Hamnet

Hamnet seeks to find the source of Hamlet, one of history’s most famous stories.

Chloe Zhao’s film is based on the book of the same name, a fictionalised account but rooted in what truth we do have of the years around the writing of William Shakespeare’s tragic play and the death of his young son that may have inspired it.

It can therefore tow the line between historical interest and fiction and is at once achingly romantic and achingly tragic.

Shakespeare and Agnes meet, marry and bring up their three children in 1500’s England before tragedy strikes and little Hamnet passes.

As heart-wrenching and bleak as this sounds and can sometimes be, the film is also filled with moments of beauty, charm and wonder.

Despite its historical setting and characters who are now legend, it is so human, relatable and real.

Whilst it can be elliptical and arty it remains poignant and you are always left watching a couple dealing with an unfathomable loss.

It has much to say about turning grief to art, the ways in which people deal with trauma amongst other societal and cultural comment but, again, finds the simple humanity in what can be condensed into a simple story.

The ‘Shakespeare’ of it all is kept to the background, our focus largely on Agnes as William starts to lose himself to writing and to London.

When we do see the fruits of his labour through Agnes’ eyes during a performance of Hamlet at The Globe, it’s a wondrous sequence. The play seen anew and the story brought full circle and a couple, maybe, brought back together.

Or perhaps, as William tells the story of Orpheus and Eurydice early in the film, this is just another metaphor for eternal pain (or saving from it).

Like many before it, the more you invest in the nuances of the film the more it can offer layers to you but, taken at face value, it is still a beautiful story.

Shot impeccably and performed to awards-beckoning levels by Jessie Buckley, in particular, and Paul Mescal, this is a moving, often devastating and emotional watch that finds a different angle on Shakespeare.

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