Blog Post #18: Hamlet Act Three Assignment: "To be or not to be,"

Directed by Kenneth Branagh:

After thoroughly analyzing Hamlet's Soliloquy in Act Three, Scene One, it is clear that, of the Branagh, Hawke, and Olivier renditions, the Kenneth Branagh direction of Hamlet best connects mis en scene to the words of Shakespeare. While one could argue that the Olivier direction offered a clearer visualization of the shifts in Hamlets soliloquy and that the Hawke direction offered a clever background that delivered messages alongside the speech, it is, without a doubt, that the Branagh direction most clearly toy with the imperative, eternal, philosophical question "to be or not to be," (3.1.55). Simple, yet loud in its reservedness, the camera focuses over Hamlet's shoulder as he speaks to himself in a mirror - immediately, the mis en scene adds information to the scene: it is clear that Hamlet is, quite literally now, too, reflecting upon himself and his own character. In the first two thirds of the soliloquy, Hamlet's head and shoulder remain in the camera shot as he speaks to the man in the mirror - presumably himself - and that is important because it identifies the presence of "more than one Hamlet." While Hamlet continues to scheme against Gertrude and Claudius, there is an evident divide between the man, Hamlet, and the character, Hamlet. In question whether "whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer or to take arms against a sea of troubles," Hamlet takes action to undermine those who have betrayed him, but his character continues to follow a path of mental decay. The only problem? In some regards, Hamlet has lost his footing, in a sense, and has trouble now distinguishing who he is and what he wants - the freedom from the plight of life in death, or the freedom for the unknown of death in life. Branagh amazingly incorporated this nuanced notion into his direction of the scene; as Hamlet begins to reveal to himself that he is losing his ability to act, Branagh removes the silhouette from the camera shot and obscures what the viewer is seeing. Is it Hamlet face-on? Is it Hamlet in a mirror? Is it Hamlet through a mirror? This ambiguity in the direction adds to the complex nature of the major theme in the soliloquy - while hamlet asks if it is to be or not to be, there is no answer and the only answer that could truly be given is both and neither. Finally, in this moment truly being an interaction between Hamlet and himself, Branagh creates a brilliant suggestion in his mis en scene choices; who are we more comfortable with than ourselves, but the director does not progress into extreme close-up. rather leave the camera at a slightly more distanced position. This establishes a distance between Hamlet and himself, as if he does not, at this point, even completely know himself.

Following Branagh's direction, Laurence Olivier would be next in line. As mentioned above, the slow panning in matched by sudden jolts back clearly identify shifts in the soliloquy, but the placement of Hamlet on a cliff-side establishes a false sense of resolution from within Hamlet. Although it does establish notions of his isolation ,Olivier does not imply Hamlet's isolation from himself which is central to his argument and his circular train of thought. Ethan Hawke's direction would likely come next in the line-up; while the mis en scene may be a little bit obvious for some viewers, Hawke makes some important decisions regarding what lay in the background. As Hamlet walks through a Blockbuster Video Store, he stays in the "actions" sections while action movies play in the background. In his own antic disposition, Hamlet builds up and searches for drama to implore social change, and what more than an "action" movie to display there elements of acting and drama that are so pivotal to Hamlet's character. While all three renditions were outstanding, this order reflects the significance each has in adding depth and complexity to the written word of Shakespeare.