Hamlet
- Synopsis
- Oscar-winning feature film adaptation of the play directed by and starring Laurence Olivier.
- Language
- English
- Country
- Great Britain
- Medium
- Film; Video
- Technical information
- Black-and-white / Sound
- Year of release
- 1948
- Duration
- 153 mins; 13,827 feet
Credits
- Director
- Laurence Olivier
- Producer
- Laurence Olivier
- Cinematographer
- Desmond Dickinson
- Writer
- William Shakespeare
- Screenplay
- Alan Dent
- Music
- William Walton
- Costume
- Roger Furse
- Art Direction
- Carmen Dillon
- Cast
Additional Details
- Production type
- Fiction Films
- Historical period
- Medieval
- Plays
- Hamlet
- Subjects
- Drama; Shakespeare
- Keywords
- Shakespeare, William (1564-1616)
- Related items
- Great Moments from Hamlet
- Hamlet
- Hamlet - The Music Video
- Royalty Honour ‘Hamlet’ Premiere
Notes
- Notes
- The following study extracts are available for hire on 16mm film from Filmbank: Hamlet and the ghost - Act I Scenes iv & v (15 min); The closet scene - Act III Scene iv (11 min); the gravedigger’s scene - Act V Scene i (9 min.); the final duel - Act V Scene ii (16 min).
The Folger Shakespeare Library holds a post production script dated 11 May 1948, annotated by Robert Hamilton Ball. The Birmingham Shakespeare Library holds a typescript.
Released on Blu-ray by ITV DVD in November 2009. - General
- `The opening, where Olivier pronounces that this is simply ‘the tragedy of a man who could not make up his mind’, instantly set up a debate between cinema entertainment and faithfulness to the text’. McKernan & Terris, Walking Shadows: Shakespeare in the National Film and Television Archive (London: BFI, 1994). p.52.
- Figures
- $3m US Gross (Rosenthal, Daniel. ‘Shakespeare on Screen’).
- Awards
- Academy Awards 1949 - Best Picture, Best Costume Design (black and white), Best Art Direction (black and white), Best Actor in a Leading Role. HAMLET was the first non-US produced film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture.
BAFTA Film Awards 1949 - Best Film. - Reviews
- Brenda Cross (ed,), The Film Hamlet: A Record of its Production (London: The Sturn Press, 1948).
Production Company
- Name
Rank
Distributor (Hire)
- Name
Filmbankmedia
- info@filmbankmedia.com
- Web
- https://www.filmbankmedia.com/ External site opens in new window
- Phone
- +44 (0) 20 3866 6525
- Address
- 1st Floor, 67-74 Saffron Hill
London
EC1N 8QX
UK - Notes
- The main source in the UK for hire of feature films for non-theatrical presentations. The extensive catalogue includes vintage classics, independent films and big blockbusters. Available on 16mm as well as VHS and DVD. Also provides advice on contractual matters.
Distributor (Sale)
- Name
ITV DVD
- Web
- http://www.itv.com External site opens in new window
- Phone
- 020 7389 8555
- Address
- 48 Leicester Square
London
WC2H 7FB - Notes
- From 2006 the brand through which Granada Ventures releases material on DVD
- Name
Retail outlets
How to cite this record
Shakespeare, "Hamlet". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/shakespeare/search/index.php/title/9193 (Accessed 19 Sep 2024)