Hamlet at Elsinore

It's funny that so many people remember this telecast from almost 50 years ago. And with such uniformly positive feelings.

I remember the pounding waves and the Long Hall. I remember Robert Shaw as the first Claudius I ever saw who was not only sonorous and regal, but violent, and sexy enough to seduce the Queen and make her agree to kill her husband. I remember Donald Sutherland coming in at the end as Fortinbras, and for once saving the character from being a wimpy, pompous letdown.

Until recently, the film could only be seen in America at the Paley Media Centers in New York and Los Angeles.

However Sir Michael Caine was recently reminded of his participation in this long-forgotten film, and he asked the BBC to resurrect it.

We'll all have a chance to check our memories soon.

I wasn't very old but I was fascinated. Of course Christopher Plummer and Robert Shaw were brilliant, but it was also fascinating to watch a young Michael Caine and Donald Sutherland. Since I'm Danish it was a special thrill that it was actually filmed where Shakespeare let it take place. I would love to watch it again.

This is an outstanding Hamlet-performance, I saw the movie back in 1964 or 65 on danish television and have never forgotten it. I have hunted it for some years and came pretty close by emailing danish television's drama department where they in a kind and friendly way informed me that it was to be transmitted on danish television in "the nearest future" - so they recommended that I kept an eye on the danish program schedules. This was 4 years ago - but I never saw it announced nor did I see it shown on danish television as they had "promised". But this ought to mean that they most certainly possess a copy. The big question is: How do we make them put the film on TV or make a commercial DVD that we can buy? Anybody have any ideas?

Complementary: Now is 2007 22 December (happy x-mas). I have (with some difficulties) had contact with the danish television archive. They now say, that they can not find a copy of "Hamlet of Elsinore" in their archives. Unfortunately, I prefer not to believe that, I believe there is a lack of will or competence involved. I have had threads going in Denmark, that confirms that a certain amount of curiousness is going on - but nobody knows anything. Or do not want to. What is going on? Who owns the rights? If not danish television, then it has to be BBC. How do we make BBC open up? As said by the common press, both danish and BBC-press have opened their archives. How does these pretty words affect us? I have tried to make TCM interested, but have got no answer. Don't anybody care - except Mr Plummer himself, who wishes us to have this gem? This is a treasure of mankind! Give it to mankind, then!

I was more fortunate than I knew at the time to catch this version of Hamlet in 1964. I was a teen and newly smitten with Shakespeare tragedies. I taped the audio from our television with my new Wollensak 7" reel-to-reel. I listened to and studied that tape for the rest of my adolescence, watched the Olivier Hamlet and later others, both onstage and on film, and this is the one that stayed with me as the most complete in every dimension. The cast was the best balanced, the setting the most evocative of place and time. Above all, this treatment of character and motivation was the most humanly real, truthful, not pontifical like Olivier's or melodramatic and stagy like others. I have been looking for any kind of reproduction of it ever since, even an audio. What I wouldn't give to have this on CD now!

I prepared for this review by re-watching Olivier's and Branagh's Hamlet films, and was fascinated to find I prefer this TV production from 1964, filmed under what must have been somewhat difficult conditions (the electrical work had to be done by the BBC, as one reviewer notes). I found Christopher Plummer's performance to be more convincing, more felt than those of Olivier and Branagh. Olivier seems to be fascinated with his own athleticism--that trim body that can do anything he demands of it--just see how he leaps off the platform in Act V to stab Claudius. Plummer on the other hand hasn't got the athleticism but he is better able to unite intelligence with feeling. I was more moved by his 'Now might I do it pat' after Claudius starts praying than by the other versions because of Plummer's occasional clumsiness.

The other actors are fine: Alec Clunes really plays Polonius as a prating old fool (just as Hamlet describes him) and Robert Shaw is tremendous as Claudius, virile and crafty and sexy. You see why Gertrude has to fall for him. Michael Caine is ardent in a part that calls for just that quality and little else. He handles the accent fairly well.

Only two actors don't do well: June Tobin is stiff and shallow as Gertrude; her range doesn't allow her to really play the bedroom scene effectively. Donald Sutherland seems to play Fortinbras as a foreigner whose English is shaky.