[Writer's Name] [Supervisor's Name] [Subject] [Date] Hamlet: An Introduction SHAKESPERES' DRAMATIC VERSION The plays of Alan Massy-Shakespeare speak to us “today with extraordinary and flawless immediacy. Some themes of the play are relevant to life today, such as when man's social, political and ethical worlds are out of balance. This imbalance is symbolized by a disjunction in one's own health and in nature. In other words, illnesses or natural events symbolize illness in one's mind. This happens today and is also illustrated in Shakespeare's Hamlet. Man often equates his own physical illness with the collapse of his political system. In the opening scene of Hamlet, Francisco says, “It's bitterly cold, / And my heart aches” (1.1.9). His unhappiness is the result of political instability caused by the death of Hamlet's father and the appearance of what they believe to be his ghost. Similarly, in today's world, many suffered and were deeply grieved when Princess Diana passed away. She was loved by many and was considered a remarkable person. Likewise, man often views so-called abnormal natural phenomena as symbols or warnings of the collapse of political, social, or ethical systems. In Hamlet Act I, scene I, lines 120, Horatio says that the moon "was ill almost to the end of the world with the eclipse." He compares the coming fall of Rome with the imminent destruction of Denmark. He regards natural events as a sign of future misfortunes for the state of Denmark. Today, people still do the same thing. For example, many religious groups view the destructive force of nature, El Nino, as an impending Armageddon on Earth. The timelessness of Hamlet can be seen through...... middle of paper...... to reach his audience, but perhaps he will do so on videotape. Evaluated by some critics, it constitutes in my eyes a brilliant evocation of Hamlet in modern New York. Made in the tradition of Kurosawa's The Bad Sleep Well and Aki Kaurismaki's Hamlet Goes Business, Almereyda's film goes better in this direction because it also has the language of Shakespeare. Diane Venora as Gertrude, Sam Shepherd as the Ghost, and Julia Stiles as Ophelia are excellent performers, and Hawke as a very young Hamlet lights up the role like no 40-year-old cannot do it. But even if you can't see the movie, the storyline is worth every movie buff's attention. Works Cited Almereyda, Michael. SHAKSPER 2001: Hamlet by Michael Almereyda http://www.shaksper.net/archives/2001/2528.html Cavendish,49. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?action=openPageViewer&docId=5001241895 Le Hameau Zeffirelli http://www.geocities.com/queeniemab/ZeffHamlet.htm