Film review: ‘HAMNET’ by Nick Gardener from ‘Built For Speed’
Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet is a Shakespeare biopic of sorts that, on one level explores the story behind the Bard’s writing of Hamlet, possibly the most famous work of English literature but also deliberately displaces Shakespeare to the sidelines to examine the plight of his wife Agnes. Rather than retelling a famous person’s story, this is a stark, striking looking, but slow-moving study of grief and art (in this case literature and theatre) as a way of exorcising emotional pain.
The early part of the film is a very still, beguiling but slightly confusing mix of period piece, forbidden romance, family drama and celebration of nature. Here, young Latin tutor and aspiring playwright William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) who is only referred to as Will at this point, falls for the mysterious Agnes (Jessie Buckley) a young woman whom some locals accuse of being a forest witch. Marrying against Shakespeare’s parents’ (Emily Watson and David Wilmott) wishes, the couple produce three children, daughters Susanna (Bodhi Rae Breathnach) and Judith (Olivia Lynes) and son Hamnet (Jacob Jupe). This is the era of the black plague, however and its impact drastically and tragically alters the course of William and Agnes’ and their family’s lives.
The film is divided into two parts. The first depicts Shakespeare’s young family forming in the town of Stratford with its muddy streets and distinctive Elizabethan buildings while the second part largely consists of a performance of Hamlet on stage at the famed Globe Theatre. This performance – which acts like a eulogy for someone lost to William and Agnes – is meant to create an emotional crescendo and based on the preview audience’s reactions, it’s likely some will find it emotionally devastating while others will be left cold and wondering what all the fuss is about.
Nearly all viewers, however, are likely to be impressed by the actors’ performances, especially Jessie Buckley’s. She has been one of the most formidable actors of the last decade and is typically excellent here. There’s a bit of clichéd witchy earth mother to the character of Agnes with a few too many shots of her curled in a foetal position in the forest but Buckley gives her such visceral intensity that she makes Agnes believable and indelible. Despite playing Shakespeare, Paul Mescal is more peripheral to events and is absent for large parts of the film. Most of the time he’s quite taciturn but he erupts in confrontingly emotional fashion in the film’s second half.
Director Chloe Zhao infuses the film with a unique emotional rhythm giving it a quiet brooding tension before punctuating it with anguished cries. With its sumptuous depictions of nature, the film at times recalls the work of Terrence Malick while interior shots bring to mind 17th Century Dutch Masters paintings. The use of natural lighting and candlelight also recall Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon and even Robert Eggers’ The Witch.
This film is destined to trigger post-film arguments as some will be mesmerised by its meditative style and emotional catharsis while others will likely remain unconvinced and struggle with its slow pacing. For Buckley’s performance, some memorable art direction and an intriguing mood, though, it’s definitely worth exploring.
Nick’s rating: ***1/2
Genre: Drama/ Period film/ Biopic.
Classification: M.
Director(s): Chloe Zhao.
Release date: 15th Jan 2026.
Running time: 126 mins.
Reviewer: Nick Gardener can be heard on “Built For Speed” every Friday night from 8-10pm on 88.3 Southern FM.
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