‘Hamlet’ movie review: Riz Ahmed finds method in this madness

Riz Ahmed burns bright through this frantic, jumbled reimagination of William Shakespeare’s tragedy

Updated - November 05, 2026 07:05 pm IST

Riz Ahmed in ‘Hamlet’ | Photo Credit: Universal Pictures UK

Hamlet is one of those roles that has come to be the making of an actor, and we have had innumerable iterations of the procrastinating prince from high Shakespeare to modern-day interpretations.

The latest version, directed by Aneil Karia, is set in modern-day London with a wealthy Indian family replacing the royal court of Elsinore.

Riz Ahmed plays Hamlet as a man hanging by a thread of reason as the twin shocks of his father’s (Avijit Dutt) death and his mother, Gertrude (Sheeba Chaddha) marrying his uncle Claudius (Art Malik) threaten to dismantle him.

Michael Lesslie, who also wrote the blistering adaptation of Justin Kurzel’s Macbeth starring Michael Fassbender as the Thane of Cawdor and future king killer, has chosen to present a leaner, psychological thriller version of Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy.

Some characters have been dropped and others altered; notably, Ophelia (Morfydd Clark) is recast as a composite of Hamlet’s lover and his friend Horatio. Ophelia and Horatio were also merged in Vishal Bhardwaj’s Haider(2014) in Arshia, played by Shraddha Kapoor.

While the film sticks to the main beats of the plot, it has been chopped and changed to such an extent that it might have worked as a psychological thriller in its own right without being called Hamlet. Choosing to keep the spirit of Shakespeare’s language strikes a discordant note because the makers choose not to commit wholly to either side.

Hamlet plays like a psychedelic fever dream, which might be happening entirely in Hamlet’s head, bringing to mind Riz’s Bait earlier this year, with faint echoes of the Shakespearean tragedy. Unlike Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, which was set in modern-day Verona Beach and used a heady mix of iambic pentameter and a rocking soundtrack to tell the story of the star-crossed lovers, Hamlet cannot make up its mind what or where it wants to be.

A still from ‘Hamlet’ | Photo Credit: Universal Pictures UK

It is not a full reimagining like Haider, where the action is moved to Kashmir giving the film an immediacy and poignancy, nor a faithful staging like Kenneth Branagh’s unabridged four-hour version in 1996.

There are parts of Hamlet, however, that work exceedingly well. The single-take of the “to be or not to be” soliloquy as Hamlet drives a car on the deserted streets of London like a speed demon is exhilarating and terrifying.

The play-within-the-play being part of Gertrude and Claudius’ marriage celebrations makes sense while the staging of it as a dance set to ‘Dama Dam Mast Qalandar’ is inspired. Riz embodies Hamlet as a man falling apart as his centre cannot hold. Malik excels as Claudius, lending gravitas to a role that usually plays as a foil to Hamlet. Timothy Spall makes for a sly Polonius very unlike the pompous windbag from the play.

When Hamlet says, “There are more things in heaven and earth, Ophelia, than are dreamt of in your philosophy,” it shines a light on one of the biggest problems with the film, namely the choppy-mash up of a 16th century play in a modern setting. The ghost speaking in Hindi with the subtitles saying “speaks in a foreign language” does not help either. The social-inequality plot thread also seems to be squished in willy-nilly.

While this Hamlet might not be remembered as the definitive version of the moody Dane, it can be watched as an interesting and flawed experiment. Alas, poor Yorick! Incidentally, the grave diggers did not make it to the film either.

Hamlet is currently streaming on JioHotstar

Published - November 05, 2026 05:16 pm IST

cinema / English cinema / entertainment (general) / arts, culture and entertainment

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