Links to the various pages can be found at the bottom of this one.

July 2, 2007: Finally, the Hamlet DVD will see the light of day! This August, a mahvelous 2-disc special edition, complete with audio commentary by the man himself, will be released to the masses. This promises to be one of the most anticipated releases this year, on par with the iPhone (well, almost). Don't miss out! Order your copy today.

April 5, 2005: After over a year of inactivity, the saga of the Hamlet DVD continues, this time more promising than ever. Thanks to the efforts of Mark Cassello over at the Branagh's Hamlet on DVD site and the many fans who bombarded Warners with e-mails on Valentines' Day 2005, a "special edition" Hamlet DVD is now slated for a 2006 release. I'm not sure what the "special edition" part really means since there have been no other editions but it's pretty special in and of itself to see this wonderful film on DVD. You can read the e-mail from Ronnee Sass, Executive Director Publicity at Warner Home Video here. Will we finally see a DVD on the 10th anniversary of the film's release? Only time will tell...

March 21, 2004: Bad news on the DVD front to report. Apparently, Warner Home Video participated in an online chat recently, where they responded to a question regarding the DVD release. Warner stated that "Legal issues preclude our releasing the Branagh HAMLET at the moment". What, exactly, that means for the future of the DVD is unclear (and I hesitate to speculate) but it's the first time we've heard a peep out of the studio and the news isn't good. Continue to follow this thread on the message board for updates and venting on the topic.

(Thanks to Renata for relaying the message)

April 3, 2003: Another update on that elusive DVD. I know there have been lots of rumours spread about this before but I think that this is IT. Some members from the Kenneth Branagh mailing list met the MAN at the premiere of The Play What I Wrote (a play currently on Broadway directed by Ken) in New York and drilled him on this very subject. He mentioned that Hamlet would be released in Spring 2004 with extras (he reportedly said "documentary" and "interviews"). I know it's a long wait for those of us who have already waited 7 years, but now we have confirmation from the man himself! Saunter over to this thread on the message board to read what others have to say about the DVD.

Thanks to Paula (and other KenFriends who were there to witness this momentous occasion)

July 23, 2002: People are starting to get antsy about the non-release of the non-existent DVD version of this film. There's a teaser on the Amazon.com website but it doesn't tell you much...in fact it's rather depressing... In any case, I've cleaned up some of the links on the reviews page so they should all work now.

April 14, 2002: Notice that all the ads have disappeared? Yes, I've finally had to put some money into this thing so I guess that means I've crossed the line between hobbyist and, well, serious hobbyist. So I've added a couple links for you. One from The Astor Theatre where you can download the trailers and an assortment of images (don't forget their Hamlet review as well) and the other a review from The New Enlightenment.

February 2, 2002: While testing out some OCR software, I managed to scan the monster article from the New York Review of Books, an article that discusses four recent films including Lurmann's William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Branagh's Hamlet, Pacino's Looking for Richard, and Nunn's Twelfth Night, as well as a London production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

December 9, 2001: A little search turned up a couple more reviews which can be found in the aptly named Reviews section and also one interview from Bigstar.com. Enjoy the holidays!

October 24, 2001: There's a rumour on the rumour mill at Digital Bits that Warner Brothers could possibly maybe even perhaps release Hamlet on DVD in 2002. Will this be it? Stay tuned... (Thanks Dana)

October 3, 2001: Hello, hello. You may have noticed that the site has been loading on and off over the past month. This is because Geocities doesn't allow over x number of visits per hour anymore so it just shuts it down when things get too busy. Not a good situation. I'm currently in the process of moving it to a different server so bear with me for a bit while I sort this out.

There's been quite a bit of activity on the discussion forum lately so I've tidied things up a little over there. I have a heap of articles that I've collected over the years or printed out some time ago from now defunct websites and I would very much like to get them online for everyone. However, I haven't got the time to type them up nowadays so I would appreciate any volunteers who would like to help with this. Please let me know! Thanks.

July 17, 2001: Guess what? stuff! Yes, that's right, we have an interview with Dr. Russell Jackson, text advisor on Hamlet and a review from the Arizona Daily Wildcat.

April 17, 2001: Here's a website from AngliaCampus devoted to the comparison of the Zeffirelli and Branagh's Hamlets. This is part of an educational website. Also, the Providence Journal review is up again and a one from The Dead Projectionist.

March 7, 2001: Just added a article from the Fall issue of the Shakespeare Newsletter. Also, the wonderful Smithsonian interview with Ken has been made available again and at a special price at the Smithsonian website. The interview is about an hour long and conducted by NPR's Susan Stamberg, the transcript of which may be found here. Thanks Jane and Deb.

February 17, 2001: Found a few short reviews today. I've recently discovered that my new scanner comes with OCR software so hopefully I won't have to manual type in some of the longer articles that I have in the archives.

December 8, 2000: Just did a little house cleaning today. Fixed up most of the broken links but please let me know if you find any. And, I found the Justice review and interview again. They've been added to their respective sections.

September 29, 2000: Added one review of the score from ScoreLogue.

And on a completely unrelated note, I spent a week this summer in Yosemite National Park and during my stay I hiked to the top of Half Dome. For a limited time only, you can view the travelogue I compiled from that trip.

August 12, 2000: Yes, believe it or not, that's two updates this week. I'm just making up for the one I missed last month. Hmm, sounds a bit like my tax payments... Added a few little things today including a review complete with fencing analysis and Marilyn's Hamlet page. Also, have you seen the 101+ Reasons to see/buy the film?

August 5, 2000: I realize I haven't updated the page in a while so I thought I'd throw a bunch of things up today. Quite a few articles and a review. Also, I found a film clip of the "closet" scene (III, iv), which is linked from the main page. Enjoy!

June 29, 2000: I've added a few reviews (imagine that!), most interesting of which is one from Film Written Magazine which reviews both Branagh's and Almereyda's versions side-by-side. Another two reviews can be found on the short and long pages.

Drove 3 hours to see LLL in Seattle a couple weeks ago (it's opening in Vancouver tomorrow...) but it was certainly worth the effort convincing the customs officer that I was crossing the border to see a movie. "A movie?!?!! What movie???" "Er...Love's Labour's Lost? New Kenneth Branagh Shakespeare film." Blank stare, look of incredulousness. "You should see it!" And he let me through. :) A very sweet and charming film that'll really lift your spirits on a rainy day.

June 10, 2000: I fixed up most of the broken links on the site. Please let me know if you find any more because with over 300 different links it's hard for me to keep on top of them all.

Don't forget to check out Branagh's new film, the musical Love's Labour's Lost, which opened in North America yesterday in select cities. Has your city been selected? It will be opening wider at the end of this month.

May 14, 2000: I finally put up the Hamlet wallpaper background which was originally lodged on the official website. You can download it from the main page. It's a picture of Blenheim Palace with a skull and sword in the foreground.

April 21, 2000: I just fixed up a few things in the FAQ and Bookshop concerning the recent re-release of the video.

March 31, 2000: For those of you into feminism, there are two more essays on the subject in the Articles section. These people were all in the same class, it appears.

If you like Branagh's Shakespeare films (and you happen to live in the UK), his musical Love's Labour's Lost has finally been released so get thee to a theatre soon! I have the soundtrack so I can tell you that the music is wonderful, as always; now it would be nice to know how the songs fit into the film itself. The rest of us in North America will have to wait until June. As I understand it, it was supposed to have been released *last* June...

February 25, 2000: Two more articles have been added. One is an essay focussing on Ophelia from a feminist point of view. The other is an article about Hamlet in 70mm.

January 30, 2000: I've organized the topics in the Discussion Forum into categories so hopefully it will be easier for you to find what you're looking for now.

January 8, 2000: Just a small update on the release date of that Hamlet video. The target date is April 18, 2000 so mark that on your calendars folks! Thanks again, Brian.

January 6, 2000: I've updated the FAQ to include information about the Hamlet video, currently out-of-print but slated for re-release in April 2000 in *WIDESCREEN*. Thanks Brian.

January 5, 2000: Well, *my* computer's still functioning... Hamlet has been named one of the top ten films of the 1990s by Salon. It just squeaked in at #10, but hey, that's #10 out of how many movies that came out in the 90s?
(Thanks Chris.)

December 20, 1999: I'm off for the holidays now (early for once!). I've just cleaned up the links on the site so most of them should be working now. Nothing new though; I think I've exhausted most of the Internet resources so what you see here is probably all you'll be able to find on the web right now. I'll be posting older reviews in the future. Happy holidays and best wishes for the new year!

November 18, 1999: Ok, now...yes, I'm still here. I've added a article to the site and the New York Times review has resurfaced.

October 7, 1999: Please note that my e-mail address has changed to vsmleong@yahoo.com. It sure was fun updating this web site. :)

I don't know why I haven't added this before but I've finally posted the extensive IMDB listing for Hamlet. In particular, I direct you to the user comments section.

September 28, 1999: Nothing per se but I just wanted to let you know that the superlative Shakespeare Illustrated site is finally back up so drop in for a visit if you haven't already.

September 13, 1999: I just did some house-cleaning on the links page.

September 11, 1999: While not per se, the Branagh interview with Susan Stamberg at the Smithsonian is now available for your aural enjoyment at the Smithsonian website. You just need Real Audio to listen! Oh, you can also buy the audio cassette from the website as well. Thanks to Marilyn.

September 3, 1999: Whoo-hoo, TWO websites to add to the list, which is quite refreshing for those of you wishing the official website back to life. They are both from the TNT television network, an informational site and an educational one. Eat your heart out (at least for a little while anyway). Thanks to Ngoc Vu and Jude Tessel.

August 29, 1999: Added one review that I believe was recently posted on the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. School is in (and nearly in for me), which means that Hamlet season officially starts now...which means I think I'd better check up on those broken links soon. Stay tuned.

I've also split the guestbook up into 3 pages.

August 11, 1999: I've added a couple of reviews for you to peruse. I would have updated earlier except that my computer died a slow and painful death and it took a while for the technicians to resurrect it (really!).

July 15, 1999: For those of you still interested in getting your hands on a copy of the Hamlet CD-ROM game, Hamlet: A Murder Mystery, you can now purchase it online at CDAccess.com. For more info about this game (which has super-cool graphics, by the way), please consult the FAQ. Thanks Kim!

July 10, 1999: Since Ngoc moved her Compendium to a address, she's also added a million articles so I've updated my links to the new Branagh interviews as well. Also, I've added a couple of new short reviews.

June 19, 1999: As you may have noticed, I've just added a Discussion Forum where you can discuss the movie (and the play and Shakespeare) to your heart's content. Just try to keep it civilized :); afterall, resistance is futile.

I've also added a link to Michael's Hamlet site devoted to the benefits of a DVD release. (The link should be working now [99/07/07])

June 14, 1999: No, no, nothing today. I've just updated a few links that people have informed me about. As usual, please let me know if you find any broken links. Oh, and since he was nice enough to e-mail me his review, I'll draw your attention to John's review from In Media's Race. Thanks to Laura and John.

May 22, 1999: I just came back from a wonderful, yet fast-paced, week in New York in which I tried cramming as much as possible into 7 days. Whew! Anyhow, I've posted a link to the Web site of The Falcon Review, which has many reviews of Hamlet done by high school students.

May 5, 1999: I've put up some more pictures of Blenheim Palace from my trip there last summer. Have a look and pretend everything is covered in snow. :)

April 29, 1999: My exams are all done! I'm FREEEEE!!! Therefore, I reward you with the most excellent Cineaste Branagh interview. In this Q&A, Branagh talks quite a bit about Shakespearean filmmaking, mostly drawing upon his experiences with Hamlet and Henry V.

April 19, 1999: One of the most frequently asked questions (or rather, *the* most frequently asked question) I get is "when is Hamlet coming out on DVD???" Of course, I don't have the answer; however, if you would like to see Hamlet on DVD, please VOTE for it at dvdfile.com's DVD Request Line. Just type in "Hamlet" in the search box on the right and click "Start Search". You'll get two versions so be sure to pick the 1996 version!

April 10, 1999: You might like to know that I've done the semi-annual, somewhat-regular, spring cleaning of the site so all of the links should be working now (unless otherwise marked). 'Tis daddy's birthday today!

April 5, 1999: I've posted a couple of pieces from April 1997's Literature/Film Quarterly in the articles section of the site. Enjoy!

Archived Site Updates:
October '97-April '98
May '98-March '99