Maggie O’Farrell first published “Hamnet” in March 2020 — a timing which some consider ill-fated, especially given the novel’s theme of familial grief. Now, more than five years and a global pandemic later, the film adaptation of Hamnet was widely released on Dec. 5, offering audiences a visually stunning interpretation of both William Shakespeare’s most notable work and a portrait of his family’s life after loss.
The film makes clear from the very beginning that the names “Hamnet” and “Hamlet” are interchangeable, citing Stratford records from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. While the film and the novel take creative liberties, Hamnet — the son of Shakespeare — died in childhood. Historical accounts suggest that 11-year-old Hamnet’s death was caused by the bubonic plague; Chloe Zhao’s film makes it a reality through an unflinching portrayal of his physical decline.
While audiences might expect a film named after one of Shakespeare’s works to put his livelihood at the forefront, that is hardly the case here. Instead, we see Agnes, William Shakespeare’s wife, take on the brunt of their child’s death. With a stunning performance from Jessie Buckley, viewers are transported into a world that isn’t far from our own, earning Buckley an Oscar nomination.
Buckley’s portrayal of Agnes is stubborn yet gentle, deeply connected to not only her children but also the world around her. From her agonizing depiction of childbirth to helping her children navigate their own grief, her performance contrasts moments of warmth with the stillness of mourning, making the absence of Hamnet both palpable and haunting.
Though Shakespeare, played by Paul Mescal, shifts in and out of the picture due to his theatrical endeavors in London, his performance is equally heartbreaking. Mescal’s portrayal, especially in the first half of the film, feels magnetic, especially in regard to his chemistry with Buckley. He is both charismatic and sensitive, captivated by his desire to create something that isn’t just good, but great.
Though the two characters could not be more different from each other, the contrast that Zhao built between them is a true display of how we, as humans, grieve in entirely different ways. Shakespeare pours his mourning into his projects, whereas Agnes channels hers to the people she cares about.
The standout performance by far, however, stems from Hamnet’s 12-year-old actor, Jacobi Jupe. The minute the young actor appears on screen, the film feels electric with his sense of childlike wonder, especially when viewers get to experience his dynamic with his siblings as well as his father. There is a scene at the halfway point of the film where Hamnet asks his father not to go back to London — needless to say, it is at this moment that Jupe solidifies his career as an actor.
The cinematography in Hamnet is simple in nature — beautiful and hazy, with streams of light bleeding into the frame in the first half, shifting to something that feels moody and almost suffocating in the second. While the film is shot in a way that should make viewers feel isolated — utilizing several wide-angle shots that distance the world from the viewer — that isn’t the case here. Instead, it makes the film feel entirely more intimate.
Audiences are sure to reach a sense of catharsis when the film reaches its climax, especially when Max Richter’s “On the Nature of Daylight” underscores the film’s most emotional moment. It’s a song viewers have heard plenty of times in notable fan-favorites — “The Last of Us” and “Handmaid’s Tale” to name a few — yet here, it is devastatingly as effective, lingering long after the credits begin to roll.
Let it be known: “Hamnet” isn’t a film you leave as soon as it ends. It’s a film you’re forced to sit with, asking viewers to reflect not only on loss, but on love, creation, and the quiet way grief reshapes a family. Long after the screen fades to black, “Hamnet” remains, tender yet haunting, much like the memory of a child gone too soon.
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