There's a new biopic of Marilyn Monroe out. I forget the name. Anyway, evidently one of the characters in the film is Laurence Olivier (he once did a film with MM!).

The actor playing Lord Olivier in the film is Kenneth Branagh. Knowing the history of KB, it made me laugh out loud. Probably KB did too when he got the part!

Not all of us are film geeks to this level. What is it about Kenneth Branagh that would make it funny that he's playing Laurence Olivier?

Well, for one both, have directed and starred iconic film (and stage) versions of Hamlet

Unless there's something else I'm missing.

KB has been consciously trailing the legend of Olivier all his life, wanting his mantel as the greatest Shakespearean actor ever. He was trained as a Shakespearean actor and his first breakthrough film was his version of Henry V which he starred in and directed. It was a wonderful performance and got Branagh great reviews and noticed worldwide as an actor. Why choose Henry V as his first Shakespeare film?--because Olivier had done exactly the same decades earlier--directing and starring in, and gaining worldwide notice for filming Henry V.

Their subsequent moves to Hollywood, their extraordinary versatility as actors, the marriages to actresses who would share with them the stage and screen, all point to career and life trajectories that are remarkably similar, though almost half a century apart.

It's called "My Week with Marilyn"

Thanks for the title.

Fun facts to untangle:
KB directed the remake of the two-person mystery thriller Sleuth with Jude Law and Michael Caine.
The original movie also starred the young Michael Caine--but in the role that Jude Law played in the remake.
Michael Caine came to stardom in the movie Alfie--which was then remade starring . . . Jude Law.
And finally to bring this full circle, Michael Caine's part in the remake of Sleuth was played in the original film ... by Laurence Olivier.

Mel Gibson's Hamlet was way better.

I liked Gibson as Hamlet. Of course, anyone who's seen Lethal Weapon would expect that he could do a pretty good job of portraying a brooding, suicidal loner. If Prince Hamlet were a 20th century American cop, he'd be Martin Riggs.

Lethal Weapon was another one I really liked. The end fight between Gibson and Busey (or, as I call them, the Loony Two*) was choreographed by Rorion Gracie.

*Not a diagnosis

I'm not a Mel Gibson fan, but I have to agree with you--his Hamlet was very good, and I don't think he ever got enough credit for that one. I think Olivier's Hamlet, as filmed, was excruciatingly boring.

Perhaps one day we'll do a best Hamlet thread--I vote for the stage performance of Nicol Williamson. It was later filmed, but not nearly as good. My favorite filmed Olivier performance, however, was Archie Rice, the failed music hall performer in The Entertainer. He took the part to prove that he was capable of portraying someone who wasn't royalty or upper class; his portrayal of a performer who is emotionally dead inside is absolutely haunting.

The Entertainer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=quUGIMchORc

and Richard III:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPpaHP4PrRY&feature=related

Oh. OK, I get it now. Very clever piece of researching.

BTW

If you're a real Shakespeare buff, this is an abomination. But it was funny!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z9Ismh1elM&feature=related

I'll vote for the Hamlet in The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged. They do it in 5 minutes. Then three. Then one. Then 30 seconds. Then 10 seconds. Very funny show.