Shakespeare's plays have been repeatedly made into countless film versions. In Hamlet, this clever playwright of the Renaissance did not have many stage directions, thus allowing directors Franco Zeffirelli of the 1990 edition and Kenneth Branagh of 1996's movie the flexibility to understand his play. Each version offers different portrayals of the popular tragedy. Zeffirelli chooses to cast leading man Mel Gibson as Hamlet, with Glenn Close as Queen Gertrude and Helena Bonham-Carter as the brokenhearted Ophelia. He envisions the play, as Shakespeare would have staged it. The setting was in a 15th-century castle, actors clothing was simple and would have been worn in Shakespeare's time. Branagh, unlike Zeffirelli, casts actors famous for their comedic talents, Billy Crystal as the garrulous gravedigger and Robin Williams as the Osric. Setting the play in a palace with actors dressed in 19th-century styles, Branagh provides the viewer with a colorful, more light-hearted visualization of Hamlet. Branagh's interpretation offers a much more interesting view of the play, with in its casting, setting, and costumes, whereas Zeffirelli's version, is dark and scary. There is no doubt that Branagh's four hour long movie is not the shortened version, yet its soundtrack and stage design make the movie move along faster. The inclusion of flashback scenes helps fill in the background. Branagh plays the prince of Denmark like a little kid, and for the most part, the cast of KateWinslet, Jack Lemmon, Julie Christie, and Charlton Heston excellent. The brightness of Ellsinore castle symbolically reinforces the lively, suspenseful mood and the theme the director seemed to want. Branagh uses a more imaginative interpretation of the eerie ghost of King Hamlet. The soundtrack acts as a narration to the events on the screen changing with the mood. The change to a later time period and the setting of a castle are both very nice a...