Ophelia's Eulogy

   Ophelia was faced with things that were extremely hard to handle. She couldn't be with the man she loved, and that same man is the person who killed her father. Ophelia's burial rites should not be questionable. We shouldn't judge her based off her actions at this point. Everything that happened to her was not her fault, and she didn't ask for that fate.

  Everyone has a breaking point, and her father's death just topped it all off. We don't know that she killed herself, and we never will. She has already passed away and speculating won't help anything. Therefore, her burial rites shouldn't have to be discussed. Although she went mad that doesn't take away from the fact that she was a good person. We should give her a proper funeral and burial. She deserves not only that, but also our respect and sympathy.

 

 

Hamlet's Hesitation

  I think that the fact that Hamlet wants to wit until Claudius is in the act of sinning to kill him is extremely smart. I don't think wanting to murder his father's killer is crazy at all. I think it's completely understandable for him to have those feelings. As bad as it sounds, I kind of have to admire his careful planning. He really thought out every little detail. I think killing Claudius when he is in the middle of sinning is justifiable because his father never got the chance to pray for forgiveness for his sins, why should Claudius get that chance? It would be like Hamlet murdered Claudius for no reason. He would just be hanging out in heaven lol. Hamlet wants him to suffer and go through what his father had to.

 I think that Hamlet will really suffer if he actually goes through with killing Claudius. Everyone already thinks he's crazy and I don't think anyone is suspicious of Claudius being the murderer, therefore Hamlet would just be turned into more of an outcast.

 

To Be or Not To Be

Olivier's Hamlet: This version is really old fashioned. It's in black and white, and has a very dated feel to it.I didn't  enjoy it because the actor's emotions didn't match what I thought they would be. I didn't think it was believable. The text is already hard enough to understand, and the way the actor was talking didn't make me want to pay attention to what he was saying. It was hard to stay focused and interested. He was really calm and emotionless. It was just too dull in my opinion. I did like the fact that he was on a mountain top, it makes sense to be somewhere peaceful and to be alone while contemplating serious things.

Zeffirelli's Hamlet: I like this version a lot. It really seems like he's doing SERIOUS thinking and contemplating. His emotions are so much more believable than Olivier's version. I like the fact that he's speaking in the room with dead people in it.The lighting played a big part in this too. I liked when it shone in his face when he referred to God.


Branagh's Hamlet: I really enjoyed Branagh's emotion in this scene. It was creepy and believable. I enjoyed the use of props. The knife and the mirror gave me chills. I really liked the mirror also because it makes it obvious that he's talking to himself. I also liked when he held the knife to himself.


Almeyreda's Hamlet: This scene takes place in a video store. I have such a hard time taking that seriously. I really like Hawke's emotions. I like how sarcastic he is, and the way he's speaking makes it easy to understand what he means. I noticed that the director puts a lot of subliminal messages n this scene and the movie as a whole. Throughout this scene, there is a TV showing images of fire and explosions. Hamlet walks through the action section throughout a lot of his soliloquy. I see that as representing how all these terrible things happen to him, and he hasn't taken action towards them yet.

The First Ghost Scene

   In Zeffirelli's version, there is less dramatic music and the tone is a lot darker. I like Gibson as Hamlet as opposed to Branagh, just because I think Hamlet's personality is a little more likeable,understandable, and humorous. I think the actor that plays old Hamlet has a very different emotion compared to Branagh's version. In Branagh's version, old Hamlet is very angry. In Zeffirelli's,old Hamlet is more sad and heartbroken.

   I really like the flashbacks in Branagh's version. Zeffirelli's version is super colorful while Branagh's version is more dark and gloomy. The lighting, costumes, and music have a lot to do with that.Overall, I love the modern setting of Almeryda's version. I love Ethan Hawke as Hamlet because he looks a lot younger than the other two, and I envisioned Hamlet looking more like him than the other two. Although I love Almereyda's version because it is a lot easier to relate it to the current time, I feel like it is a lot less eventful.
     Old Hamlet seems to have similar emotion to the one in Zeffirelli's version.
If I was to interpret this scene through film, I'd make it very dark and creepy. It's a ghost scene, it's meant to be scary. I would have Old Hamlet displaying emotions like Branagh's version and I would show Hamlet as being very angry and frustrated with the world and his life. I would put it in a modern setting like Almereyda's version, but I would make it suspenseful with flashbacks like from Branagh's version.