Fortinbras?????
He dosen't appear anywhere in the film and I think he's only mentioned once if at all. What the hell?
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MovieChat Forums > Hamlet (1991) Discussion > Fortinbras?????
He was in the film, but like only for a second, and that was toward the end.
shareThank you for noticing as well! I was so angry because that is a HUGE part of Hamlet. Because Fortibras is the same as the Danish prince although Fortibras takes action, while Hamlet does not. Is that speech even in Gibson's version? Ugh...pissed me off.
shareTotally agreed. I see the point you make; however, if there is reason to cut due to time constraints, a director can (and often does) cut Fortinbras and simply parallel Hamlet/Laertes in regard to taking action and how one avenges the deaths of loved-ones.
The point can still be made with Hamlet/Laertes comparison.
It sucks to have to cut scenes, but oftentimes time-constraints call for it.
--The day I hold too tightly to my opinion is the day I stop learning. May that day never come.
Most movie and stage versions leave out Fortinbras due to time constraints.
I directed this onstage a few years ago, and as much as it pained me to do so, I cut the Fortinbras scenes. The play is long. Too long for the average audience to sit through.
I love the play in its entirity, though. I read it at least once a year.
--The day I hold too tightly to my opinion is the day I stop learning. May that day never come.
It's true. Fortinbras does have a tendency not to make into a handful of screen versions. He didn't appear in the versions starring Laurence Olivier and Nicol Williamson either, though he was mentioned in the former. He does seem to have occasionally been recognized onstage as a fairly important character, though. I've read into details of past stage productions, and he has been performed by some respected and talented character actors of the time, such as Barrie Ingham and Richard Pasco. Facts like that make people (or at least me) take more notice of secondary characters like Fortinbras.
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