Almereyda Hamlet Comparison Essay

Since the year of 1900, there has been nearly fifty film adaptations of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, from the most recent, Almereyda’s modernized adaptation of Hamlet to Olivier’s 1948 black-and-white film. The directors of each of these films make appropriate changes to target their audience, considering the audiences’ and society’s interests, while at the same time, ensuring that they stay true to the basic plot and structure of the play. They do this by changing the costumes, order of scenes, and setting, among a number of other things. Michael Almereyda’s Hamlet was developed in the year of 2000 for a contemporary audience, much different than that of Shakespeare’s. Almereyda targets the modern, contemporary audience by changing the roles
Instead of the setting taking place in Denmark, as it does in the original play, the film takes place in New York City. Elsinore Castle is replaced by “Hotel Elsinore.” Having the setting take place in New York City is a brilliant idea, as New York City is more recognizable and relatable when compared to the original setting of Denmark to the modern, North American audience. Not only is New York City closer to home for North Americans than Denmark is, but many movies take place in New York City. New York City has been referred to as “the place to live the dream” and therefore represents Hamlet’s family’s wealth, as do the methods of transportation of Hamlet, Gertrude and Claudius, which are only feasible with this modern day film. For example, Hamlet, his mother and Claudius are shuffled around in full-length black limousines. To the contemporary audience, limousines as a method of regular transportation is a symbolism of wealth and extravagance, that only incredibly wealthy people can afford. Replacing Elsinore Castle with “Hotel Elsinore” also targets the modern audience, as hotels are generally thought of as places of luxury because of the amenities and services that they provide. Additionally, the setting having taken place in New York City allows the modern audience to obtain a clearer sense of the class differences between the two lovers: Hamlet and Ophelia. In the 2000 film, Hamlet stops by
Almereyda integrates technology through the presence of portable DVD players, films, DVDs, fax and answering machines, telephones, security cameras, recorders and even secret microphones throughout the film. He also uses technology to communicate messages. Specifically, Almereyda uses technology to show how it displaces memory, through Hamlet watching home videos of his loving parents and zooming and rewinding it, and also by having Ophelia toss Polaroids, saying that rosemary is for remembrance. Almereyda integrates various forms of technology into the plot of nearly every scene in the film. For example, a fax, not Osric, informs Hamlet that Laertes has challenged him to a duel, and Hamlet’s “The Mouse Trap” takes the form of a film rather than a performance, as it does in the text and other film versions. This presence of technology shows how relevant and widely used technology is in our day to day lives and it engages the