Well, Olivier's and Branagh's are pretty widely available. (John Gielgud plays Priam in a little flashback-type thing during the Player's speech. Judi Dench is Hecuba.) The Russian Hamlet I have a file of on my computer (with subtitles), and I also have Asta Nielsen's. He also showed us bits of Gibson's - the fight scene - but besides the magnificently sexy Laertes it's got there's not much to say about that one. :P
THIS IS WHY EVERYONE SHOULD LIVE ON THE EAST COAST AND WE CAN ALL COME TO ASHLAND TOGETHER AND HAVE HAMLET PARTIES. Wah. :(
I'm starting to have doubts about Branagh's Hamlet for one pure and simple reason: I went to the YouTubes last night and wandered around, landed on a clip of the end of Branagh!Hamlet, and learned that his Horatio is the worst Horatio ever. Hamlet was dying and he was just standing there, and all it took was Hamlet's words to get him to relinquish the poison, and what the hell kind of a Horatio is that?! *deep, calming breaths*
Weell, in all technicalities, I do live on the east coast. It's just the east coast of the wrong continent.
Yeah, it does that (even if it does add an awkward Horatio/Ophelia subplot). It's a shame that it takes a female Hamlet to make Hamlet/Horatio canon. However, whoever decided Hamlet was a woman (there's a book the film was based on) must have also decided that s/he was in love with Horatio, so there's a comfort. :P
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Aww. Aww. Aww. <33333 Generally I think Bloom's a little over-the-top, but that was really sweet.
What do you think about what he says near the end, that Hamlet wrote Hamlet? (I disagree, I think Horatio wrote it, but that's a different subject matter.)
I'd like to hear your thoughts on the Russian Hamlet. It's been a while since I've seen that one myself, but I remember at least some parts of it.
And pan-chronistic MoV sounds so awesome!! It's one of my favorite ways for Shakespeare to be set, at least on stage. (A Lear I was in once did that, but nvm.) And that Shylock sounds pretty cool, too. Actually, the whole of-course-Antonio-will-be-able-to-pay-back-this-bond thing is something that my Shakespeare professor last semester was going on about, but the character progression that you describe sounds really cool (and I'm not not normally a MoV fan).
That production of MOV sounds really good! I like the sound of the setting. :) Also, the interpretation of Shylock's pound of flesh initially being a joke... that's very interesting, I'd never thought of it that way before. But it makes sense: Antonio is surely rich enough that Shylock has no reason to believe that he won't be able to pay him back. (Actually, now I think about it, I think a TV version that I saw - oh, a long time ago - might have gone with that approach. I can't really remember; it's very fuzzy in my head.)
Re: bigotry. There is that school of thought that thinks Shylock was actually meant to be a deconstruction of the villainous Jew stereotype, but I don't know MOV nearly well enough to have an informed opinion either way.
(Also, I'm in two minds about the Heston Antony and Cleopatra. On the one hand: UGH HESTON WHY, but on the other, Postumus from I, Claudius is Octavius. I HAS A DILEMMA
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Aw, yeah, the setting. (Can we set JC like that? Please?)
Was it the BBC Complete Works one? Anyway. It was a very cool approach, and it made total sense.
I think it could be - we see Shylock's villany, as it were, but at the same time we see the hate that pushes him to become such. I barely know MOV, unfortunately, so I can probably say about as much as you.
Hee! That guy was so cool. <3
Ooh, yeah. (This is how I feel about Olivier's Othello. /unrelated) Aw, Postumus! You should... uh... watch it and tell me how it is! Obvs. XD That way, if it's bad, only half of us has to watch it!
Ooh, yes, Russian Hamlet. I feel like the Bearer of Exotic Hamlets or something. XD
Hm. No, it was a new one. Well, new at the time. I was only wee, so I can only remember flashes of it. I may have to go snooping around to see if I can find it again.
Yeah, I've always seen his eventual villainy being a result of the abuses he's suffered, rather than his ethnicity. Isn't there a bit at the beginning where he says that Antonio himself has treated him badly in the past? I can't really remember. I should ask the sis. She's not long after doing MoV in English.
Very well, I shall take the plunge and watch... just as soon as I can find a good download that'll actually work on my computer. So far, I'm having trouble. :(
The Bearer of Exotic Hamlets. I like it. Sounds like one of those weird, obscure job titles from the Tudor court. Like Groom of the Stool. XD
Seriously. I wish there were some way to just - make JC entertaining for the masses, not just us fans of Romans and slash and Roman slash. :( *sigh*
Do!
Yeah, I think in the scene where he asks Shylock for money, there's a thing... Too lazy to look for it now, but yeah, it exists. :P
I might be able to help, what year is it?
Heh. XD "M'lord, what Hamlet would you prefer today? There's a rather funny one from 2000 we've got, or there's a Russian one from the sixties... oh, this is new, it's rather recent, but not for all pallets, I'm afraid... Well, it's very post-modern. Yes. 2007."
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Also, JOHN GIELGUD WHAT, I KNEW I NEEDED TO SEE BRANAGH!HAMLET, BUT SON OF A BADGER, NOW I REALLY NEED TO SEE IT! WAAANT!
Also, yeah that lecturer guy sounds pretty awesome. In fact, this whole thing sounds pretty damn awesome. I am extremely jealous.
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Well, Olivier's and Branagh's are pretty widely available. (John Gielgud plays Priam in a little flashback-type thing during the Player's speech. Judi Dench is Hecuba.) The Russian Hamlet I have a file of on my computer (with subtitles), and I also have Asta Nielsen's. He also showed us bits of Gibson's - the fight scene - but besides the magnificently sexy Laertes it's got there's not much to say about that one. :P
THIS IS WHY EVERYONE SHOULD LIVE ON THE EAST COAST AND WE CAN ALL COME TO ASHLAND TOGETHER AND HAVE HAMLET PARTIES. Wah. :(
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*deep, calming breaths*
Weell, in all technicalities, I do live on the east coast. It's just the east coast of the wrong continent.
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The "e'en as just a man" bit is totally sweet, if you can find it.
...Oh. Damn. I meant to type the west coast. Well, that means we're only an ocean apart, y/y? ...Dammit.
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What do you think about what he says near the end, that Hamlet wrote Hamlet? (I disagree, I think Horatio wrote it, but that's a different subject matter.)
What's she doing? XD
Hmm. Did you see the end AKA THE BEST PART?
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And pan-chronistic MoV sounds so awesome!! It's one of my favorite ways for Shakespeare to be set, at least on stage. (A Lear I was in once did that, but nvm.) And that Shylock sounds pretty cool, too. Actually, the whole of-course-Antonio-will-be-able-to-pay-back-this-bond thing is something that my Shakespeare professor last semester was going on about, but the character progression that you describe sounds really cool (and I'm not not normally a MoV fan).
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1j-wvCtzuI
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Re: bigotry. There is that school of thought that thinks Shylock was actually meant to be a deconstruction of the villainous Jew stereotype, but I don't know MOV nearly well enough to have an informed opinion either way.
"You know, Hamlet's soulmate isn't Ophelia, it's Horatio."
HELL YEAH! Professional vindication FTW! :D
(Also, I'm in two minds about the Heston Antony and Cleopatra. On the one hand: UGH HESTON WHY, but on the other, Postumus from I, Claudius is Octavius. I HAS A DILEMMA ( ... )
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Was it the BBC Complete Works one? Anyway. It was a very cool approach, and it made total sense.
I think it could be - we see Shylock's villany, as it were, but at the same time we see the hate that pushes him to become such. I barely know MOV, unfortunately, so I can probably say about as much as you.
Hee! That guy was so cool. <3
Ooh, yeah. (This is how I feel about Olivier's Othello. /unrelated) Aw, Postumus! You should... uh... watch it and tell me how it is! Obvs. XD That way, if it's bad, only half of us has to watch it!
Ooh, yes, Russian Hamlet. I feel like the Bearer of Exotic Hamlets or something. XD
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Hm. No, it was a new one. Well, new at the time. I was only wee, so I can only remember flashes of it. I may have to go snooping around to see if I can find it again.
Yeah, I've always seen his eventual villainy being a result of the abuses he's suffered, rather than his ethnicity. Isn't there a bit at the beginning where he says that Antonio himself has treated him badly in the past? I can't really remember. I should ask the sis. She's not long after doing MoV in English.
Very well, I shall take the plunge and watch... just as soon as I can find a good download that'll actually work on my computer. So far, I'm having trouble. :(
The Bearer of Exotic Hamlets. I like it. Sounds like one of those weird, obscure job titles from the Tudor court. Like Groom of the Stool. XD
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Do!
Yeah, I think in the scene where he asks Shylock for money, there's a thing... Too lazy to look for it now, but yeah, it exists. :P
I might be able to help, what year is it?
Heh. XD "M'lord, what Hamlet would you prefer today? There's a rather funny one from 2000 we've got, or there's a Russian one from the sixties... oh, this is new, it's rather recent, but not for all pallets, I'm afraid... Well, it's very post-modern. Yes. 2007."
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