“To be, or not to be, that is the question”, and this romantic Shakespearean film by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Chloé Zhao was definitely meant to be. Based on the 2020 Maggie O’Farrell novel of the same name, Hamnet follows the reimagining of William Shakespeare’s marriage with his wife, Agnes, as they navigate life after the tragic loss of their young son, Hamnet – thus inspiring the classic tale we’ve come to know and love, Hamlet. Produced (and loved) by Steven Spielberg, Hamnet features notable actors such as Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Emily Watson, and Joe Alwyn. Themes include: loss, grief, love, poetry, and acceptance. Now showing in theatres worldwide.

A woman and her hawk, a man and his words. An unspoken, almost cosmic tethering already exists between the two. The man watches on in admiration of this ‘Forest Witch’ with her hawk; he watches her from windows with curiosity and awe while teaching Latin to local boys. Who is this beautiful, independent woman who seemingly resides within the forest itself? It isn’t long before the man, William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal), confronts the woman, Agnes (Jessie Buckley), to express his fascination and adoration for her. Initially sceptical of his advances, Agnes quickly warms to William once she recognises that they have a deep, special bond.

Agnes falls pregnant almost immediately upon accepting her love for William, much to the dismay of William Shakespeare’s family. It is made obvious early on in Hamnet that Shakespeare’s father, John (David Wilmot), is a condescending and abusive person. Particularly when it comes to his “failed” artist son, William. Shakespeare’s mother, Mary (Maggie Watson), is a tough woman made colder through harsh living conditions.

She has lost several children to the plague over the years, and she comes across as a shell of a person when near her husband, John. Mary is visibly distraught by the news of Agnes being pregnant, and she condemns the baby from being born. Agnes and William both seem amused by this dramatic show of unacceptance from William’s family – they will be having their child no matter what, and they will be handfasted before the baby is born.

During this sequence of events, we are briefly introduced to Agnes’s brother, Bartholomew Hathaway (Joe Alwyn). Bartholomew is a man of few, yet supportive words. He’s the only real family left in Agnes’s life outside of the family she’s creating with William. We learn during the movie that Agnes comes from a family of mystical women. They have a great understanding of and pay respect to nature, and they don’t feel comfortable residing in the domesticated lives of others. This is made particularly obvious when we see Agnes safely give birth alone in the woods to her first child.

After the arrival of their first-born child, Susanna (later played by Bodhi Rae Breathnach), William Shakespeare is shown struggling to adapt to his new life as a father. He’s drinking heavily, he’s lashing out at Agnes, and he can’t focus on creating quality art. Out of fear of permanently losing the man she fell in love with, Agnes comes up with an idea to send William to London, the epicentre of art and culture.

She recognises that being a parent has greatly stifled William’s creativity, and she deeply respects his dream of being one of the great voices of humankind. Although Agnes is already pregnant with their second child, she’d rather be alone temporarily than spend a lifetime without William in her life. William seems excited to work in London, and he promises to find a nice home for his family while there.

With William still working in London, Agnes gives birth again. This time around, it’s very different from the first birth. While trying to leave the house to give birth in the forest, Agnes gets apprehended by Mary Shakespeare, William’s mother. She refuses to let Agnes give birth in the forest. Although stressed and panicked, Agnes gives birth to a healthy baby boy, Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe). But what’s this? Is another baby on the way?

Nobody was expecting Agnes to have twins. After some struggle, Agnes gives birth to a seemingly stillborn daughter, Judith (later played by Olivia Lynes), who thankfully comes to life not long after being delivered. During this harrowing birth scene, Agnes makes a promise to her daughter. She promises to never let harm come her way. This protective sentiment is unfortunate foreshadowing for tragedies yet to come.

During this time in England, many young children were passing away from an incurable, plague-like sickness. Judith Spakespeare was known for becoming ill often, and these bouts of illness fuelled Agnes’s need to protect Judith from death.

On one particularly rough night for Judith, her twin brother Hamnet stays by her side and promises to give her his life. The next morning, Judith awakens to find Hamnet resting next to her, riddled with the same illness she has. After spending the morning in complete agony, Hamnet passes violently in his mother’s arms.

Agnes lets out an agonising and gut-wrenching screech of loss. At this point, I can hear many people in the theatre crying. Hearing sniffling was a common theme for the remainder of the movie. Jacobi Jupe and the writers did an incredible job at making us love his character before his tragic passing. We could immediately see that this exuberant boy was full of life, empathy, and theatrical tendencies. His biggest dream in life was to work on stage with his father one day, dazzling and wowing audiences.

It’s amusing, the number of people who got confused when I told them I was going to see a film called ‘Hamnet’. If it helps some, “The names ‘Hamnet’ and ‘Hamlet’ were interchangeable in the 16th and 17th centuries”.

The same day that Hamnet passes, William Shakespeare arrives home late. He’s expecting to find his deceased daughter, Judith. The last thing he expects is to see his only son lying dead on a table. This revelation is such a shock to both William and Agnes that they cease to understand how to communicate with one another. Agnes is consumed by resentment toward William and herself; resentment for William always being in London, and resentment for focusing more on Judith and not enough on Hamnet.

William says he needs to return to London; he reminds Agnes that the rest of the world doesn’t stop moving, even if theirs has. He leaves his family behind to mourn while trying to cope with the fact that he couldn’t save his son.

One night while overlooking the river in London, William Shakespeare seriously contemplates suicide. It’s during this sombre moment that he’s struck with poetic gold; he starts to recite out loud, “To be, or not to be, that is the question”.

Agnes receives news of William changing his play from a comedy to a tragedy, and naming it Hamlet after their recently deceased son. This confuses Agnes and greatly upsets her, so she travels to London with her brother, Bartholomew, to find and confront William. Once in London, Agnes and Bartholomew head to the venue where Hamlet is being played. Although she’s initially angry and offended by the play, it doesn’t take Agnes long to see why William wrote it. He didn’t write it for recognition or respect. He wrote it as a farewell to his first and only son, Hamnet. ‘Tragedie of Hamlet’ exists as a means for William Shakespeare to properly grieve his son, because he wasn’t there to say goodbye when Hamnet died. Agnes is reminded that her husband, William Shakespeare, needs art to survive.

Visually, this film is a treat for the eyes. Each shot feels intentional, and the juxtaposition between the lush, verdant forests and the blue, rain-filled days was greatly appreciated by me. It was very comforting to hear rain for a large portion of the movie. I enjoyed the costuming of the characters; it felt accurate for the time and looked believable. When we see scenes with William Shakespeare residing in London, they are portrayed as bleak, dark, and grimy, as if to remind us of what he’s left behind back home.

Hamnet showcases a moving portrait of a family brutalised by grief, while humanising the life of one of the greatest literary figures of all time. The film does a great job at portraying how pain and grief can shape art. I can easily understand why Hamnet is in talks of receiving awards. It’s filmed beautifully, written impeccably, and acted fiercely.

I was particularly a fan of the acting that came from Jessie Buckley and Jacobi Jupe as Agnes Shakespeare and Hamnet Shakespeare. I also found it amazing that Jacobi Jupe and his real-life brother, Noah Jupe, were actually cast as both the younger and older versions of Hamnet, with Noah playing the titular Hamlet in Shakespeare’s play. The brothers both did a great job with their characters. An incredible adaptation from an incredible novel. Well done, Chloé Zhao.

Written by: Nattia Jones