I actually cried when Hamlet dies, and I don't think I've done that before. Jacobi does a quite admirable job with theatre's longest and most impossible role. Subtitles are available and very helpful, although upon occasion they lag slightly behind. And though the lines seemed rushed on rare occasion (for those less completely familiar with the text), for the most part the script is well-acted, well-spoken, and well-performed. This production appears to be complete - that is, ALL of the original Shakespeare dialogue is intact - and so it's essential for scholars and Shakespeare-lovers. Most Hamlet productions are drastically cut, because to perform the entire play takes a stage-time of four to five hours. In terms of faithful, full-length productions, this one ranks up there with the very best. I've seen a lot of filmed Hamlet productions: Olivier, Gibson, Branagh, Scott, and now this BBC film with Jacobi. In any staging of it, there are bound to be certain moments, scenes, or intonations that one disagrees with. Let's face it, there is no perfect production of Hamlet, it's simply far too long and varied and cerebral to get completely perfect across the board, especially what with the challenges of Elizabethan English and Shakespeare's abstruse dialogue.
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