Hamlet

Asta Nielsen plays the Dane, in her own inimitable way.

  • Director

    Sven Gade

  • With

    Asta Nielsen, Lilly Jacobson, Heinz Stieda

  • Germany 1921. 110min

  • Digital

  • English subtitles with live piano accompaniment by Cyrus Gabrysch

If there’s no greater dramatic role than Hamlet, then this Danish star was bound to follow the lead of Sarah Bernhardt and play Shakespeare’s most famous hero. In this flexible-minded adaptation, the prince is truly a woman in disguise. Nielsen’s androgyny and emotional range come to the fore in a Shakespeare film that challenges both gender roles and patriarchal authority.

Digitisation of the print restored in 2006 by the DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum.

The screening on Saturday 5 March will be introduced by Prof Judith Buchanan.