Rating: 
Summary: very disappointing
Review: ...and I choose this one. I'm another "Hamlet collector." When a friend brought this to me from a yard sale, I read the blurb & thought "Well, have you ever seen a bad Hamlet?" I sat down to watch, & was soon entranced by the production. At three hours, it's a good length - not overly gutted like so many 2 hour productions, not rump-numbing like some "eternity" uncut versions. The casting is imaginative and effective. Finally - a Gertrude old enough to be Hamlet's mother, & an Ophelia old enough not to be jail bait! The "to be or not to be" soliloquy is given a powerful set up - possibly the best I've ever seen. When I began to describe it to a friend, she stopped me because the intense emotion of the scene bothered her. Throughout there are wonderfully original (yet not disrupting) bits of stage action. Most carry an element of surprise, so I won't mention those here, but a striking example comes soon after Polonius' death, when Hamlet is pursued, surrounded and captured by various guards. One guard pulls out a long cord and lashes the Prince's hands together.
I do have one quibble, which is at odds with another review here. I really dislike the musical score. It reminded me of nothing so much as a saloon piano.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm choosy about my Hamlets...
Review: ...and I choose this one. I'm another "Hamlet collector." When a friend brought this to me from a yard sale, I read the blurb & thought "Well, have you ever seen a bad Hamlet?" I sat down to watch, & was soon entranced by the production. At three hours, it's a good length - not overly gutted like so many 2 hour productions, not rump-numbing like some "eternity" uncut versions. The casting is imaginative and effective. Finally - a Gertrude old enough to be Hamlet's mother, & an Ophelia old enough not to be jail bait! The "to be or not to be" soliloquy is given a powerful set up - possibly the best I've ever seen. When I began to describe it to a friend, she stopped me because the intense emotion of the scene bothered her. Throughout there are wonderfully original (yet not disrupting) bits of stage action. Most carry an element of surprise, so I won't mention those here, but a striking example comes soon after Polonius' death, when Hamlet is pursued, surrounded and captured by various guards. One guard pulls out a long cord and lashes the Prince's hands together.
I do have one quibble, which is at odds with another review here. I really dislike the musical score. It reminded me of nothing so much as a saloon piano.
Rating: 
Summary: A Wonderful Surprise
Review: I admit I hadn't heard of Campbell Scott, but felt I should watch a little bit of it on principle. But -- wow! -- it was so good, I watched it all and can't wait to get the video for myself and a copy for the public library in which I work. I thought it was a very fresh piece of acting by Scott and also the supporting cast. Can't wait to see what the teenagers think of it--it's not as stodgy as the older versions like Jacobi's and Oliver's, and not as long as Branagh's excellent version.
Rating: 
Summary: Where is the meter and poetry?
Review: I found this production to totally flatten out the music of the lines. It had some interesting casting choices and a couple of good moments, but overall I found this production lacking life or drive. I have eight different Hamlets (Olivier,Burton, Brannaugh,Gibson, Jacobi, Williamson, Hawke, and finally Cambell Scott) on video and this is ranks toward the bottom. Only Ethan Hawke's Hamlet do I like less. If you want to see a good American performance of Hamlet, then watch Kevin Kline.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic interpretation!
Review: I saw Campell Scott's "Hamlet" for the first (but certainly not the last!) time last week for my Renaissance Literature class. I instantly fell in love.The setting (which is a beautiful house on Long Island, between 1880 and 1920, for those of you who were wondering) is lush, colorful, and exciting, which is a huge change from the typical drafty, cold, dark castle in which we see Hamlet sulking around. The cast does amazing work with their interpretations -- Campell Scott and LisaGay Harding's being two of the most original I've seen yet -- and are all believable characters, not at all overacted. The cuts in the script are understandable (they had a three-hour limit), and work very well. Polonius works surprisingly well as a respectable elderly right-hand man to the king, rather than a bumbling idiot who likes to hear himself talk. Also, the music in the film is gorgeous and engaging -- it is contemporary jazz, the main instruments being piano, drums, and trumpet, but it works beautifully with the film. It is rather unpredictable and subtle, in that it doesn't always tell you when you should pay attention to the action. Finally, a sountrack that plays to the intelligence of the audience, rather than pandering to it! My class was fortunate enough to have Campbell Scott (who is an alumnus of my university) come in and talk with us about the interpretive choices they made while making the film, and after I heard what he had to say, I loved it even more. I highly recommend it for anyone who is a fan of Shakespeare -- it is a fresh, original, believable take on an old classic, but it stays true to Shakespeare's intent with dignity and class. Five stars!
Rating:
Summary: Stunning and beautiful!
Review: I think this is the best version of Hamlet I have ever seen! It leaves Brannagh and Zeffirelli (no offense to the master) in the dust. I have never cried for the Melancholy Dane before but Campbell Scott had me in tears. It was a very creative time period and I thought that everyone did a fabulous job. Well done Campbell! Hope to see more of your work in the future.
Rating:
Summary: Very powerful
Review: I thought was a fabulous performance of Hamlet. It wasn't as good as the Kenneth Branagh version, but that is to be expected. Campbell Scott was excellent. he gave an incredibly moving performance. I would recommend this video to any Shakepseare fan or scholar.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I was moved and fascinated by Scott's performance and direction. I "collect" Hamlets, and am very glad to have come across this one. Scott's version isn't the full text, but the abridgements, to my mind, only highlight the dramatic pulses of this riveting play. Scott brought the Prince to full, round life; I have only wept twice when Hamlet died, and this was the second time. The often-debated madness that overtakes both Hamlet and Ophelia were extremely well-founded and very well-acted here. I cannot recommend this "Hamlet" too highly, especially to someone who is curious about what all the shouting is about but is afraid to run up against Shakespeare. Scott's movie is accessible and eminently watchable.
Rating:
Summary: Campbell Scott's Hamlet
Review: I was moved and fascinated by Scott's performance and direction. I "collect" Hamlets, and am very glad to have come across this one. Scott's version isn't the full text, but the abridgements, to my mind, only highlight the dramatic pulses of this riveting play. Scott brought the Prince to full, round life; I have only wept twice when Hamlet died, and this was the second time. The often-debated madness that overtakes both Hamlet and Ophelia were extremely well-founded and very well-acted here. I cannot recommend this "Hamlet" too highly, especially to someone who is curious about what all the shouting is about but is afraid to run up against Shakespeare. Scott's movie is accessible and eminently watchable.
Rating:
Summary: Campbell Scott's Hamlet
Review: I was moved and fascinated by Scott's performance and direction. I "collect" Hamlets, and am very glad to have come across this one. Scott's version isn't the full text, but the abridgements, to my mind, only highlight the dramatic pulses of this riveting play. Scott brought the Prince to full, round life; I have only wept twice when Hamlet died, and this was the second time. The often-debated madness that overtakes both Hamlet and Ophelia were extremely well-founded and very well-acted here. I cannot recommend this "Hamlet" too highly, especially to someone who is curious about what all the shouting is about but is afraid to run up against Shakespeare. Scott's movie is accessible and eminently watchable.
|
