Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (1980) (TV)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Rodney Bennett

Writer:

William Shakespeare (play)

Release Date:

10 November 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Hamlet comes home from university to find his uncle married to his mother, and his father's ghost haunting the battlements and scaring the watch...

Plot Keywords:

Ghost | Revenge | Brother Sister Relationship | Friendship | Queen

Cast

Derek Jacobi	...	Hamlet
Claire Bloom	...	Gertrude
Patrick Stewart	...	Claudius
Eric Porter	...	Polonius
Lalla Ward	...	Ophelia
David Robb	...	Laertes
Patrick Allen	...	Ghost of Hamlet's Father
Robert Swann	...	Horatio
Jonathan Hyde	...	Rosencrantz
Geoffrey Bateman	...	Guildenstern
Emrys James	...	First Player (King)
Jason Kemp	...	Second Player (Queen)
Geoffrey Beevers	...	Third Player (Lucianus)
Bill Homewood	...	Player in the mime, King
Peter Richard	...	Player in the mime, Queen

Also Known As:

Hamlet
The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare: Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

USA:210 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Lalla Ward was teased by co-star Patrick Stewart because at the time she made this film, she was also co-starring in "Doctor Who" (1963). Stewart told her he wouldn't be caught dead doing science fiction. Within a few years, however, he would appear in David Lynch's Dune (1984), in Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce (1985), and later as Capt. Picard in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987), among others.

Movie Connections:

Version of Hamlet (1990/II) (TV)

The best of the Hamlets

I have seen all the film interpretations of Hamlet, from Sir Lawrence Olivier to Mel Gibson (gasp). Derek Jacobi captures the true essence of the character, from the beginning to the brutal climax. Superb acting all around. This one should not be missed.