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Hamlet [1948]

Country of Origin: UK
Year of Production: 1948
Running Times: 155 mins
Format: black and white     35mm
Ratio: 1.37:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: J. Arthur Rank Films / Pilgrim Pictures / Rank Film Organization / Two Cities Films Ltd
Executive Producer: Laurence Olivier
Assistant Producer: Anthony Bushell
Associate Producer: Reginald Beck
Production Supervisor: Phil C. Samuel
Production Managers: Filippo Del Giudice, John Gossage

SCRIPT
Script: Laurence Olivier [uncredited]
Play: William Shakespeare
Text Editor: Alan Dent

DIRECTION
Director: Laurence Olivier
Assistant Director: Peter Bolton
Associate Director: Anthony Bushell [uncredited]

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Desmond Dickinson
Camera Operator: Ray Sturgess
Chief Electrician: James Hamilton

EDITING AND POST PRODUCTION
Editor: Helga Cranston

MUSIC
Music: William Walton
Conductor: Muir Mathieson
Music Recordist: E.A. Drake [uncredited]

SOUND
Sound Recordists: John W. Mitchell, L.E. Overton
Sound Editor: Harry Miller
Sound System: Western Electric Sound System

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up: Tony Sforzini
Hair: Vivienne Walker
Costume Designer: Roger Furse, Elizabeth Hennings [uncredited]
Wardrobe Supervisor: Elizabeth Hennings [uncredited]

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: Henry Harris, Paul Sheriff, Jack Whitehead

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Roger Furse
Art Director: Carmen Dillon
Set Dresser: Roger Ramsdell
Scenic Artist: E. Lindegarde [uncredited]

MISCELLANEOUS
Continuity: Elizabeth Everson
Mime Play: David Paltenghi

LOCATIONS
Studio: Denham Studio, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

STUNTS
Sword Play: Dennis Loraine

CAST
John Laurie [Francisco]
Esmond Knight [Bernardo]
Anthony Quayle [Marcellus]
Niall MacGinnis [sea captain]
Harcourt Williams [1st player]
Patrick Troughton [player king]
Tony Tarver [player queen]
Peter Cushing [Osric]
Stanley Holloway [gravedigger]
Russell Thorndike [priest]
Basil Sydney [Claudius, The King]
Eileen Herlie [Gertrude, The Queen]
Laurence Olivier [Hamlet, Prince of Denmark]
Norman Wooland [Horatio, his friend]
Felix Aylmer [Polonius, Lord Chamberlain]
Terence Morgan [Laertes, son of Polonius]
Jean Simmons [Ophelia, daughter of Polonius]
Patricia Davidson [Lady of the Court - uncredited]
John Gielgud [voice of the ghost - uncredited]
Christopher Lee [spear carrier - uncredited]
Anthony Bushell [bit part - uncredited]
Desmond Llewelyn [extra - uncredited]

Stand-In For Eileen Herlie: Myrtle Rowe [uncredited]

SUMMARY

The Danish prince Hamlet seek revenge for the murder of his father at the hands of his uncle. Obsessed by his revenge and driven by the ghost of his late father, Hamlet risks losing everything...

AVAILABILITY

UK
Theatrical Distributor: J. Arthur Rank Film Distributors Ltd

USA
Theatrical Distributor: Universal International Pictures
Laserdisc Distributor: Paramount [LV 12569-2]
DVD Distributor: The Criterion Collection [1284]

CENSORSHIP HISTORY

Argentina
Rating: 13

Finland
Rating: K-12

AWARDS

1948
New York Film Critics Circle Awards, USA
Best Actor [Laurence Olivier] - winner

Venice Film Festival, Italy
Golden Lion [Laurence Olivier] - winner
Volpi Cup Best Actress [Jean Simmons] - winner

1949
Academy Awards, USA
Best Actor in a Leading Role [Laurence Olivier] - winner
Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White [Roger K. Furse, Carmen Dillon] - winner
Best Costume Design, Black-and-White [Roger K. Furse] - winner
Best Picture [Laurence Olivier] - winner
Best Actress in a Supporting Role [Jean Simmons] - nominated
Best Director [Laurence Olivier] - nominated
Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture [William Walton] - nominated

BAFTA Awards, UK
Best Film from any Source - winner
Best British Film - nominated

Bodil Awards
Bedste europæiske film [Laurence Olivier] - winner

Golden Globes, USA
Best Motion Picture: Foreign - winner
Best Motion Picture Actor [Laurence Olivier] - winner

TIMELINE

1947
April
Day Unknown: UK - production begins

November
Day Unknown: UK - production ends

1948
September
29: USA - theatrical premiere in ew York City, New York

October
27: USA - theatrical premiere in Los Angeles, California
29: Finland - theatrical release

November
8: Denmark - theatrical release

December
Day Unknown: Austria - theatrical release

1997
November
1: Iceland - shown at the Reykjavik Film Festival

2000
September
19: USA - DVD release [The Criterion Collection [1284]]

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Amleto - Italian title

LINKS

SEE ALSO
Amleto [1908a]
Amleto [1908b]
Amleto [1910]
Amleto [1914]
Amleto [1917]
Le duel d'Hamlet [1900]
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex [1972]
Gamlet [1964]
Green Eggs and Hamlet [1995]
Hamile [1964]
Hamlet [1907]
Hamlet [1909]
Hamlet [1910a]
Hamlet [1910b]
Hamlet [1910c]
Hamlet [1913]
Hamlet [1921]
Hamlet [1947]
Hamlet [1954]
Hamlet [1955]
Hamlet [1959]
Hamlet [1960]
Hamlet [1964a]
Hamlet [1964b]
Hamlet [1964c]
Hamlet [1969]
Hamlet [1970]
Hamlet [1972]
Hamlet [1973]
Hamlet [1976]
Hamlet [1987]
Hamlet [1990a]
Hamlet [1990b]
Hamlet [1992]
Hamlet [1996]
Hamlet [2000]
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark [1980]
A Herança [1970]
Io, Amleto [1952]
Khoon Ka Khoon [1935]
Last Action Hero [1993]
Stay Tuned [1992]
Den tragiska historien om Hamlet - Prins av Danmark [1985]
A Witch's Tangled Hare [1959]

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
History Brought to Life [1950]
Last Action Hero [1993]
Laurence Olivier: A Life [1982]
Peter Cushing: A One-Way Ticket to Hollywood [1989]
William Shakespeare [2000]

KEYWORDS

castles; cemeteries; denmark; funerals; ghosts; graves; hamlet; insanity; pirates; play into film; poison; princes; revenge; royalty; skulls; sword fights


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