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Ophelia

Play trailer 2:02 Poster for Ophelia PG-13 Released Jun 28, 2019 1h 54m Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
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58% Tomatometer 125 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
As a rebellious and motherless child, Ophelia is taken into Elsinore Castle by Queen Gerturde as one of her most trusted ladies-in-waiting. Soon enough, Ophelia captures the affections of the young Prince Hamlet. A passionate romance secretly kindles between the two as the kingdom is on the brink of war amidst its own political intrigue and betrayal. When Hamlet's father is murdered and the prince begins to unravel, Ophelia sharply navigates the rules of power in Denmark.

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Ophelia

Ophelia

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Critics Consensus

Flawed yet intriguing, Ophelia uses Hamlet as the starting point for a noble attempt to offer a misunderstood character long-overdue agency.

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Critics Reviews

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Kevin Maher Times (UK) Oh dear. Oh no. Ophelia. A curious, if ambitious, central conceit is here battered into inconsequentiality by a scattershot screenplay that flees so far from the original Shakespeare that it leaves little purpose, or relevant material, in the retelling. Rated: 2/5 Nov 25, 2019 Full Review Ian Freer Empire Magazine An interesting, well played and well made attempt to reframe Shakespeare's most famous play through a feminist lens, Ophelia ultimately doesn't have the boldness to deliver on its resonant idea. Rated: 3/5 Nov 25, 2019 Full Review Maria Nae Little White Lies A confused melodrama more fitting for a retelling of Twilight in the woods than of the greatest play ever written. Rated: 2/5 Nov 22, 2019 Full Review Cate Marquis AWFJ.org Not everything in the film works, but Daisy Ridley is terrific, sets and costumes are beautiful, plus just the idea of the mysterious Ophelia telling her own version is irresistible. Oct 13, 2021 Full Review Susan Wloszczyna AWFJ.org ...this overtly serious enterprise seems to be pandering to the Twilight generation with slow-motion sword fights while purloining bits from Macbeth... Oct 13, 2021 Full Review Leslie Combemale AWFJ.org This film argues women being relegated to secondary character, both in life and in film, is also no longer enough. Oct 13, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (26) audience reviews
Mallory P Forget the pedants, this was a beautiful movie that excelled at reinventing a side of the coin we never saw in Shakespeare’s play. Gorgeous tonality, complexity of character, and a genius dichotomy of man’s luxury of madness as an act of deceit and vengeance, but a woman’s madness as an act of survival. Incredible soundtrack, moving writing, refreshing use of economy in direction, and overall a lovely surprise to watch. Seriously, ignore the pedants. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/06/24 Full Review Katrina G This movie is one of the worst I’ve ever seen. The storyline was all over the place and half of the storyline didn’t even make sense. The character’s personalities changed so fast, it gave me whiplash. I love Renaissance movies and 18th century movies, but I cannot recommend this one to anyone. It was absolutely awful. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 07/30/24 Full Review Patrick F They had a ton of ground to cover in only 2 hours. The result was an incredibly fast pace film that blew through character moments and plot far too quickly. Would have been better has a miniseries than a movie. That being said, it was a well acted and intriguing drama. Daisy Ridley was fantastic. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 05/13/24 Full Review JM J A retelling of a classic tale, or any literary piece for that matter, is expected to be with relative flaws and by any means does not necessarily have to rival the source material—but rather compliment it by taking as much inspiration as creatively possible. "Ofelia" started off with a premise that's too familiar to be considered extraordinary. Yet with all the films that came before it having the same overused tropes and plotlines, Ofelia manages to unfold from cliché to intriguing, gradually revealing itself as a massive puzzle with missing pieces, and effectively using this facade as a hook to keep you seated and wish for more clues to unravel right before your eyes. But you know the answers are always somewhere in the middle or at the end, and so you wait, albeit impatiently. Because by then, the narrative has developed into an unfamiliar territory. And you crave for more even if doing so means reaching a cul-de-sac. Only a very few, well-crafted films have that "hold", that "charisma". For a film to take off from a cliché base and skyrocket into uncharted heights, then fall back unscathed—is a rarity. It requires just enough mystery and drama to make a very potent concoction—one that stings but not quite kill. Ofelia is one effective genius at that. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/01/24 Full Review Sebastian v Just great, to add a new view and twist on a traditional story. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/24 Full Review Steve D Interesting idea terrible changes. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 11/06/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Ophelia

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Movie Info

Synopsis As a rebellious and motherless child, Ophelia is taken into Elsinore Castle by Queen Gerturde as one of her most trusted ladies-in-waiting. Soon enough, Ophelia captures the affections of the young Prince Hamlet. A passionate romance secretly kindles between the two as the kingdom is on the brink of war amidst its own political intrigue and betrayal. When Hamlet's father is murdered and the prince begins to unravel, Ophelia sharply navigates the rules of power in Denmark.
Director
Claire McCarthy
Producer
Daniel Bobker, Sarah Curtis, Paul Hanson, Ehren Kruger, Bert Marcus
Screenwriter
Semi Chellas, Lisa M. Klein
Distributor
IFC Films
Production Co
Forthcoming Films, Covert Media, Bobker / Kruger Films, Bert Marcus Productions
Rating
PG-13 (Some Sensuality|Bloody Images|A Scene of Violence|Thematic Elements)
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 28, 2019, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 4, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA)
$50.7K
Runtime
1h 54m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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