Most critics welcome Branagh’s full-text Hamlet as a clear, engaging adaptation whose four-hour length is less daunting in practice than it sounds. Praise centres on the performances, elaborate production design and the confidence with which the film makes Shakespeare’s language accessible without cutting it down. The reviews also value its outward-looking approach, giving the political circumstances space alongside Hamlet’s private turmoil, with Branagh’s robust performance setting the tone.
The reservations concern how much embellishment the text needs, and the spread runs from wholehearted enthusiasm to a mixed assessment. Variety admires the staging and cast but finds some flourishes literal-minded. The Independent is the clearest dissenter, arguing that the nineteenth-century setting, elaborate designs and cameos distract, while the camerawork and exaggerated action undermine the production. Even that review finds value in Branagh’s trust in the complete text.