Not much is known about the personal lives of William Shakespeare, his wife or their three children, only two of whom survived to adulthood. Cinema is littered with various filmmakers’ attempts to fill in the gaps in Shakespeare’s biography with speculation or outright fiction, from successful Oscar bait (1998’s Best Picture-winning Shakespeare in Love) to more forgettable offerings (2018’s Kenneth Branagh-directed All Is True).
The latest entry in the canon of liberty-taking Shakespearean biopics is Hamnet, adapted from Maggie O’Farrell’s award-winning 2020 novel of the same name. With a script co-written by O’Farrell and Chloé Zhao, Hamnet — also directed by Zhao, back from Marvel land after 2021’s largely panned MCU entry Eternals — tells the story of Shakespeare’s domestic life, mostly through the eyes of his wife, and the grief the couple shares after the loss of a child.
The Bard’s partner is referred to as both Anne and Agnes in historical texts, and here she’s Agnes, played by wildly underappreciated Irish actress Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter, Men, Women Talking). Agnes is rumored to be the daughter of a witch of the woods, and she herself is mysterious, beautiful and aloof, with an almost supernatural connection to life’s great mysteries. Wandering the forest, creating poultices and training her beloved falcon, Agnes attracts the attention of local tutor Will Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) — a “pasty-faced scholar,” as her brother refers to him. Both Will and Agnes are from troubled homes, with spirits and personalities too big for the families who often oppress or underestimate them, and they quickly begin a torrid romance. The brooding and impossibly good-looking Will tells Agnes he has “no talent for waiting,” and soon enough, Agnes is pregnant and the couple is wed.
It’s to Zhao’s credit that the film doesn’t much concern itself with hyperrealistic portrayals or period-correct dialogue. The costuming and the sets are certainly as convincing as they need to be — Mescal isn’t wearing an Apple Watch or anything, though he does sport that same hairstyle his characters pretty much always have. No wig and prosthetic nose, à la Branagh’s All Is True. But Hamnet is far more convincing in its emotional commitment than its historical commitment. It’s a film about the hardships of mere existence and the restorative power of domestic life, and it just so happens that the patriarch of this budding family will ultimately become the most famous writer in the history of the written word.
Destiny, of course, eventually comes calling for Will, a tortured artist — possibly a clinically depressed one — who loves his family but longs for the artistic opportunities afforded by London. And then, death visits his young family.
“Mourning Parent” is a role that always gives actors plenty to sink their teeth into, but Buckley’s portrayal of the griefstricken Agnes is among the most breathtaking performances in film this year. Even in wide shots her presence fills the screen, and in closeups she’s transfixing. In Hamnet’s gut-wrenching final moments, Buckley’s face becomes the emotional fulcrum of the entire film. And it’s a face capable of displaying so much emotion — coy, smirking playfulness; bitter rage; agony. So much agony.
Hamnet is no period-piece romp. It isn’t even so much about the historical what-ifs that Zhao and O’Farrell’s script poses and attempts to answer. Really, it’s a simple but affecting character study, thoughtfully rendered but elevated to year’s-best status by devastating performances from its two leads. And the rest? Well. The rest is silence.
