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Changes: MST3K 1009 - Hamlet

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*Claudius' English-dubbed voice was recorded by an uncredited [[Ricardo Montalbán]] and during one of his scenes, the SOL crew notes how the character sounds like Ricardo's signature villain role in the ''Star Trek'' franchise.[[File:Hamlet.PNG|thumb|279x279px|'''Maximilan Schell in ''Hamlet''''']]
  
*Claudius' English-dubbed voice was recorded by an uncredited [[Ricardo Montalbán]] and during one of his scenes, the SOL crew notes how the character sounds like Ricardo's signature villain role in the ''Star Trek'' franchise.[[File:Hamlet.PNG|thumb|279x279px|'''Maximilan Schell in ''Hamlet''''']]
 
*Although Mike comments "Filthy, misogynist Paul Verhoeven" played the gravedigger, this Verhoeven is, alas, not THE filmmaker [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Verhoeven Paul Verhoeven].
  
*Although Mike comments "Filthy, misogynist Paul Verhoeven" played the gravedigger, this Verhoeven is, alas, not THE filmmaker [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Verhoeven Paul Verhoeven].
−
*As mentioned above, this movie was heavily edited to fit within the alloted time for an episode of MST3K: by contrast, Kenneth Branaugh's 1996 version of Hamlet, one of the few times anyone has filmed the full play without edits, runs 242 minutes. 
 +
*As mentioned above, this movie, which originally had a runtime of 152 minutes, was heavily edited to fit within the alloted time for an episode of MST3K: by contrast, Kenneth Branagh's 1996 version of Hamlet, one of the few times anyone has filmed the full play without edits, runs 242 minutes. 
 
*One of the most common tactics used to hold down the length of this play is to cut the character of Fortinbras; hence the closing segment of this show.  (The characters of Rosencratz and Guildenstern usually get the axe, too.)
  
*One of the most common tactics used to hold down the length of this play is to cut the character of Fortinbras; hence the closing segment of this show.  (The characters of Rosencratz and Guildenstern usually get the axe, too.)
   

Revision as of 00:18, 9 December 2015

 Mike and The Bots watch an English-dubbed German version of one of Shakespeare's famous plays: Hamlet.

The Movie

Synopsis

Based on the legendary stage play by William Shakespeare.  Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (Schell), returns home to find his father murdered and his mother remarrying the murderer, his uncle.  Not long after this, Hamlet gets the go-ahead from the ghost of his father to get revenge however he wants so long as he doesn't abuse his mother or go insane while doing it.  At first, Hamlet pretends to be crazy to basically troll everyone and play mind games with the King (including having a group of travelling minstrels re-enact his father's own murder to see how the new King reacts), but eventually he decides to go all out and *actually* go insane which has the unintended side-effect of driving his old girlfriend, Ophelia, to commit suicide, Oops!  The King is generally annoyed with Hamlet's nonsense and schemes to have him killed which kind of backfires spectacularly in that nearly the entire central cast dies by the end of the play, Such drama!  [1]

Trivia

  • Claudius' English-dubbed voice was recorded by an uncredited Ricardo Montalbán and during one of his scenes, the SOL crew notes how the character sounds like Ricardo's signature villain role in the Star Trek franchise.
    Hamlet

    Maximilan Schell in Hamlet

  • Although Mike comments "Filthy, misogynist Paul Verhoeven" played the gravedigger, this Verhoeven is, alas, not THE filmmaker Paul Verhoeven.
  • As mentioned above, this movie, which originally had a runtime of 152 minutes, was heavily edited to fit within the alloted time for an episode of MST3K: by contrast, Kenneth Branagh's 1996 version of Hamlet, one of the few times anyone has filmed the full play without edits, runs 242 minutes. 
  • One of the most common tactics used to hold down the length of this play is to cut the character of Fortinbras; hence the closing segment of this show.  (The characters of Rosencratz and Guildenstern usually get the axe, too.)

The Episode

Host Segments

File:1009-3.jpg

"The sofa playing Gertrude was a delight!"

Prologue: Tom reveals that he's changed his last name from Servo to the identically pronounced but differently spelt Sirveaux. He also reveals he's added a h to his first name, changing it not to the expected Thom but to Htom. Crow suggests Htom hlick him.

File:1009-2.jpg

Alas Poor Who?

Segment One: While Crow introduces his new name change, Pearl puts the finishing touches on her deadly virus. But Mike is only interested in playing three card monte to decide the choice of today's movie. Easily winning the rigged game, Mike selects Hamlet, but makes the the mistake of allowing Pearl the choice of which production...

File:Pearlhamlet.jpg

Segment Two: Crow & Tom's plan to scare Mike by pretending to be the ghost of his dead father falls apart due to the fact his dad isn't dead. As is every other relative the pair can name.

Segment Three: With the dreary German version covered, Tom & Crow attempt to come up with their own alternate productions of Hamlet. Their percussion version isn't that much more successful than the scuba diving, buckethead or all furniture versions they've tried.

File:Mst3khamletcroe.png

Segment Four: It's time once again to play "Alas Poor Who?", the game where you have to guess the identity of the person based on a single bone from their body. Problems are encountered as Tom doesn't trust his answers, Crow doesn't answer in the correct form and with the lack of codpiece for Mike's costume.

Segment Five: The Bots have made their own Hamlet action figure, with a voice box that has a really, really long string to activate it. Meanwhile down in Castle Forrester the character Fortinbras resents being dropped from this movie's version of Hamlet and demands his scene be re-enacted, giving Pearl a worthy test subject for her virus.

Mst3khamlet

Stinger: Claudius does a double take.

Other Notes

  • This episode is often debated among fans over its quality, with many claiming that the movie is too plodding, slow, intellectual, dreary and boring to make for a good episode (thus affecting some of the riffing and host segments as well), along with the numerous cuts required to make the episode the regular duration of a MST3K episode (about 90 minutes). However like every episode in the series though, there are fans who think opposite of the general opinion and find this episode to be somewhat passable (especially when seen as a bold attempt from the crew at doing something different to the other movies they did).

Guest Stars

Obscure References

  • "You think you can take me? Go ahead on."
Mike is referencing Joe Don Baker's catchphrase from the experiment the week before, Final Justice.
  • "Run-D.M.C. Everett Koop!"
Run-D.M.C. was a pioneering hip-hop group. C. Everett Koop was the Surgeon General of the United States during the Reagan administration.
  • "Hamlet will return in Thunderball!"
A reference to the "James Bond will return in..." taglines that frequently appear during the closing credits of James Bond movies. Thunderball was the fourth Bond film, released in 1965.
  • "Rap artist, The Notorious K.I.N.G."
A play on words referring to the rapper Notorious B.I.G. (aka Biggie Smalls), and to Claudius' large chains and necklaces.
  • "Oh, shoot, Frank Rich is out there."
Frank Rich was the theatre critic for the New York Times, capable of making or breaking a play with his review.

Memorable Quotes

[The first scene takes place in what looks like a barred room.]
Mike: San Quentin prison presents Shakespeare.
[The members of court are performing a dance.]
Servo: [singing] "Night fever, night fever/We know how to do it!"
[A dishevelled Hamlet with mussed hair ominously approaches Ophelia.]
Servo [as Hamlet]: Ugh. I stuck a fork in the outlet.
. . .
[Hamlet stares intently at Ophelia, then puts a hand to his head.]
Mike [as Hamlet]: [in stoner voice] Oh, man. Me and Horatio got blasted on aquavit — woke up on the express bus to Copenhagen.
Crow [as Hamlet]: Stepdad, could you help me with my science fair project?
Servo [as the Ghost]: SCROOGE! Oh, wait, wrong story.
[Hamlet talks with Ophelia in her "closet".]
Ophelia: My prince…
Servo [as Ophelia]: … are back from Fotomat.
. . .
Hamlet: I never gave you aught.
Crow [as Ophelia]: Tscha!
Ophelia: My honored prince… you know right well you did.
Servo [as Hamlet]: Right well did not!
King Claudius: I like him not...
Crow [as Claudius]: I like him. NOT!
Hamlet: To be or not to be...
Mike: The literary equivalent of "Da-da-da-dunnn!"
Hamlet: That is the question.
Crow: I'll take "to be" for 50, Alex.
Hamlet: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune...
Servo: Starring Shelly Long and Bette Midler!
Hamlet: Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?
Mike: Ow, my shin's right on the edge of a stair.
Hamlet: To die: to sleep.
Crow: Yeah, that's what we're doing right now, Bub.
Hamlet: No more; and by a sleep to say we end the heart-ache and the tousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to...
Mike: Ok, we need a predicate, now.
Hamlet:...'tis a consummation devoutly to be wish'd.
Crow: Especially with Ophelia, man! [snickers]
Mike: Oh, you...
Hamlet: To die, to sleep.
Servo: To SLEEP!
Mike: Whoa, that's an old chesnut.
Hamlet: To sleep...
Servo: To SLEEEEEP
Hamlet: Perchance to DREAM?
Servo: The impossible DREAM?
Hamlet: Aye, there's the rub.
Mike: I knew I had some rub left...
. . .
Hamlet: ...When he himself might his quietus make with a bare bodkin?
Crow: Heh, he said "bare bodkin," hehe.
Hamlet: Who would fardels bear...
Mike': Ha, fardels...
. . .
Hamlet: And makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others--
Servo: SUM UP!
Hamlet: --that we know not of?
. . .
Mike: So I'm a chicken for not stabbing myself--that's all you needed to say!
[Having stabbed an intruder behind Gertrude's tapestry, Hamlet discovers it is not the King, but Polonius.]
Hamlet: Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool!
Crow [as Polonius]: Oh, right, it's my fault you killed me.
Hamlet: Forty thousand brothers could not, with all their quantity of love, make up my sum.
Servo [as Hamlet]: Fifty thousand, maybe.
[Hamlet and Laertes prepare to fence.]
Hamlet: Give us the foils.
Servo [as Hamlet]: We shall some potatoes bake.
[King Claudius holds out a cup of poisoned wine to Hamlet.]
Claudius: Here, to thy health.
Servo [as Claudius]: ...coming to a sudden end.
[Claudius can only stare helplessly as Gertrude drinks the poison meant for Hamlet.]
Mike [as Claudius]: Oh. Great. Well, not looking forward to the Danish singles scene again...
[As the film ends, a card is shown reading "You have seen Hamlet by William Shakespeare."]
Mike: Hamlet will be back in "Thunderball".

Video Release

Mst3khamletDVD

MST3K DVD Cover (2011 single version)

  • Commerically released on DVD by Rhino Entertainment in November 2003 as part of The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Volume 4, a 4-DVD set with Space Mutiny, Girl in Gold Boots, and Overdrawn at the Memory Bank, the DVD was later pulled in January 2010 due to Rhino no longer obtaining the rights to distribute MST3K. The DVD features an intro by Mike Nelson, specifically taped for the release. Nelson acknowledges the slow pacing and general dreariness, and the amount of time need to cut out of the film (hence the angry Fortinbras).
  • The episode was released as a DVD single in 2011 on the MST3K website.
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