In recent times it seems as if there has been a resurgence of Shakespearean interest. There is really no particular reason as to why this happening that anyone can pin point, but it has great results. In recent film adaptations, audience everywhere are able to see Shakespeare or at least a modern film adaptation of some of his greatest plays and tragedies.
One tragedy that has drawn some light has been the adaptations of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Hamlet is essentially the story of a lost son who is trying to find the killer of his father and at the same time keep enough of his sanity to take back the throne that is his.
In my observation however when this story is adapted or rather molded to fit a particular audience, the idea of Shakespeare is replaced with a more palatable experience. Due to the fact that Shakespeare's works are written in the traditional Old English, comprehension can be very difficult. But with the debut of films such as the Lion King and Michael Almerayda's Hamlet, this tragedy connects on a deeper and more profound level.
The Lion King, although geared towards a primarily child based audience, tells the tragedy of Hamlet in a less harsh and accepting environment. The audiences that may watch this movie may have a hard time realizing that the film is in fact telling the classic tragedy, but once this realization occurs, the text can be fully understood.
Almerayda's film functions in much the same way. The 2000 film adaptation, is geared toward and generation that is hooked on caffeine and spark notes. For this reason the film does justice to the text, due to the fact that the entire movie is shot much like an episode of the real life in Manhattan. The seedy underworld dealings and explicit murder/suicide scenes help the classic and sometimes ambiguous text become very apparent and real.
Although some may argue that the over stylized and modern adaptations are designed only to cater to the ignorant masses, I respectfully disagree. The use of modern adaptations does not cater, it instead encourages the viewing audience to go forth and further research. By modernizing a classic work, the new age viewer is only being helped to better find parallels in history's context.
One tragedy that has drawn some light has been the adaptations of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Hamlet is essentially the story of a lost son who is trying to find the killer of his father and at the same time keep enough of his sanity to take back the throne that is his.
In my observation however when this story is adapted or rather molded to fit a particular audience, the idea of Shakespeare is replaced with a more palatable experience. Due to the fact that Shakespeare's works are written in the traditional Old English, comprehension can be very difficult. But with the debut of films such as the Lion King and Michael Almerayda's Hamlet, this tragedy connects on a deeper and more profound level.
The Lion King, although geared towards a primarily child based audience, tells the tragedy of Hamlet in a less harsh and accepting environment. The audiences that may watch this movie may have a hard time realizing that the film is in fact telling the classic tragedy, but once this realization occurs, the text can be fully understood.
Almerayda's film functions in much the same way. The 2000 film adaptation, is geared toward and generation that is hooked on caffeine and spark notes. For this reason the film does justice to the text, due to the fact that the entire movie is shot much like an episode of the real life in Manhattan. The seedy underworld dealings and explicit murder/suicide scenes help the classic and sometimes ambiguous text become very apparent and real.
Although some may argue that the over stylized and modern adaptations are designed only to cater to the ignorant masses, I respectfully disagree. The use of modern adaptations does not cater, it instead encourages the viewing audience to go forth and further research. By modernizing a classic work, the new age viewer is only being helped to better find parallels in history's context.
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