History YMMV / Ophelia

* CrossoverShip: A fairly popular one is shipping Ophelia with [[Franchise/StarWars Kylo Ren]], probably because Rey (also played by Daisy Ridley) has a lot of FoeRomanceSubtext with Kylo, and Kylo himself is bogged down with ParentalIssues, not unlike Hamlet.[[note]] Fan videos often include footage of Creator/AdamDriver as Toby from ''Film/TheManWhoKilledDonQuixote'' and/or Jacques le Gris from ''Film/TheLastDuel'', because he's dressed up in old-timey clothes and so it fits in with the footage from ''Ophelia''.[[/note]]

* CrossoverShip: A fairly popular one is shipping Ophelia with [[Franchise/StarWars Kylo Ren]], probably because Rey (also played by Daisy Ridley) has a lot of FoeRomanceSubtext with Kylo, and Kylo himself is a conflicted ByronicHero with ParentalIssues, not unlike Hamlet.[[note]] Fan videos often include footage of Creator/AdamDriver as Toby from ''Film/TheManWhoKilledDonQuixote'' and/or Jacques le Gris from ''Film/TheLastDuel'', because he's dressed up in old-timey clothes and so it fits in with the footage from ''Ophelia''.[[/note]]

** In this film Creator/CliveOwen plays the BigBad Claudius, while Creator/DevonTerrell plays the heroic Horatio. Owen had previously played Myth/KingArthur in the [[Film/KingArthur2004 2004 film]], while Terrell later went on to play the same role in ''Series/{{Cursed}}''. Both have also played American presidents; Terrell played a young UsefulNotes/BarackObama in ''Barry'', while Owen later portrayed UsefulNotes/BillClinton in ''Series/{{Impeachment}}''.

* JerkassWoobie: Gertrude. She's a self-absorbed hypocrite and the way she treats Ophelia is contemptible, but it's hard not to feel at least some pity over her marriage problems and self-image issues. She's genuinely distraught when her husband dies and she hastily marries Claudius because she's [[IJustWantToBeLoved desperate to be loved]], unaware he's manipulating her. When she realizes how badly she's messed things up for herself and her loved ones, she is truly remorseful [[spoiler: and ends up [[DrivenToSuicide committing suicide]] after losing everything, including [[OutlivingOnesOffspring her own son]]]].

** In the play's script, Hamlet's duelling skills can come off as a case of SuddenlyAlwaysKnewThat, as it's never previously mentioned until the climax. Here, Hamlet is shown early on to be a skilled swordsman - even besting his uncle - and is frequently depicted carrying a blade (although at the same time, ''Laertes'' being able to use a sword doesn't come up until the duel)

** In the play Hamlet writes intimate love letters to Ophelia, which she's coerced or forced into revealing to her father and Claudius. The film does reference this which the recurring lyrics used in the soundtrack (as mentioned under GeniusBonus, they're taken directly from one of the love letters), but it's a shame we don't actually get to see this play out onscreen here, especially given this retelling places their romance front and centre.

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** Some people who have read/watched ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'' get confused as to why Hamlet doesn't instantly become king upon his father's death and Claudius gets the throne instead. ''Ophelia'' clearly states that Denmark is an ElectiveMonarchy and that Claudius was elected king over Hamlet (probably because he's older, more charismatic and married to the queen, and Hamlet was away at university when his father died). [[TruthInTelevision In real life]], Denmark was an elective monarchy up until the 17th century and ''Hamlet'' was written between 1599 and 1602 (and set in the Middle Ages), so this was probably the original story's in-universe explanation as well (though it's only briefly referenced).
** In the play's script, Hamlet's duelling skills can come off as a case of SuddenlyAlwaysKnewThat, as it's never previously mentioned until the climax. Here, Hamlet is shown early on to be a skilled swordsman - even besting his uncle - and is frequently depicted carrying a blade.

* WTHCostumingDepartment: Most of the film's costumes are [[CostumePorn striking]], but there are a few duds...
** A slight case when [[spoiler: Ophelia]] disguises herself as a servant boy to sneak back into Elsinore Castle. Her disguise [[PaperThinDisguise really just amounts to her putting on men's clothing and cutting her hair short]], making it a bit hard to believe that ''no one'' recognized her at all, especially considering how well-known she is at court due to recent events involving her.
** Clive Owen's wig is ''very'' obvious and detracts a bit from Claudius' menacing nature.

CaptainObviousReveal: [[spoiler:Mechtild being Gertrude's twin sister is played up as a minor plot twist, but it barely comes off as one due to them both being played by Creator/NaomiWatts; even before Mechtild's face is clearly shown in her first scene you can recognize her voice. In the [[FiveSecondForeshadowing previous scene]], Gertrude had also told Ophelia not look Mechtild in the face and had earlier mentioned having a sister, so it's not hard to put two-and-two together (Ophelia herself figures it out the instant she sees Mechtild). The advertizing for the film didn't help, as it [[TrailersAlwaysSpoil didn't even try to hide]] that Watts was playing two separate characters, so even before watching the movie many viewers had already guessed this plot point]]. Luckily, it's revealed quite early in the story and the movie doesn't much dwell on it compared to the less-predictable plot twists.

** Did Gertrude's first husband ever love her? Gertrude implies they weren't always as distant as they've become, tearfully stating she has "become invisible to [him]". Given the customs of the time period and their upper class status, it's probable they had an arranged marriage. It could've become a [[MarriageBeforeRomance genuinely affectionate marriage]] at some point, only for them to drift apart years later, possibly triggered by their son growing up and leaving home. In this case, Hamlet Sr. may still love Gertrude but is preoccupied with ruling and may not realize how this affects her, nor understand how to mend their rift. Conversely, it could be that Hamlet Sr. never felt that close to Gertrude, merely doing his duty as her husband, and after their son had left he felt they no longer had anything in common. Consequently, this changes why he reacts the way he does to Gertrude being overly-close to Claudius. Is it just because her having an affair with his brother would bring shame and embarrassment on them all? Or is he also jealous and hurt by the possibility of his wife's infidelity? He also seems particularly disgusted that it's ''Claudius'' she's taken an interest in, whom he clearly views with distaste. Claudius apparently has a reputation as a womanizer, so Hamlet Sr. may be concerned his brother is just using Gertrude.

* Did Gertrude's first husband ever love her? Gertrude implies they weren't always as distant as they've become, tearfully stating she has "become invisible to [him]". Given the customs of the time period and their upper class status, it's probable they had an arranged marriage. It could've become a [[MarriageBeforeRomance genuinely affectionate marriage]] at some point, only for them to drift apart years later, possibly triggered by their son growing up and leaving home. In this case, Hamlet Sr. may still love Gertrude but is preoccupied with ruling and may not realize how this affects her, nor understand how to mend their rift. Conversely, it could be that Hamlet Sr. never felt that close to Gertrude, merely doing his duty as her husband, and after their son had left he felt they no longer had anything in common. Consequently, this changes why he reacts the way he does to Gertrude being overly-close to Claudius. Is it just because her having an affair with his brother would bring shame and embarrassment on them all? Or is he also jealous and hurt by the possibility of his wife's infidelity? He also seems particularly disgusted that it's ''Claudius'' she's taken an interest in, whom he clearly views with distaste. Claudius apparently has a reputation as a womanizer, so Hamlet Sr. may be concerned his brother is just using Gertrude.

** In this film Creator/CliveOwen plays the BigBad Claudius, while Creator/DevonTerrell plays the heroic Horatio. Owen had previously played Myth/KingArthur in the [[Film/KingArthur 2004 film]], while Terrell later went on to play the same role in ''Series/{{Cursed}}''. Both have also played American presidents; Terrell played a young UsefulNotes/BarackObama in ''Barry'', while Owen later portrayed UsefulNotes/BillClinton in ''Series/{{Impeachment}}''.

* AdaptationDisplacement: While this movie wasn't much of a mainstream hit, it's still better known than the book it was based on; the source material is a somewhat obscure young adult novel that came out over a decade before the movie's release. Many people hadn't heard of the book until the movie was released, nor did some realize it was based on a book at all until the ending credits started to role, and lots of search results for the book emphasize it's "now a major motion picture". Notably, the film got its own Wikipedia page while the novel is only mentioned briefly on author Lisa Klein's page.

* OneTruePairing: Based upon the all the shipping videos on [=Youtube=] dedicated to the pairing and comments posted by viewers, many audience members are fond of this version of Hamlet and Ophelia as a couple; some viewers have even lamented that [[spoiler:unlike Ophelia, Hamlet isn't also SparedByTheAdaptation to live happily ever after with Ophelia and their child]]. It probably helps that this film ''greatly'' tones down Hamlet's {{jerkass}} behaviour towards Ophelia; in the play Hamlet is borderline abusive towards Ophelia and she can come off as a downtrodden LoveMartyr, while here their relationship is far more loving (albeit still flawed) and Ophelia is better at sticking up for herself, thus making the pairing more appealing.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: [[CanonForeigner Mechtild]], a wise and world-weary so-called witch with a DarkAndTroubledPast, who has a complicated history with Gertrude and Claudius, acts as a bit of a mentor-figure to Ophelia (whom she bears many similarities to) and is revealed to be quite important to the plot [[spoiler: as it was she who supplied Claudius with the poison to kill his brother and she helps Ophelia fake her death]]. Unfortunately, she doesn't really get much screentime and her relationships with both Ophelia and particularly Gertrude are underdeveloped (she gets about three scenes with Ophelia and only one scene with Gertrude near the ending). [[spoiler: We don't even find out what happened to her after the fall of the royal family]].

** In the play Hamlet writes intimate love letters to her Ophelia, which she's coerced or forced into revealing to her father and Claudius. The film does reference this which the recurring lyrics used in the soundtrack (as mentioned under GeniusBonus, they're taken directly from one of the love letters), but it's a shame we don't actually get to see this play out onscreen here, especially given this retelling places their romance front and centre.

** Ophelia, as in the original, if not even ''more'' so. Her mother's dead, she gets constant crap from the other ladies-in-waiting because she's of low birth and 'different' and of course, this being medieval Europe, she's frequently subjected to sexism and denied opportunities simply for being a girl. And this is ''before'' the TraumaCongaLine she goes through during the second half of the movie, which primarily depicts the events of ''Hamlet'' and includes her being blamed for Hamlet's erratic behavior, getting shunned by the court, being targeted by Claudius because he suspects she knows the truth about his brother's death and losing just about everyone she loves.

* SugarWiki/AwesomeArt: Even people who didn't much care for the film's story/script have been known to agree it ''looks'' beautiful, almost like a Pre-Raphaelite painting come to life. The creators obviously took a lot of inspiration from this art style (particularly as Ophelia was a popular subject for the Pre-Rephaelites and artists influenced by the movement). Highlights include a CreepyAwesome gothic chapel decorated with skulls and a medieval ball taking place in a hall festooned with ribbons and flowers, where all the characters - from the main cast to the extras - dressed in [[CostumePorn colorful fairytale-esque costumes]].

* NightmareFuel: The film's depiction of the Mousetrap Play is incredibly eerie, with the actors standing behind a lit screen in the darkened great hall, using silhouettes to act out the story. It starts out innocuously enough and several of the courtiers, including Gertrude, are genuinely enjoying themselves, though Hamlet can't take his eyes off Claudius and Ophelia [[ThisIsGonnaSuck clearly knows]] ''[[ThisIsGonnaSuck something]]'' [[ThisIsGonnaSuck is going down]]. As the play begins re-enacting the murder of Hamlet's father, everyone becomes a lot more uneasy, culminating in the actors forming a shadowy skull as the screen turns blood red. Claudius ''flips out'', trashing the set, physically throwing the actors around and ordering they [[DisproportionateRetribution be hanged]]. Hamlet realizes in that moment that Claudius really did murder his dad and declares "vengeance is mine!" in an almost deranged manner, before leaping up and drawing his sword. Only Ophelia screaming for him to stop and throwing herself between them stops Hamlet from running Claudius through there and then.

* CrossoverShip: A fairly popular one is shipping Ophelia with [[Franchise/StarWars Kylo Ren]], probably because Rey (also played by Daisy Ridley) has a lot of FoeRomanceSubtext with Kylo, and Kylo himself is a conflicted ByronicHero with ParentalIssues, not unlike Hamlet.[[note]] Fan videos often include footage of Creator/AdamDriver as Toby from ''Film/TheManWhoKilledDonQuixote'', because he's dressed up in old-timey clothes and so it fits in with the footage from ''Ophelia''.[[/note]]