Hamlet

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."

1996 4h 2m EN

👍

7.3

SOLID

🔥

95%

CERTIFIED FRESH

⭐

7.7

IMDB

★7.3TMDB · 531🍅95%Rotten Tomatoes★7.7IMDB · 41,367

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother now marrying the murderer... his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.

“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Kenneth Branagh
Prince Hamlet
Derek Jacobi
King Claudius
Kate Winslet
Ophelia
Julie Christie
Gertrude
Richard Briers
Polonius
Nicholas Farrell
Horatio
Rufus Sewell
Fortinbras
Reece Dinsdale
Guildenstern

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Kenneth Branagh
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

At 242 minutes, this is a three-hour-plus commitment — longer than 95% of films ever made.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 26% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Kenneth Branagh, shot by Alex Thomson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Patrick Doyle. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Neil Farrell shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Kenneth Branagh and Derek Jacobi and Kate Winslet carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Kenneth Branagh directs. Alex Thomson behind the camera. Patrick Doyle scores. Neil Farrell cuts. A long sit — settle in. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1At 242 minutes, this is a three-hour-plus commitment — longer than 95% of films ever made.
2Earned back only 26% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
330 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Directed by Kenneth Branagh, shot by Alex Thomson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Patrick Doyle. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Neil Farrell shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Kenneth Branagh and Derek Jacobi and Kate Winslet carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.".
9IMDB entry: tt0116477 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 9 themes, including "mother", "denmark", "loss of loved one", "prince".

The technical file

Cinematography: Alex Thomson
Original score: Patrick Doyle
Editing: Neil Farrell
Production design: Tim Harvey
Costume design: Alexandra Byrne
Makeup / hair: Richard Glass
Runtime: 242 min · 4h 2m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $18,000,000
Box office: $4,700,000
Return: 26% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Hamlet (1996)
Rotten Tomatoes: 95% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 7.7/10 · 41,367 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

Nominated for 4 Oscars. 9 wins & 25 nominations total

Also by

Kenneth Branagh

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

DocTerminus2022-02-07
★ 9/10
Without a doubt, Branagh's film of HAMLET is the most ambitious Shakespeare film to date. He goes all in on.. well, everything. He brings aboard a stellar all-star cast, too many to highlight all, but includes Billy Crystal, Robin Williams and Jack Lemmon - none of which are known for their Shakespearian pedigree. Branagh takes on Hamlet, the largest role in all of Shakespeare - and most English language literature. His interpretation is - not surprisingly - brilliant and worthy of study. Kate Winslet plays his challenged love Ophelia, and Derek Jacobi is the fraudulent King. Rounding out the largest roles, Julie Christie is the doomed queen and Richard Briers is the fussy Polonius. All excellent in their handle of the language and expression of humanity. Much of the film takes place inside the castle of Elsinore, a gorgeous and regal stage set lined with mirrors to challenge each individual's intentions and a chess-board floor to accentuate the challenge in the royal battle for checkmate. The Elsinore grounds are widespread and scenes in the snow covered Danish mountains all shown in glorious 65mm film... an extremely detailed film stock that was rarely used because of the extreme expense and cumbersome camera size. With HENRY V and MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, Branagh has proven he is a master of adapting Shakespeare's long form story into much more manageable American movie length. Well, here he goes all in and captures the 4 hour play in its uncut full length. The film was shown with a 15 minute intermission. HAMLET itself is doubtlessly one of the most intelligent character studies ever written by any author, and Branagh does a great job recording that. Even many other productions of the show do as good a job or even better job in relaying that story. Either way Branagh's film work is filled with many treasures and to this point, his Shakespeare films are close to flawless. For now...

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