Hamlet adaption to date. It has the best overall tone and accuracy in detail to the source material. The acting was phenomenal from nearly everyone and it proved once and for all that Mel Gibson isn't just an action star. It's extremely morbid, but that's ... read moreexactly what Shakespeare envisioned. The look of Denmark is perfect, clearly a lot of time was put into the environment in which the story unfolds.
  • neverteaseaweasel
    November 22, 2009
    neverteaseaweasel
    Personally, I would have to say that this is the best film version of Hamlet that I ahve seen. It suceeds in several places that the others do not. Primarily, it is actually fairly visual with the sets and costumes and such. They are historical, but also artistic. I really didn't... read more not expect to like this one at all, so the fact that it was good really surprised me. Helena Bonham Carter is the perfect Ophelia, and Mel Gibson was pretty good as well. That also surprised me; I have never been that impressed with him before. It parts Hamlet was kind of comic, which didn't really seem to fit in with the film. However, Shakespeare IS fairly comedic, so it was true to the work at least. Idk, the humor just didn't really blend with the rest of it. Hamlet is a classic, there is no doubt about it, and really this film version comes close to doing it justice.
  • aliceinpunderland
    October 29, 2008
    aliceinpunderland
    Mel Gibson's natural skittishness makes a subtle and humane madness for Hamlet, unlike Branagh's madcap schtick. I like Helena Bonham-Carter's sassier, cattier Ophelia but the rosemary scene was a little too indicated with her dead eyes and babyish mannerisms. I don't really mi... read morend that half the play is cut because stage and film are completely different media. Zeffirelli uses what is necessary to paint a complete cinematic story.

View All Hamlet Reviews

Critic Reviews

Variety Staff
July 4, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Performances all fall in a middle range between the competent and the lackluster. Full Review

Caryn James
October 4, 2003
Caryn James, New York Times

[Mel Gibson] is by far the best part of Mr. Zeffirelli's sometimes slick but always lucid and beautifully cinematic version of the play. Full Review

June 6, 2001
Rolling Stone

Gibson gives the melancholy Dane an earnest but pedestrian reading.

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

There's nothing embarrassing about Zeffirelli's brisk new version, nor anything particularly remarkable; it's an entirely credible, middle-of-the-road production. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The style of Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet, with Mel Gibson in the title role, is robust and physical and -- don't take this the wrong way -- upbeat. Full Review

Jeanne Cooper
January 1, 2000
Jeanne Cooper, Washington Post

Reduced to 'Master Pieces Theater,' Shakespeare's text nevertheless gains in force what it loses in integrity. Full Review

Scott Nash
February 19, 2012
Scott Nash, Three Movie Buffs

Alas, poor Mel Gibson! I knew him when he was on top of the world. Full Review

Randy White
January 2, 2011
Randy White, Common Sense Media

Mel Gibson emotes as the doleful Dane. Full Review

July 4, 2008
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Offers what amounts to a comic book intro to Shakespeare's classic, retaining few of the play's psychological complexities. Full Review

Derek Adams
June 24, 2006
Derek Adams, Time Out

It's a surprisingly successful venture, decked out in Anglo-Saxon styles and with a brooding, robust castle setting which oozes horse muck. Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • The Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (The Bad Sleep Well)
    The Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (The Bad Sle... (33%)
  • Hamlet
    Hamlet (100%)
  • Tristan & Isolde
    Tristan & Isolde (50%)
  • Japón
    Japón (100%)

More Movies like Hamlet

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

Hamlet : Watch Free on TV

Hamlet Trivia

  • Which Disney movie was loosely based off of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" ?  Answer »
  • Which "Hamlet" movie featured Kate Winslet as "Ophelia"?  Answer »
  • In which film did a small town historian (Vincent Price) spin a quartet of horror tales about his hamlet?  Answer »
  • What movie did this quote come from? " To be, or not to be."  Answer »
More Hamlet Trivia

Movie Quizzes

No quizzes for Hamlet. Want to create one?

Video Clips

No video clips yet. Want to upload one?

Meet Other Fans

Add Hamlet to favorites

Recent News

Submit a Story |

View Hamlet News

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

No skins yet. Interested in creating one?