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Hamlet

Hamlet

Drama · History · 1990

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, finds out that his uncle Claudius killed his father to obtain the throne, and plans revenge.

Movie details

Hamlet

“The extraordinary adaptation of Shakespeare's classic tale of vengeance and tragedy.”

1990 Drama · History 2h 10m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

6.7 / 10

24.4K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

76 %

Tomatometer

Metacritic

53 / 100

Metascore

TMDB

6.6 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, finds out that his uncle Claudius killed his father to obtain the throne, and plans revenge.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Hamlet?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

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Amadeus

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Hamlet

Hamlet

Drama · 2009

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Hamlet

Hamlet

Drama · 1948

Winner of four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, Sir Laurence Olivier’s Hamlet continues to be the most compelling version of Shakespeare’s beloved tragedy. Olivier is at his most inspired—both as director and as the melancholy Dane himself—as he breathes new life into the words of one of the world’s greatest dramatists.

Othello

Othello

Drama · 1951

Manipulated by his jealous ensign Iago, the Moorish general Othello is driven to believe that his new wife Desdemona is unfaithful, setting in motion a chain of deception, jealousy, and violence that leads to tragedy.

Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Franco Zeffirelli

Written by

Christopher De Vore · Franco Zeffirelli

Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson

Hamlet

Glenn Close

Glenn Close

Gertrude

Alan Bates

Alan Bates

Claudius

Paul Scofield

Paul Scofield

The Ghost

Ian Holm

Ian Holm

Polonius

Helena Bonham Carter

Helena Bonham Carter

Ophelia

Stephen Dillane

Stephen Dillane

Horatio

Court is in session

Put Hamlet on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.