Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Jenna Walter The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

MisterWhiplash There's probably a reason why no one's heard of this German version of Hamlet, or that no one's heard of anything else the director Mr. Wirth did, or as well why the only recognizable name here (acting-wise) is Maximillian Schell, the noted character/stage actor. That is, simply, because it stinks. It's not a horrible movie, it's just really turgid and boring and staged like at one of those stiff parties that your friend tries to tell you is something hip while you feel like gouging your eyes out with the monotony of the proceedings. Nothing is staged with invention or wit, the actors either are poorly staged or with nothing to express except blank SHOCK faces (or, as with the King during the final fencing duel a weird stoned expression), and as if that wasn't bad enough it's dubbed in such a way that I would very definitely nominate it as one of the worst dubbings in all humanity. Oh sure, Ricardo Montalban is there to carry some of the hammy weight of scenes, but overall it's such a drag that you end up wanting to insert words of your own.Which leads me as to why you should see it: the only way to watch it now is in a truncated version via the guys at Mystery Science Theater 3000. Never thought they could tackle the Bard? Guess again! It's one of their funniest with Mike Nelson, with many of the lines going not just for the horrid acting and weird staging in some instances (there's one particularly dancing type of scene that gives them plenty of good ammo to shoot at the screen) but the actual Hamlet dialog itself. As usual they make the drekkiest drek to ever drek on crap street more than tolerable, but with an added appreciation that for all of the effort, whatever it was, it comes out swell such as that really, really bad death scene with Schell (I'm not spoiling Hamlet! read the darn thing!) where he tops Donald Sutherland's death scene in Buffy the Vampire Slayer as the longest and most ridiculously awful in movies.

otisfirefly2001 I am only going to comment on the Mystery science theater 3000 version.How could this ever be saved? In a movie that is obviously shot on one movie set(no attempt is really made to give the impression of location changes). Not even Mike and the 'bots could save this garbage. The movie is so horrible, and bad that their jokes just fall flat. Though I do enjoy some of the lines, such as Servo remarking, "What's worse then clowns? Danish clowns." I feel that the only way this movie is watchable is on MST3K. And not even they could save this trash. Do yourself a favor and skip this one. Try another MST3K episode Like Puma Man; Jack Frost; Overdrawn At the Memory Bank; Space Mutiny. there are tons of other great episodes then this one. Why they chose to put this episode on DVD is beyond me.

Shannon ** Possible spoilers ahead **I saw this movie only through the aid of Mike and the bots from Mystery Science Theater 3000 a.k.a MST3K. I am a fan of Shakespeare. I've read "Hamlet" a few times. This is the fourth film version of Hamlet I've seen, and it is the worst. The Mel Gibson and Laurence Olivier versions are just breathtakingly wonderful. Branagh's version is slightly tolerable (watch Branagh's "Henry V" instead). This 1960 version just absolutely reeks of badness.Not only is Shakespeare rolling in his grave but Laurence Olivier is probably rolling in his, too, and I don't blame them. There is just one scene with about 10 props and that's it. I loved the riffs from MST3K such as "Hamlet-Man," and "the famous rap artist, the notorious K.I.N.G." Oh, and this movie is very poorly dubbed into English. The filmmakers and directors of this sad, sad, film version of Hamlet are all Laurence Olivier wanna-bees. It was blatanly obvious that they were copying Olivier's film techniques from his version of Shakespeare's tragedy. Here's some advice for future filmmakers (especially those who want to bring Shakespeare to the big screen): NEVER, and I mean NEVER try to copy filmmaking techniques from older, classic films and try to make them breathtaking. It will never work.My hats off to MST3K for making this film tolerable.

divaclv Here we have undeniable proof that even the best material cannot save a shoddy, poorly-mounted production. Yeah, I know Hamlet is supposed to be a pretty bleak story about death, vengance, madness, and all those other wonderful things that spice up life. But this dreary, depressing piece of German Existentialism pretty much sucks any trace of life from Shakespeare's unparalleled poetry.Depression seems to be common stock in Denmark. First there's Hamlet himself, played in such a broody, pouty manner by Maximillian Schnell that one ends up wishing he'd opted for "not to be" instead of "to be." He's found the perfect mate in Ophelia, who balances dead-faced melancholy with histronic whimpering. Polonious, meanwhile, isn't depressed but his stood-under-a-tree-in-an-electrical-storm hair and bad German accent (that is, the bad German accent of the actor who dubbed the English track) is very depressing. Even the comic gravedigger seems in need of Prozac.Then there's the production values, what little there is. Gertrude and Claudius, despite being the most powerful and therefore wealthiest people in Denmark, only have one change of clothes. Hamlet's late father dresses like a Sigfried and Roy wannabe, but it doesn't matter as nearly all of his big scene is spent focused directly on Hamlet's face, putting one uneasily in mind of Alanis Morrisette's "Head Over Feet" video. The wood-and-Styrofoam set would embarrass a high-school drama club, and the poor lighting and dark clothes make for a lot of disembodied heads and hands floating across the screen.Credit the MST3K boys for tackling this misguided piece and bringing some life back to one of the Bard's greatest works.