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Hamlet |
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1948;
Black & White
2 hours and 35 minutes
Academy Awards
- Best Picture
- Laurence Olivier
- Actor
- Laurence Olivier
- Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White
- Carmen Dillon
Roger K. Furse- Costume Design, Black-and-White
- Roger K. Furse
Academy Award Nominations
- Director
- Laurence Olivier
- Supporting Actress
- Jean Simmons
- Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture
- William Walton
I blush to admit that I have yet to see this version of Hamlet, although it is high on my to-be-viewed list. However, without having seen it I can pinpoint some compelling reasons to watch this masterpiece (and I'm eager to do so).
This is the only film version of a Shakespearean play ever to win a Best Picture Oscar. The haunting use of black and white at a time when color was becoming fairly accessible to a film-maker show the deliberate intent to set the mood and atmosphere as brooding and intense. And no other actor personifies Shakespearean excellence as Laurence Olivier did in his lifetime.
In addition to Academy Awards, Hamlet also won a British Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a New York Film Critics Circle Award, and awards at the Bodil and Venice Film Festivals. For a complete list of nominations and awards, visit the awards page at the Internet Movie Database.
For more about the Bard, including online works, visit our page for Shakespeare in Who's Who in Medieval History.
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