Rating of
3/4
The Brooding Hamlet
Topher - wrote on 06/14/09
A whimpering, self-indulgent Gen X film of high caliber, this modern adaptation of Hamlet features Ethan Hawke, whose performance best captures the melacholy, indecisive and brooding aspects of Hamlet's character. That said, he lacks the energetic madness and cleverness of other performances.
Set in New York during the late 90's, with Denmark as a large corporation instead of a small medieval country, this movie may offend a few pedantic "purists" who insist upon seeing Shakespeare in some pukey costume drama period piece. The recasting into modern analogies is a bit clunky in this version, but that's mostly because Hamlet comes off as a bit of a pathetic hipster, hiding behind his camcorder and fancying himself artistic.
