One of the best film versions of William Shakespeare's Hamlet is that directed by and starring Laurence Olivier and made in 1948. The Olivier film is dark, brooding, and truly theatrical, with sets that are suggestive rather than realistic, expressionistic rather than precise. The darkness of the image is matched by a darkness of spirit and a sense of foreboding that hangs over the film from the first frame. Such a dark and expressionistic setting fits quite well with the internal brooding of Hamlet. The character of Hamlet is considered difficult because he is seen as passive rather than active for most of the play. Early in the play he is given the task of avenging his father by his father's ghost, and yet for most of the play he seems to do nothing about it. He is highly reflective but inactive until the very end of the play when he does his duty, destroying the man who killed his father and losing his own life in the process. The importance of this question is evident in the film as Laurence Olivier answers the question in a spoken prologue, stating that this is the tragedy of a man who could not make up his mind.
At the beginning of the play, the kingdom is in turmoil, and the nightly appearance of the Ghost proves this, for the dead remain in their graves unless there is some turmoil to bring them out to speak to the living. The disorder in the kingdom has been caused by the fact that the king has been murdered, for the fate of the kingdom is always tied with the fate of the ruler. Since the king was murdered, the kingdom suffers, even if the fact of the murder is not known. In the course of the play, Hamlet has to act to restore the natural order by avenging his father.
The effects of a regicide are seen in storms and the like because such actions offend God. Shakespeare includes these elements for a reason, and Olivier follows this intent in every respect. Olivier begins his film with an image of turmoil--...