Modern day adaptation of Shakespeare's immortal story about Hamlet's plight to avenge his father's murder in New York City.
Acting
Ethan Hawke's slacker prince, somehow more relatable than Olivier.
Direction
Almereyda's surveillance-camera Denmark Corporation is genuinely inspired.
Cinematography
Pixelated ghosts and limos—digital rot as visual metaphor.
Director
Michael Almereyda
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Ethan Hawke was actively avoiding blockbuster roles when he took this; the irony of Hamlet running a video store was not lost on him.
This adaptation was shot in weeks for under $2 million during the dot-com bubble, making its corporate critique accidentally prophetic.
US
