Oh thank Christ!! He's done a Shakespeare play where he doesn't have the audacity to cast HIMSELF as the lead. Honestly, I don't care who you are, if you plan to direct, adapt and produce Shakespeare at least have the good taste to remain behind the camera!
shareI would just like to comment on the crane shot he gave himself in Hamlet. It basically made the movie.
shareWHEN IS HAMLET COMING TO DVD?!?!?!?!
I watched part of it my high school English class senior year and that was it......I don't have a VCR anymore so I can't watch it on tape.......are there any placs for that to come on DVD. And when is this coming to the US?
I live in a Garden State of Mind! Oh yeah and did I mention that I'm a stalker in a Taurus?
I believe Hamlet is coming to DVD sometime next year. There's a website, I think it's www.kenbranagh.com, where someone has been following the struggle to get Hamlet on DVD, and supposedly the film transfer has been finished and they are now gathering extras.
sharei put my vhs copy on dvd
shareIt's available on DVD now.
shareHamlet was finally released to DVD a couple weeks ago
"I think, at last we understand each other, Frodo Baggins."
~Faramir, LOTR:TTT
Oh, come on, he did a great job in Hamlet, as well as in Henry V, and many others (Love's Labours Lost, for example). I think he's a great actor, and, being HIS films, he's got the right to cast himself in the role he likes! However, I was surprised when I noticed that he doesn't appear in As you like it! What a pity! I know you won't agree with me :)
To be... or not to be... that is the question.
I agree, especially about Henry V. Think about it - first time director directing himself (NOT an easy proposition) from a script he adapted (extremely well, I might add). He turned in a masterful performance and delivered a stunning movie. And besides, there's not really a role for him in AYLI.
shareYes... He did do a great job in Henry V, and in Much Ado About Nothing... But while I enjoyed his adaptation of Hamlet, his performance was sub-par. And the whole concept of Love's Labours fell flat for me- while his performance was fine, he was clearly 20 years to old for the role. But to me, his Henry V will always be his great acheivement.
shareIt's your opinion, of course, that Branagh's Hamlet was sub-par, but I think that's a bit extreme. It was a very inventive, and energetic Hamlet, in my opinion. I think you'd have a pretty hard time convincing people that it was sub par, when you have Richard Burton screaming through every line like he'll die if he stops talking, and Olivier playing the same mood the entire film :)
Cheers!
"Don't take life so seriously, nobody makes it out alive anyways!"
Nice perspective on the Burton and Olivier Hamlets, TMM. I liked Branagh's "Hamlet" because he showed the practical problems that forced Hamlet to play crazy-like-a-fox, and he also showed that the choice of "play crazy" wasn't entirely unmotivated by reality. OTOH, some of Branagh's casting choices were horrible (Jack Lemon as a castle guard, Robin Williams as a courtier; although Billy Crystal worked as the Gravedigger, and, to my great surprise, Charlton Heston was touching as the Player King). My real issue with Branagh's performance of the role was that he felt like a busy director taking time to block out the scenes--which isn't entirely inappropriate to what Hamlet was doing, but I missed the flashes of agony the part calls for.
Derek Jacobi's BBC production of Hamlet was the best I ever saw, for the understanding and feeling it imparted with each line. Jacobi's Hamlet was entire and coherent from start to finish, in every respect. He was a recognizable and compelling person.
This isn't really the place to wax lyrical about Jacobi's Hamlet, but I can't resist...
"To be or not to be. That is the question."
"It hath made me mad..."
"Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain!
O, vengeance!"
haha. The funniest thing about his version of Hamlet was the stuff he added in that isn't actually in the play. Poor Osric. I felt sorry for him.
shareBranaugh knows what he's doing. He really knows Shakespeare and if he can direct and star in a complete version of Hamlet, no cuts or anything, then you really have to give him some credit. Let's face it, it is a ridiculuously long play. Don't get me wrong it is probably my favorite show of all time, but it is long and Branaugh really does a fine job with it.
Henry v was also well done, he was great in Othello (even though he didn't direct it) and I haven't seen Love Labour's Lost but I'm sure it was well done.
I have to agree. KB is a great actor, and a Shakespearean one at that. What strikes me as unusual is who he casts around him. Some choices make sense (Kate Winslet, Derek Jacobi, Emma Thompson); others don't (Michael Keaton, Keanu Reeves, Alicia Silverstone, Matthew Lillard, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, etc).
Some rose to the task, and others don't. But his acting is usually superb. Especially his Hamlet and Iago (though he didn't direct it). And he was smart enough to avoid the greasepaint makeup and not play the titular role in Othello (of course, it really seems to be Iago's story anyway).
"I think, at last we understand each other, Frodo Baggins."
~Faramir, LOTR:TTT
Oh please! Keaton was hilarious as Dogberry in Much Ado.
I agree on Iago's part, but who should have played Othello? Fishburne was terribly wrong for the part.
http://www.philtered.net/~adam/app/prayterm.html
But when you're as talented an actor as Branaugh is, surely it is no crime to put yourself in front of the camera when at all possible.
The question remains. Will you yield... in time?share
Kenneth Branagh is, without question, the best Shakespeare actor/director since Olivier. Not only were his portrayals as Hamlet and Henry V near flawless, his images for Shakespeare's works are clear, something rarely done while trying to cut as little as possible from the actual text. And though his reluctance to cut certain material (IE Hamlet, a four hour movie incorporating every single line of text from the play) may be his biggest flaw, he still remains my favorite Shakespeare actor/director of all time. HE KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING!
Check out Reduced Shakespeare by the Reduced Shakespeare company guys, Austin Tichnor and Reed Martin, they have some wonderful insights on the plays and the adapted film versions.
Why not? Orson Welles did it well.
The only time I've seen Branagh direct himself badly was Frankenstein.
Why? That has nothing to do with ego, really. The fact that he has cast himself in his own movies just shows how incredibly talented and amazing he is. Sure, he's an egomaniac, but it makes sense. Think of it also from the actor's perspective: If I want to play Hamlet, or Benedick, or Iago, what better way to give myself the oppurtunity than to make my own adaptation of it. Remember, he cast a lot of great actors in all three or those movies, not just himself. Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Denzel Washington, Lawrence Fishburne, etc etc etc. He has an ego, for sure, but I don't think casting himself as the lead is neccesarily an ego stroke. It's just giving yourself oppurtunities. I do it too.
"Don't take life so seriously, nobody makes it out alive anyways!"
Get over yourself psarahj and stick to things you actually know something about. Kenneth Branagh is a wonderful actor and considering that it's his movie he can cast whoever he wants in it. When you're a world famous director maybe then you can say something about it, but you're nobody.
----
http://www.nataliatena.net - Natalia Tena (Tonks) fansite
http://www.fleur-delacour.com - Fleur-Delacour.com