Hamlet
Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play of the same name, adapted and directed by and starring Laurence Olivier. Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director and the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed (the 1936 As You Like It had starred Olivier, but had been directed by Paul Czinner). Hamlet was the first British film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. It is the first sound film of the play in English.
Plot
On the battlements of Elsinore, in a flash-forward, the dead body of Hamlet is borne in state upon the shoulders of noble lords with Horatio in attendance mourning the dead Hamlet. The flash-forward dissolves and in the same location at a separate time, Francisco, a sentry, is relieved of his watch by another sentry, Bernardo, who, with yet another sentry, Marcellus, has twice previously seen the Ghost of King Hamlet. Marcellus then arrives with the sceptical Horatio, Prince Hamlet's friend. Suddenly, all three see the Ghost, and Horatio demands that the Ghost speak. The Ghost vanishes then, without a word.
Awards
Cast
- Anthony Bushell
- Anthony Quayle
- Basil Sydney
- Christopher Lee
- Desmond Llewelyn
- Eileen Herlie
- Esmond Knight
- Felix Aylmer
- Harcourt Williams
- Jean Simmons
- John Gielgud
- John Laurie
- Laurence Olivier
- Niall MacGinnis
- Norman Wooland
- Patrick Troughton
- Peter Cushing
- Russell Thorndike
- Stanley Holloway
- Terence Morgan