The first video I chose was...
And the second was….
Please watch them both. They are really interesting.
One similarity I noticed was that in both of these videos the actors speak in a soft quite voice making for a scary and eerie scene. I thought both actors did a great job showing Hamlet as a man lost and confused, struggling with the decision to commit suicide or not. I also found that both actors made it seem as if Hamlet was just thinking out loud rather than talking to himself. Both actors did a great job portraying Hamlet as the confused man he is.
While in both of the clips Hamlet seems disheveled, I felt that in the first video Hamlet was shown more accurately with his scruffy beard and ragged dark clothing. I felt that in the second video Hamlet seemed to poised to be having suicidal thoughts. I also thought that in the clip featuring Mel Gibson the setting was quite different. Although Hamlet is supposed to coincidentally run into Ophelia moments later, I think that Hamlet would not speak of such controversial things in public where other like Claudius and Polonius can watch and hear him, making the first clip better.
Although I feel the first video was set in a better place, I thought that the use of props such as the dagger made the scene much more dramatic in the second clip. I also felt that by using the mirror it made the scene much more personal, almost as if Hamlet is judging himself and taking a closer look on his life and what he has to live for in the mirror. I really enjoyed how different and unique this scene was from all the others.
Overall, I think that the best clip would be the first clip with Mel Gibson. While the second clip had a unique and different approach to the scene, by using the mirror and other props, I still feel that the first clip portrayed Hamlet more accurately. The first clip is more of what I envisioned this scene to be, Hamlet alone, thinking amongst the dead. I think that this scene with Mel Gibson is more of an accurate and true to how Hamlet is portrayed in the book.
Kimya, I agree with your preference towards Gibson's video because it truly embodies what the scene is about. Hamlet doesn't know if it is better to be alive or to commit suicide, and being surrounded by the dead when he delivers his speech makes it much more dramatic and believable. Just like you said, I don't think his words were meant for anyone but himself so I disliked the part where Claudius and Polonius were spying on him in the second video. However, I have to admit that the props that were used in the video contribute a lot to the scene since it gives the feeling that Hamlet wants to kill himself when he takes out his dagger. Great job on your interpretation of the soliloquy!
ReplyDelete