There are a lot of lessons that Elvira Lind’s “King Hamlet” seems to want viewers to learn: The timeless language of Shakespeare remains a source of wisdom for those going through hard times. Life is a cycle, and the sting of watching loved ones pass away can be soothed by the joy of welcoming new babies into the world. And the opinions of critics are far less valuable than the people who pour their own blood, sweat, and tears into making art together. But even if it sets its sights on loftier ideas, there’s one point that it drives home far more than any other: even when he’s Going Through It, Oscar Isaac is incredibly handsome and charming.
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All mortals have flaws, so I find it highly unlikely that Isaac is the first truly perfect human ever to walk the Earth. But after watching this breezy documentary directed by his wife, which documents the actor as he plays Hamlet in a New York production during a year when he lost his mother and became a father, I don’t think the possibility can be ruled out. That’s to be expected from a film whose production was such a family affair, and “King Hamlet” is better understood as a feel-good collection of memories that Lind and Isaac deemed worthy of preservation than a true behind-the-scenes look at the Broadway creative process. But what the documentary might lack in rigor, it makes up for with charm and a well-intentioned message about the healing power of art.
2017 was a big year for Oscar Isaac. The Juilliard graduate and lifelong Shakespeare geek was finally getting the chance to play his dream role in a Public Theater production directed by Tony winner Sam Gold, and he was relishing every step of the creative process. But in between debates about how changing the spelling of a single word can change the meaning of an entire line, he had a lot of personal problems to juggle. His mother was dying after a long hospital stretch, and Lind was pregnant with their first child. He had spent months at his mother’s side reading passages from “Hamlet,” as a means of both creative preparation and mutual grief processing, and was now returning to New York to dive head-first into rehearsals before a grueling summer of two-shows-a-day with a new baby at home. All while to managing his mother’s affairs, consoling his grieving extended family, and occasionally flying to London for “Star Wars” reshoots.
Even while overwhelmed with the burdens of life, Isaac’s enthusiasm for Shakespeare is infectious, and there’s joy to be found in watching him process his own pain through the act of creation. He has his share of painful moments when the pressure briefly becomes too much, but watching him bond with his newborn son while running lines and having creative discussions with Gold over speakerphone is a reminder of one of life’s most bittersweet lessons: it goes on. We never forget the people we love, but darkness is eventually supposed to fade enough for us to make new happy memories. Watching Isaac and Lind navigate it all leaves you with a cosmic sense of satisfaction that things are working the way they’re supposed to.
Lind is the only person who could have possibly directed “King Hamlet,” as the film’s greatest strength is its sense of intimacy. Nobody else’s camera would have ever been welcomed into their home so frequently during the first month’s of their son’s life, and Isaac’s genuine relaxation around her gives the film a fly-on-the-wall quality that feels more like home movies (with better cinematography!) than typical documentary footage. Her pacing is perfectly elegant, allowing Isaac’s grief and joy to unfold in equal measure from the beginning of the rehearsal process through the end of the production, allocating just enough time to the darker moments without dragging the mood down for too long.
If “King Hamlet” has any legacy as a film, it will likely be as a comfort watch for Isaac’s superfans and Shakespeare devotees. It won’t be joining the canon of great nonfiction cinema, but I have no doubt that many viewers will find that watching a shirtless Oscar Isaac play with an adorable baby while quoting Shakespeare is a great use of 89 minutes.
Grade: B
“King Hamlet” premiered at the 2025 Telluride Film Festival. It is currently seeking U.S. distribution.
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