Film Review - Hamnet
Léirmheas Scannáin - Hamnet
Jessie Buckley won a Golden Globe Award for her powerful role as Agnes in the film Hamnet, an achievement that confirms her status as one of the best actors of her generation. The film has also collected other major awards, including Best Film and Best Director at international film festivals. These significant wins give us good reason to take a deeper look at this masterpiece. Below is a comprehensive review of the film that the whole world is talking about right now. And the Oscars are still to come!
In the stirring new adaptation by Chloé Zhao of Maggie O’Farrell’s book, Hamnet, the camera focuses on the life of the main character – William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal). The film reveals his soul through the hard twists of his life, and you see how his eternal art emerges from them.
This is not a biopic in the traditional sense. In a way, it is a story about two births: the physical birth of a son, under a mother’s care in the forests of Stratford, and the metaphysical birth of a play, under a father’s care in London. The tragedy of his life is that he is absent when his physical son Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe) dies.
A Tale of Two Worlds
Director Chloé Zhao, renowned for her mastery regarding natural landscapes (Nomadland, for example), places the first act firmly in a rural area near Stratford-upon-Avon. Here, we meet Agnes (Jessie Buckley, who is fierce in the role), a woman of the woods, a healer and a wise woman who is more comfortable in the company of a falcon than among people. Agnes is the daughter of a wood witch. A young Latin tutor (Paul Mescal) pursues her and will not take no for an answer.
The transformative chemistry between Buckley and Mescal is a powerful force that drives the film forward relentlessly. Mescal plays the role of the playwright as a dedicated young man inspired to put pen to parchment. However, as the family and the demands on him grow, the distance between them also grows. He spends much of his time in London, while his wife is raising their family on her own. The film depicts this by cutting rapidly between the golden autumn light in Stratford and the claustrophobic, candlelit theaters in London.
It is a great pity that Shakespeare is rarely home while his son, Hamnet, is growing up. It is a cruel irony that Shakespeare is in London creating kings and jesters when his own son, Hamnet, is dying as a sacrifice to the bubonic plague sweeping the country.
Hamnet’s illness is filmed with frightening intimacy. We see how bad the Black Death is, as Hamnet suffers terribly. We also see his mother’s suffering, screaming in utter distress, without William there to help. She knows well that her herbs cannot save her son. When William finally returns to Stratford, it is too late and Hamnet has passed away.
The Alchemy of Grief
Jessie Buckley is wonderful as Agnes, expressing her emotions through her body. You don’t see William mourning his son’s death in the same way. Instead, he retreats to London, leaving his family behind once again, to write a play that bears a version of his dead son’s name.
To Agnes, and perhaps to the audience as well, this feels like a betrayal. The tension builds toward the film's great climax, a sequence that transforms Hamnet from a domestic drama into a first-class cinematic masterpiece.
The Grand Finale
Agnes travels to London for the first time then, trying to understand what Shakespeare intends with his play in her son’s name. She enters the theater. She stands in front of the stage and begins to watch the play. Watching the actor playing Hamlet (Jacobi Jupe’s brother), Agnes sees her lost son. And then, the Ghost appears on stage. In a stroke of directorial brilliance, William himself is the King’s Ghost. In the play, the father dies so that the son can live. Shakespeare has taken his son’s place, in a remarkable exchange.
The camera lingers on Agnes’s face as this realization dawns on her. Various emotions are seen expressed on her face, with anger gradually changing to a deep, heartbreaking understanding.
Technical Mastery
The handheld camera is often used. Natural sources are used whenever possible – fire, candlelight, and even the pale English sun. These cinematographic techniques create a closer bond between the camera and the audience.
The pacing is also masterful. Despite the solemn subject matter, there are no dull spots. The story has unceasing momentum, driven by the urgency of the plague in the first half and the mystery of the play in the second half. The twists and turns are handled with a deft touch that will surprise even those who are knowledgeable about Shakespeare's history.
Verdict
Hamnet is a film that demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible to get the full immersive experience. It is a story about the cost of ambition and the healing power of art. It asks us to reflect on how best to achieve a work-life balance and how important it is to spend time at home with our families. It also shows us the power of art that is able to express the wide range of the human condition, both good and bad.
As for the Oscars, those two famous Irish stars – Mescal and Buckley – will likely be choices for Best Actor. And the film itself will likely be a strong contender for Best Picture. Everyone should take the time to see this film
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