I have a few major biases when it comes to film. I get more invested in stories about children and motherhood. I'm partial to Shakespeare adaptations. And when it comes to romances and tearjerkers, the more earnest and uncynical, the better. Chloe Zhao's "Hamnet," which she directed and co-wrote with Maggie O'Farrell, based on O'Farrell's book, is all of these things.
The approach of the book and the film is to treat William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) like a human being instead of a genius, following him and his beloved Agnes (Jessie Buckley) through their initial encounters, courtship, marriage, parenthood, separation, and then terrible tragedy. The film never plays coy with the identities of its leads, but neither is William's playwriting presented as anything of particular importance until the last act, when it becomes a way for him to process his grief and despair. Instead, the focus of the film is on the family - William and Agnes battling their parents to be allowed to marry, the dramatic births of their children, Susanna (Bodhi Rae Breahtnach), and twins Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe) and Judith (Olivia Lynes), William relocating to London for work, and then the arrival of the devastating plague.
Most of the film is a lovely, intimate domestic drama about love and loss from Agnes' point of view. She is rumored to be the daughter of a witch, and deeply connected with the forest and nature, so we get a very naturalistic, immersive view of Stratford, England and its inhabitants through her eyes. However, she's also guided by visions and haunted by portents of doom that follow her all her life. Lukasz Zal's cinematography captures lush greenery, lively family scenes, a few hints of the supernatural, and all the emotional highs and lows of the performances. However, I was struck by how evocative some of the simplest shots of trees or quiet interiors were, despite no action or dialogue at all. I have to point out that a lot of the heavy lifting is also done by Max Richter's score, which does exactly what you expect a Max Richter score to do in a tragedy.
I expect that some Shakespeare fans will take issue with the portrayal of the Bard and his family, as "Hamnet" plays up the relationship of the stage play to the real-life tragedy considerably, even inventing a few additional connections. It's also clear that nobody was too concerned about the historical accuracy of the period dress and mannerisms. However, as a piece of pure, cathartic cinema, nothing hit me as hard as "Hamnet" did this year, and I was warned well in advance what kind of movie this was. The execution is just that good, on every level. Jessie Buckley's raw, uninhibited performance is extraordinary, as has been widely reported, but the whole cast is excellent - Paul Mescal, Emily Watson as Agnes' mother-in law, Joe Alwyn as her brother, Noah Jupe as one of the players, and especially the kids for getting us to love them, and really make the big losses hurt.
It's also one of those rare, ambitious films where everything is building up to the emotional crescendo of the last ten minutes, and about twenty things pay off one after another, which has a tendency to go wrong in less experienced hands. Considering how the film is structured, it feels positively miraculous that the third act came together as well as it did. I never expected Chloe Zhao to tackle Shakespeare, but her approach is so refreshing, and her instincts are dead-on. I expect "Hamnet" works better if you already know Shakespeare's "Hamlet," and I do know Shakespeare's "Hamlet" pretty well, but I'm very curious what newcomers to Shakespeare will think of the movie.
I know I want to watch this again, but I'll also approach with caution, as the film is very emotionally intense. And frankly, I'm a little afraid that the magic of that last scene might not work as well the second time around. This is one trick where I'm not keep on peeking behind the curtain or looking for the seams.
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