A New Spin on an Old Classic
William Shakespeare's play Hamlet has grown to be one of the most studies fictional pieces in literature. Because of this fame, Hamlet has also made its way to the silver screen. Although the film renditions are based on the same play, each film offers its own artistic interpretation of the piece. Two of the most popular rendition of Hamlet are Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet (1999) and Michael Almereyda (2000). Zeffirelli's adaptation of the piece is more similar to the actual play, while Almereyda's version puts a modern twist on the classic piece. Both films, which donned the same name of the original piece, contain similarities to the classic play; however, it is their differences that show the true artistic interpretation. Zeffirelli and Almereyda's renditions of Hamlet showcase differing techniques from the setting and alteration of scenes to different camera techniques. Both Zeffirelli and Almereyda took different approaches when selecting the setting and which scenes to showcase for their personal adaptation of the play. The opening scene…show more content… In Almereyda's version, the audience is introduced to Hamlet's video diary. This diary molds the entire film allowing the audience to feel a personal connection with Hamlet. Almereyda's rendition casts Hamlet’s as a filmmaker. This changes many aspects of the play. For example, in the play, Hamlet discusses his doubts with Rosencrantz and Guilderstern; however, in the the Almereyda's film, Hamlet expresses his concerns in his video diary. Similarly, Zeffirelli also uses film and camera techniques to generate feelings for Hamlet. In order to create empathy for Hamlet during the ghost scene, the camera goes back and forth between Hamlet and the ghost of his father. Because of the close-up shots of the encounter, the audience is able to sense all the emotions that Hamlet is feeling while he gets revelation from the