timepiececlock

for tonight.

I'm sitting down to watch the entire Kenneth Branagh film version of Hamlet.

This is four hours. I've barely started, but I'm already loving it, I think. KB is sexy, whispering all that rhyming Old English to the empty air and such... and plus Kate Winslet is in this. I've always liked watching her on screen. Looking at the cast list, there's so many other people that I like here as well... I'm getting excited. I've also got my lit book here to follow along with the parts I've already read, and see how they interpret various scenes.

Their version of the ghost in the opening was kind of corny, but not terrible. The scene of Gertrude and Claudius' wedding was gorgeous though, absolutely lovely to look at. And KB's portrayal of Hamlet's rant about his mother that followed directly after was fabulous too. Some of y ou all are probably going to tar and feather me for saying this, but I can't believe he was in a Harry Potter film. He seems way too cool. Also, I thought very poorly of the first HP movie, and this has left me suspicious to sequels. So I'm still waiting for the video to come out before I watch Chamber of Secrets. What also interests me, though, is reading that Alan Cumming was considered for it... he's more like what I pictured the character to be.

But maybe if this thing I read about KB directing the next one would be true (since the third book was my favorite), I might be interested then.

Feh. I must go now--- still 3.5 hours of Shakespeare dialogue left to view. Thank god for a VCR, which I can pause and rewind as many times as necessary to comprehend what they're saying.