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Posts: 18,221
Registered: ‎11-08-2014

Re: "HAMLET" LAURENCE OLIVIER, JEAN SIMMONS TUESDAY 12:15 A.M. EASTERN TCM

I was tempted by "Henry V" too, @drizzellla.  Quite different in mood to "Hamlet"!   They do run both of them periodically so will watch out...

 

Got interested in Olivier's interpretation of the Hamlet-Gertrude relationship, and did some reading.  Apparently, some critics felt the approach was too Freudian, making Hamlet's longing for his mother too overt, and his rage at Claudius too "territorial" as a result.  There's also ongoing controversy about how much Gertrude knew about the murder plot of her first husband-- some think she was in on it!

 

I didn't think that-- just think Shakespeare was portraying a flawed, complex human being who was fatally blind in some areas, most glaringly when it came to Claudius's true character.  It's like she didn't want to know....