Christina Reviews Ethan Hawke's *Hamlet*

         I didn’t much like Almereyda’s 2000 adaptation of Hamlet.  Call me a purist.  Call me uncool.  But I much prefer the more traditional versions.  Branagh’s Hamlet was excellent, for instance, though a bit long.

       As for the Ethan Hawke version, it was all millennium glitz and very little substance.

        The “To be or not to be” speech in a video store?  I suppose there's some deeper meaning there that I'm missing.

        I think it’s always a good idea to put a twist on an old classic.  And it was a bit interesting to hear Shakespearean language recited in modern times.  But overall, the movie felt a bit pretentious, and as a result, it was hard to take it seriously. I know that Shakespeare is probably largely responsible for the stilted language, but somehow it works better in the context of his plays than in the context of modern America.

         I had the same problem with Leonardo DiCaprio's Romeo & Juliet.