Ophelia / Characters

The characters of Ophelia. Beware of potential unmarked spoilers; all spoilers exclusive to Hamlet are unmarked.

For the characters as they're portrayed in Hamlet, see here.

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Ophelia

Portrayed by: Daisy Ridley; Mia Quiney (young)

"These games you play, my lord, nothing is ever as it seems."

The heroine of the story. She's a young lady-in-waiting to the Queen of Denmark, who becomes entangled in the intrigue surrounding the royal family.

Adaptational Angst Upgrade: As if Ophelia didn't have enough things going wrong for her already, in this film she gets constantly bullied by the other ladies-in-waiting for being a lowborn 'weirdo', people are a lot more hostile about her being the supposed cause of Hamlet's madness (Claudius in particular starts to suspect she knows he murdered his brother and is turning Hamlet against him and Gertrude) and she is forcibly betrothed to a sleazy, predatory misogynist who tries to force himself on her to remove her as a threat. Unlike the play, she also learns here of Claudius' plot to have Hamlet killed en-route to England and believes her beloved is dead before they ever had a chance to reconcile. It's a bit of an unusual example, though, given both this trope and Adaptational Angst Downgrade apply to her; she has even more struggles and serious problems here than she does in Hamlet, but Ophelia is also portrayed as more resilient and rather than succumbing to despair and dying by probable suicide as she does in the play, she instead holds onto hope in spite of her suffering and gets to live a long, happy life with her child.
Adaptational Backstory Change: Overlapping with Adaptation Expansion, as most of it doesn't contradict the original too much. In Hamlet, Ophelia is just one of Gertrude's ladies-in-waiting and presumably nobility. Here, it's specified that Ophelia isn't noble by birth and that Gertrude made her one of her ladies after taking a liking to her (and learning she had no mother), which results in the other ladies regarding her as an outsider. The fact she's technically a commoner is also significant in that it makes her even more 'unsuitable' as Hamlet's potential bride. Furthermore, it's never mentioned in Hamlet what happened to Ophelia's mother; here, it's stated that she died many years ago.
Adaptational Badass: Ophelia is depicted here as being a lot more assertive and proactive; near the climax she even knocks a bully to the floor and threatens her, fights off a would-be rapist, outruns the castle guards and nearly single-handedly comes up with an elaborate plan to fake her death and flee the court.
Adaptational Intelligence: Not to say that Ophelia is stupid in Hamlet, but here there's a lot more emphasis placed on her bookishness and intellect. She can about match Hamlet in wits and also figures out on her own that Claudius murdered the previous king, as well as faking both her madness and her own death as part of a gambit to escape Elsinore. In the source material Ophelia at times comes across as more perceptive than people give her credit for; this film takes that idea and runs with it.
Adaptation Personality Change: Downplayed. We don't really get to know much about Ophelia in the play, so the film attempts to flesh out her character. Notably, she comes across as far less submissive and less emotionally/psychologically frail; she's less of a tragic, too good for this sinful earth-type, and is more of a misunderstood Plucky Girl.
Affectionate Nickname: Hamlet sometimes calls her a "wondrous fish" or "little fish", as he first encounters her (as a young adult) swimming in the river when he goes fishing. On one occasion he also calls her "nymph" because of her close association with water and nature (as well as his own attraction to her).
All of the Other Reindeer: She is bullied and looked down upon by the other ladies-in-waiting because she's not nobleborn. Gertrude empathizes with her as she was picked on at the convent where she was raised, though she at least had her sister to look out for her.
Arranged Marriage: Claudius attempts to force Ophelia to marry Edmund so as to prevent her and Hamlet from interfering in his plans. However, Ophelia's ensuing Sanity Slippage – which is quite deliberate on her part – throws a wrench in this. Not to mention she's actually already married to Hamlet.
Ascended Extra: In the original play, Ophelia doesn't actually appear that much (she's only in five scenes and has 58 lines, though she still manages to make quite an impact on both the story and the audience). Here, she's firmly The Protagonist, which is actually the whole point of the movie.
Bad Liar: She repeatedly does a poor job of lying to or misleading other people, especially when directly confronted. She becomes flustered and awkward, and either tells easily-disproven Blatant Lies (with her body language and tone of voice giving her away) or quickly throws in the towel. It's indicated to be a side-effect of her tendency to speak her mind and not hide herself; Hamlet says he admires Ophelia's honesty considering he's surrounded by a whole court of deceivers, although it causes huge problems when Claudius catches her in lies. She is able to convince almost everyone she's gone insane, including a lot of improvisation, although interestingly, besides acting in a deranged manner, everything she says is the truth in one way or another.
Bathing Beauty: Ophelia is shown to have a love of swimming in the river, which is ironic considering her tragic drowning. Hamlet and Horatio happen upon her while she's swimming and Hamlet is instantly smitten with her. Ophelia and Hamlet later bring up the myth of Artemis and Acteon, with Hamlet subtly comparing her to the goddess.
Bookworm: Ophelia loves to read; as a child she tried to follow her brother to his reading lessons and she volunteers to read for the queen when she says her eyes are too tired. It's implied that she's also been sneaking into the library over the years to read the books despite this being off-limits to girls.
Boyish Short Hair: She gets her long hair cut short near the end to pass as a man.
Break the Cutie: Poor Ophelia. She's a kind and free-spirited girl who just wants to be able to learn like the boys and live happily ever after with her prince. She ends up going through absolute hell, to the point of losing her mind. Luckily for her, in this version it doesn't become Kill the Cutie and she starts getting better.
Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: She's the compassionate Gentle Girl to Hamlet's Brooding Boy, acting as a shoulder to cry on, giving him advice and comfort, and trying to talk him out of his crazier ideas.
Buried Alive: She is buried alive after she apparently drowns; she was actually paralyzed by snake venom that only made her appear dead. She'd cryptically pre-warned Horatio of what she planned to do and luckily he was smart enough to figure it out, digging her up hours after the funeral before she suffocates.
Caring Gardener: She has a fascination with plants. She's kept potted plants on her bedroom windowsill since she was a child (her collection has grown substantially over the years), weaves flowers into her hair and demonstrates knowledge on plants and their properties and/or symbology, such as correctly identifying a flower as poisonous belladonna and her distribution of flowers and herbs based on what they symbolise. Her interest in gardening and nature helps underline her as nurturing and kind-hearted.
Chekhov's Skill: Early on, Ophelia is shown to be a decent swimmer. It serves as foreshadowing that she doesn't actually drown, either accidentally or deliberately.
Composite Character:
- Ophelia is given a few elements of other Shakespeare heroines such as Juliet (has a secret marriage, nearly gets married off to another guy against her will, fakes her death to avoid said marriage and to try and reunite with her husband) and, to a much lesser extent, Portia (disguises herself as a bloke to try and save her love interest).^note
- When Ophelia is disguised as a servant boy and Claudius asks her name, she states it's Osric; in Hamlet Osric is a courtier who shows up in Act 4 but is apparently Adapted Out here.
The Confidant: To Gertrude (at first), Hamlet and Mechtild, all of whom end up confiding in her about their troubles.
Crucified Hero Shot: The first scene depicts Ophelia floating in a river with her arms outstretched, before she slowly sinks beneath the surface.
Damsel out of Distress: When her fiance forces himself on her, Ophelia rescues herself by kneeing him in the groin, then hitting him on the head with a torch. She then proceeds to feign madness and pretend to drown herself to free herself from Claudius, before travelling alone over miles of countryside to find refuge in a convent.
The Dog Bites Back: Ophelia spends much of the film being taunted and belittled by Cristiana the most out of all the ladies. She never retaliates...until Cristiana mockingly informs her that Hamlet is (supposedly) dead, knowing that Ophelia loves him. Ophelia responds by tackling her to the floor and threatening to strangle her unless she tells her everything she knows.
Driven to Suicide: The opening scene depicts the famous image of Ophelia drowned in the river, with the rest of the film explaining how she got to this point. However, it's later revealed that in this version Ophelia only pretended to drown herself as part of a plan to escape Claudius's clutches and reunite with Hamlet.
Early Personality Signs: Combined with Establishing Character Moment as it's the first time we're properly introduced to her as a character: young Ophelia tries to follow Laertes to his lessons only for the door to be literally shut in her face, sneaks into a royal banquet despite Laertes' warnings, quickly realizes that Claudius is publicly insulting Hamlet under the veneer of jokes, then reveals herself before things escalate by loudly voicing her own opinion. She's also initially resistant to the ladies trying to give her a makeover, before silently enduring it. All of this tells us quite a lot about the woman she'll become: she's curious, clever, occasionally impulsive and eager to learn, chafing at the restrictions placed on her because of her sex and social position yet not broken by it; she's also not afraid to speak her own mind or stand up for others, she sees Claudius for what he really is beneath the outward charm and she has Hamlet's back.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Closer to Earn Your Bittersweet Ending, but still, Ophelia gets away from court just as the shit hits the fan, survives and lives a happy life with her daughter (who may possibly be Hamlet's daughter too).
Earthy Barefoot Character: In an early scene where Ophelia is practicing dancing with the ladies-in-waiting, there's a quick shot showing that she's barefoot beneath her dress, setting her apart from the others and emphasizing her closeness to nature and free-spirited personality.
Elemental Motifs: She's heavily associated with the element of water. She enjoys swimming, frequently wears the color blue, is nicknamed "little fish" by Hamlet and chooses drowning as a method of suicide although she actually fakes her death in this version to escape Claudius, so in this case immersing herself in water helps save her life. She's also characterized as level-headed, adaptable, and possessing a quiet strength and determination.
Ethereal White Dress: She spends a lot of the third act clad in a flowing white gown with her long hair hanging loose, evoking one of the most the iconic images of the character.
Expository Hairstyle Change: The final scene depicts her with waist-length hair again, she having previously had cut it short, indicating several years have passed since then.
Fainting: Near the ending, she collapses from exhaustion as she walks into a convent, with a nun rushing forward to catch her and help her inside. She'd been travelling for days, possibly weeks, and recovering from the effects of snake venom, on top of going through the emotional wringer, so it's unsurprising she needs a break once she's safe. Plus, she may be in the early stages of pregnancy.
Faking the Dead: In this version of the story, it turns out Ophelia fakes her drowning using the same snake venom as Mechtild, a la Romeo and Juliet. She's able to tip off Horatio about what she intends to do and he digs her up after the funeral. She then leaves the court to begin a new life, trying and failing to persuade Hamlet to come with her.
Flower Motif: Since childhood, Ophelia is shown to have a love for flowers, often gathering them to put on her windowsill and wearing them in her hair rather than jewels (which her father can't afford). And of course there's the iconic scene where she dances around the castle hall, handing out flowers with specific symbolic meanings to Gertrude and Claudius.
Geeky Turn-On: She and Hamlet are both attracted to each other's wit and intellect.
Guile Heroine: Especially in the climax, where she convincingly feigns madness as part of a scheme to fake her own death and inform Gertrude that her husband is not as innocent as she believes.
Happily Married: She is briefly very happily married to Hamlet, but sadly circumstances see them torn apart.
Her Heart Will Go On: Ophelia in this version outlives Hamlet and though she is grieved by the loss of him, she is resolved to keep living a fulfilling life and not give in to despair and vengeance.
Heroic BSoD: Ophelia goes into one when she believes Hamlet is dead, her father is dead, her brother is far away and she's being forced by Claudius to marry some jerk to get her out of the way, to the point of apparent Sanity Slippage. Then Horatio reveals Hamlet is still alive, prompting her to hatch a plan to escape and reunite with him.
Humble Goal: She has little interest in the power struggles of the court unless she or her loved ones are potentially caught in the crossfire. Her interest in Hamlet is also not because he's a prince and the potential heir to the throne, but is instead based upon genuine love for him as a person. When Hamlet is passed over as king and suggests they start a new life elsewhere together she's enthusiastic, wanting only to live a peaceful life with someone who loves her and where she's free to be herself. She gets her wish in the end, though sadly without Hamlet and most of her other family members.
Important Haircut: After she fakes her death, she has Gertrude cut her long hair short to disguise herself as a boy; it also marks the point where she leaves behind her life at Elsinore forever.
The Ingenue: While she's mostly a straight example of this trope in Hamlet, here Ophelia subverts this. She's polite and kindhearted, but has a rebellious streak bubbling beneath the surface and is a lot more worldly than many people assume. She's also clearly interested in sex but is firm about avoiding being used sexually by men; she only has sex with Hamlet after they're married, though it's indicated to be less a case of 'good girls don't have sex out of wedlock' and more because she wanted to be certain he truly loved her. Mechtild lampshades this, along with the potential dangers of people seeing her as anything other than pure and innocent:
"Do you pretend you have a broken heart? That you are innocent and wounded? But you cannot hide your true self under ladies' clothes. You are wild and full of desire. They will strip you. They will judge you and they will find you wanting death. They will cast you to the fire."
In the Hood: Ophelia wears a red cloak with a hood whenever she needs to do something sneaky, such as slipping out for a swim in the river or getting the queen's tonic from the local witch...She later dons a black hooded cloak to escape from Elsinore in the climax.
Like a Daughter to Me: Gertrude views Ophelia as something of a surrogate daughter; she took her in and raised her to be a lady after learning her mother died, and tends to favor her above the other ladies (at least at first).
Long Hair Is Feminine: An obvious sign of Ophelia changing from a tomboy as a little girl to more conventionally feminine in adulthood is her hair growing long. Later, she cuts it short to serve the opposite purpose (passing as a man).
Love Cannot Overcome: In the end, this is what separates Hamlet and Ophelia. Though they make it clear they love each other, Hamlet insists on carrying out his vengeance against Claudius even if it ends in his death, while Ophelia is unwilling to stay and doom herself along with everyone else and so leaves to keep on living.
Madness Makeover: Following her Sanity Slippage, the previously well-groomed and brightly-dressed Ophelia spends her time wandering around in a shift, with her hair hanging loose and messy, a pale face and dark under-eyes. Although she does stop caring about her appearance from grief and stress, it's also likely she intentionally plays it up as part of her Obfuscating Insanity.
Marry for Love: She hopes for this rather than an Arranged Marriage to a stranger or someone she dislikes. She secretly marries Hamlet for love, even though she's considered too lowborn for him.
Missing Mom: Ophelia's mother died when she was very young. This is part of the reason Gertrude takes her on as one of her ladies, as Polonius admits he's clueless as to how to raise a girl.
Mistaken for Insane: She is believed to be insane after she physically attacks another lady-in-waiting (who had been a complete bitch to her throughout the story and pushed her to her limit) and goes into a Heroic BSoD; while Ophelia is in a state of grief and extreme distress after going through a Trauma Conga Line, she's not completely divorced from reality like everyone thinks. She later intentionally plays up her supposed insanity to escape.
Mistaken for Undead: When Gertrude comes to see Mechtild at her hovel and instead finds Ophelia - who she thought she had seen die only hours ago - she is horrified and believes her to be a ghost come back to haunt her, begging her forgiveness. In fairness, Ophelia faked her death rather convincingly and looks rather like a Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl at the time. It's not until Ophelia tells her to take her hand that Gertrude realizes she's actually there in the flesh.
Modesty Bedsheet: She wakes up like this after spending the night with Hamlet.
Morality Chain: She's able to dissuade Hamlet from doing some rash and morally questionable things, such as threatening some courtiers at swordpoint for sexually harassing her, or cutting down his uncle (who's the king) before the whole court. After learning of her supposed death, Hamlet agrees to go ahead with dueling Laertes to get a shot at killing Claudius, even though it will likely end in his death, apparently feeling he has nothing else left but his vengeance.
Ms. Fanservice: A downplayed example. Ophelia's shown bathing in the river multiple times, with her body wetly outlined afterward beneath her shift. Once when Hamlet's watching, she gets out slowly for his benefit, but is still fairly shy about it. Later during their wedding night she is shown topless from behind before they have sex.
My Own Private "I Do": She and Hamlet secretly get married in a private ceremony presided over by a country priest. They never formally get around to telling anyone before Hamlet becomes fixated on his revenge plot, although Claudius figures it out due to their closeness and noticing that Ophelia wears Hamlet's ring around her neck, and after her father is killed Ophelia mentions it to Cristiana because she just doesn't give a damn anymore.
Nature Lover: Ophelia loves being out in the countryside, gathering flowers, wandering the gardens and woods, and swimming in the river.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Ophelia stops Hamlet from striking down Claudius after the Mousetrap Play (if only to protect Hamlet from the repercussions, more so than Claudius). Gertrude then accuses her of intentionally turning Hamlet against them, slaps her face and orders her to stay away from them.
"Not So Different" Remark: She attempts this with Gertrude after the queen confronts her about her romance with Hamlet; Ophelia states that Gertrude is "first among those that might understand", given Gertrude's own illicit and controversial romance with Claudius. Gertrude isn't having it.
The Ophelia: The Trope Namer herself. She starts out perfectly sane, but by the third act she's dancing about in her undershift, randomly bursting into song, giggling or babbling nonsense, handing out flowers and occasionally lashing out physically at people, before drowning herself in the river. This version actually provides a subversion; while Ophelia does temporarily have an emotional breakdown, she is only pretending to be completely insane as part of her plan to undermine and escape Claudius. Everyone but Claudius and Horatio are fooled; Horatio is in on the plan, while Claudius can't do anything too nasty to her because he'll look like an asshole being cruel to a poor, innocent girl gone mad with grief.
Paper-Thin Disguise: When Ophelia disguises herself as a servant boy in the climax, she and Gertrude don't do much besides cut her hair short and dress her in men's clothing. Nobody recognizes her save for Hamlet when she speaks to him directly and it's pretty obvious who she is. Then again, everyone else is quite distracted by the upcoming duel between Hamlet and Laertes, Ophelia is thought to be dead at this point and servants tend to be treated as invisible (case in point, Laertes doesn't even look at Ophelia and Claudius only gives her a brief look when he gives her an order).
Penny Among Diamonds: She's not nobleborn and her father is a counsellor to the king, rather than a lord. Queen Gertrude makes her one of her ladies-in-waiting, but some of the courtiers, in particular the other ladies, still treat her as something of an outsider and don't let her forget she's not truly 'one of them'. This is reflected in her clothing; she tends to wear plainer-looking gowns and no jewellery because her father can't afford finer things.
Pimped-Out Dress: Her resplendent gold and blue ballgown, which is easily the fanciest outfit she wears in the film.
Pregnant Badass: Given the ending depicts her with a daughter, it's heavily implied that Ophelia was already in the early stages of pregnancy in the film's third act, in which case she's definitely an example of this, fighting off a rapist, busting out of the dungeon, putting on a hell of a performance to convince everyone she's crazy, drinking snake venom and pretending to drown herself, sneaking in and out of a heavily-guarded castle and walking across miles of countryside to reach refuge.
Redheads Are Uncool: She's a redhead and is regarded as a misfit amongst the ladies-in-waiting, teased for dancing clumsily, reading for fun, wearing flowers, and being unable to afford the finer clothes and jewelry. She tends to be rather reserved at first, before becoming more outspoken.
Regal Ringlets: She wears her hair curled for a formal ball; the rest of the time she wears her hair straight or in a simple braid, so the curls, paired with her ballgown, are probably to make her fit in better with the other courtiers for the special occasion.
Returning the Wedding Ring: Invoked by Claudius, against Ophelia's will. He forces her to give back tokens of Hamlet's affection - his ring and the ribbon she wore it on - while he and Polonius secretly observe to determine Hamlet's reaction to her rejection. Hamlet is initially confused more than anything because they were literally married only yesterday, until Ophelia subtly tips him off as to what's really going on.
Ring on a Necklace: When she and Hamlet marry in secret, he gives her one of his rings as a wedding ring and she wears it on a ribbon tucked beneath her bodice; the ribbon itself holds significance to her as Hamlet took it from her hair as a love token. Unfortunately, Claudius isn't too concerned about her personal space; when he sees the ribbon he pulls the ring out and immediately deduces Hamlet gave it to her, leading him to assume they're plotting against him together and thus putting Ophelia in grave danger.
Royal Favorite: She's Queen Gertrude's favorite lady-in-waiting; she has raised her as a lady since she was a child and is a mother figure to her, as Ophelia's mother is long dead and Gertrude never had any children but Hamlet, who has left for university. Gertrude confides in Ophelia in some private matters, such as having her read medieval erotic literature to her and sending her to a so-called witch for herbal tonics. The other ladies are bitterly jealous of Ophelia, especially as she's not even nobleborn. However, she eventually falls out of favor due to Gertrude's mistaken belief that Ophelia is poisoning Hamlet against her and her new husband Claudius, leaving Ophelia in an extremely vulnerable position at court.
Runaway Fiancée: She flees her forced marriage to Edmund by pretending to have gone mad and making it seem she drowned, when she had actually taken a few drops of snake vemon that paralyzed her.
Secret Secret-Keeper: She glimpses Gertrude and Claudius kissing while she's still married to her first husband, but tells no one about it and doesn't bring it up with Gertrude. When Hamlet asks her outright if Gertrude was having an affair with Claudius, Ophelia honestly answers that she doesn't know for certain.
She Is All Grown Up: Hamlet's reaction to her after he returns from university; they first met when he was fifteen and she was a child, but he doesn't really start to take notice of her until she's a young woman.
Slut-Shaming: She is negatively judged and gossiped about due to Hamlet's blatant interest in her, as well as rumors she was seen cavorting about with a peasant boy (actually Hamlet in disguise). Gertrude even calls Ophelia ungrateful for 'debasing' herself in such a way after she took her in (which is rather hypocritical, given the implication she had an affair with Claudius while still married to King Hamlet and married him not long after her first husband was buried).
Someone to Remember Him By: Implied. In the end, Ophelia is shown to have a young daughter, with the implication that she is her child with Hamlet, conceived on their wedding night.
Spared by the Adaptation: In this version of the story, she fakes her death and escapes the carnage at the royal castle.
Spirited Young Lady: Ophelia is portrayed as such here. She is ladylike and compassionate, yet has a sharp wit, a rebellious streak and a love of learning. She knows how to read in a time when most women save for those in the higher classes couldn't, expresses an interest in learning about herbs and poisons even though it's linked with witchcraft, opposes an arranged marriage and also politely yet firmly argues against some of the sexism aimed at her and other women.
Standing Between the Enemies: After deducing from his reaction to the Mousetrap Play that Claudius is guilty of murder, Hamlet leaps up and draws his sword on him in front of the whole court. Ophelia flings herself between them and is able to talk Hamlet down. Unfortunately for her, neither Gertrude or Claudius is particularly grateful; immediately after things have calmed, Gertrude angrily confronts Ophelia for riling Hamlet up, even though she was the one who just stopped her son from killing her husband.
Strong Family Resemblance: Polonius states on a few occasions that Ophelia strongly resembles her late mother in appearance and personality. Ophelia's own daughter looks quite a bit like her, with the same long red hair.
Suicide by Sea: Ophelia throws herself into the river and drowns in the third act. This is actually an intentional ploy to fake her death; before entering the water she drinks snake venom that causes paralysis, deliberately sinks beneath the water, drops the vial of venom and then floats up to the surface, making it appear she drowned to Gertrude and the guards pursuing her.
Sweet Polly Oliver: After faking her death, Ophelia disguises herself as a servant boy with Gertrude's help in order to sneak back into the castle and try to dissuade Hamlet from his quest for vengeance. Ophelia later stays in disguise to sneak out of the castle just before Fortinbras's army arrives.
This Is My Story: The film opens on Ophelia's death scene while she narrates "It is high time I told you my story for myself." The ending narration suggests she's actually telling the story not just to the audience but to her daughter. She also notes that her story did not end in heartbreak, madness, and death like so many of the other characters, but in hope.
Toplessness from the Back: She's briefly seen like this during her love scene with Hamlet.
Threat Backfire: When she intervenes in the attempted gang-rape of a woman, the men turn their attention on Ophelia. She stands her ground and tells the ringleader, Edmund, that he will "pay for this". However, Edmund clearly doesn't find Ophelia intimidating in the slightest and mockingly comments that Ophelia must really be a whore if she wants him to pay for sex. To her credit, Ophelia doesn't flinch.
True Blue Femininity: She frequently wears blue clothing, symbolically linking her to the water element and contrasting with her red hair.
Unconventional Wedding Dress: When she marries Hamlet, she's wearing a plain, unremarkable light gray gown. This is intentional, as she and Hamlet had to disguise themselves as peasants to get married. Neither of them seem to care in the slightest.
Used to Be a Tomboy: As a child, she wears a shirt and trousers, has a grimy face, and runs about the castle like it's an adventure playground. After she becomes a lady-in-waiting, this trope is enforced; she has to wear dresses and part-take in traditionally feminine activities like dancing, sewing and singing. However, she's also shown engaging in activities and interests that wouldn't be considered 'befitting' of a lady and one gets the sense she'd wear whatever she wanted if she could get away with it.
Wandering Walk of Madness: During her breakdown in the third act, Ophelia aimlessly wanders the castle grounds in despair, eventually ending up on the parapets where she stares out at the sky. Horatio finds her here and begs her to come away from the edge, apparently afraid she'll jump.
Water Is Womanly: Ophelia is heavily associated with water: likes swimming, often wears blue, nicknamed "little fish" by Hamlet, and drowns herself (well, so it seems). And as an adult, she's a compassionate, refined lady-in-waiting to Queen Gertrude, wearing dresses and taking part in traditionally feminine activities such as dancing, sewing, and singing.
Wounded Gazelle Gambit: A heroic, sympathetic variant. Claudius knows she's onto him as a murderer and she can't go round publicly accusing the king, so she takes advantage of the rumours she's gone mad with grief for her murdered father and dials it up. Claudius knows she's faking, but everyone else is convinced; the court is horrified when Claudius tries to have her locked up, and Laertes and Gertrude demand that Claudius leave her alone. She's then free to run off and pretend to drown.
You Are Grounded!: Following the Mousetrap play, her father confines her to her room while he deals with the mess. Unfortunately, this is the last time they spoke, as Ophelia subsequently learns Polonius has been killed.

Gertrude

Queen Gertrude

Portrayed by: Naomi Watts

"I've lived plenty long enough to know my way and not yet long enough to forget it."

The Queen of Denmark and mother of Hamlet. Shortly after the death of her first husband, she remarries her brother-in-law, Claudius, which ends up causing all sorts of trouble.

Adaptational Angst Upgrade: A slight case; unlike in the play Gertrude dies after Hamlet here and has to watch her son die before her eyes. It's also made clear here that she knows Claudius is responsible and that Hamlet might well still be alive if she hadn't married him, prompting her to snap.
Adaptational Backstory Change: Combined with Adaptation Expansion, as Gertrude isn't given much backstory in Hamlet. It's revealed here that Gertrude was raised in a convent in France and has a twin sister named Mechtild. Gertrude was a target of bullying growing up, with Mechtild defending her. After Mechtild got pregnant out of wedlock and was persecuted as a witch, Gertrude apparently helped her go into hiding and kept her survival a secret.
Adaptational Badass: In this version she is the one who ultimately kills Claudius, driving her son's sword through Claudius's chest and right through the back of his throne.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: She's fed up with her marriage to her strait-laced, workaholic husband and is much more interested in Claudius, who has a reputation as a roguish womanizer and openly states he's never cared much for rules while flirting with her. She tries to act offended by this, but it's clearly half-hearted and that she finds him attractive for his rebellious ways. After they're married, she has no complaints about him supplying her with the tonic she's addicted to and happily lets him prepare it for her, whereas with her previous husband she had to keep this hidden. It's deconstructed as she slowly begins to realize that Claudius is a really, really bad person, expressing horror at some of his more heinous actions.
Anti-Villain: She's antagonistic towards Ophelia and to a lesser extent Hamlet, especially on account of her close proximity to Claudius, but she's not evil or even actively malicious most of the time, just self-centered and unable to see things from other people's perspective.
Belated Love Epiphany: A non-romantic example; Gertrude finally remembers the motherly love she has for Ophelia after she goes insane; Gertrude desperately tries to stop her from drowning herself and collapses in tears when she fails.
Benevolent Boss: She starts out as one to her ladies-in-waiting, especially Ophelia, who she treats like a daughter more than a servant. She doesn't quite intervene when the other ladies mock Ophelia in front of her, but she quietly makes it clear she won't stand for it in her presence and speaks kindly to her. She unfortunately turns into a Mean Boss after marrying Claudius, though she eventually snaps out of it, trying to stop Ophelia from drowning herself and being genuinely distraught when she fails. She also briefly attempts to shield her ladies when the Norwegian army attacks the castle.
Big Brother Instinct: It's only a small moment, but Gertrude does show some protectiveness over Mechtild despite their strained relationship. She tells Ophelia not to look at Mechtild's face, presumably to protect her identity (as its obvious they're related) and when Ophelia asks if it's because Mechtild is a witch, Gertrude pointedly states that she's a healer.
The Chains of Commanding: Defied. After decades of this, Gertrude is sick of never being able to put her own desires first and of being neglected by her husband, simply because she's the queen. After her husband dies, she throws caution out the window and marries Claudius, her brother-in-law whom she has come to love and supports him being elected king over her son. This doesn't end well for anyone.
Dead Sparks: Her first marriage is apparently a sexless one (though it certainly didn't start that way seeing as they have a son) and the royal couple rarely spend time together outside of public appearances and formal occasions. Gertrude is very upset and frustrated over this; it's a big part of the reason she is so susceptible to Claudius's charms.
Desperately Craves Affection: She has this problem, on account of being neglected by her husband and fearing she's growing old and unattractive. As a result, she falls right into Claudius's arms due to him showering her with attention and compliments, and swiftly marries him after her first husband's untimely death so she won't be alone.
Died in Your Arms Tonight: She dies in the arms of her sister Mechtild.
Dies Differently in Adaptation: In the original story, Gertrude is accidentally poisoned after drinking from tainted wine Claudius had tried to trick Hamlet into drinking. In Ophelia, when Fortinbras's forces invade the castle Gertrude intentionally drinks a vial of snake venom (the same poison used to kill her first husband). That being said, many adaptations have Gertrude figure out that Claudius poisoned the wine and intentionally drink it in an attempt to save her son, though the context is still different here.
Doting Parent: Towards Hamlet (which Claudius tends to mock him about). She is very physically affectionate towards him even as an adult (which he's less than impressed with), gushes about how handsome and clever he is, and tearfully notes to Claudius that it's hard for her to accept her son is becoming a man "and no longer hers". She often makes excuses for his more unacceptable behavior, even when it results in violence. Prior to Hamlet and Laertes' climatic duel, Claudius says he is betting on Laertes, prompting Gertrude to defiantly insist "Hamlet is by far the better swordsman".
Driven to Suicide: As Fortinbras's forces invade the castle and begin slaughtering everyone in sight, Gertrude – who had just seen her son die in front of her and murdered Claudius to avenge him – drinks a fatal dose of poison, both because it's Better to Die than Be Killed and out of guilt and despair over the loss of everything she ever loved.
Drowning My Sorrows: She appears to be addicted to a herbal tonic Mechtild makes for her, describing it as "what she needs". It's not entirely clear what's in it, but it seems to be some sort of drug that she takes to alleviate her feelings of sadness and isolation.
A Family Affair: It's implied she has an affair with her husband's brother, or at the very least an emotional affair if not a physical one. She and Claudius are quite flirty with each other while she's still married to Hamlet's father and they even kiss, but Gertrude breaks it off. However, Ophelia later sees her sneaking out of her chambers late at night, possibly to meet Claudius, though it's left ambiguous; after the king's death Hamlet asks Ophelia outright if his mother was unfaithful to his father, but Ophelia can't say for certain.
Flower Motif: Ophelia gives her several kinds of flowers and herbs:
- Rosemary "for remembrance", with Ophelia adding "I hope you remember". It can be inferred Ophelia hopes Gertrude remembers the close and loving relationship they once shared until Claudius ruined things.
- Pansies "for [her] thoughts", asking her to self-reflect and think more carefully from this point on.
- Rue "for [her] regrets", of which Gertrude has many by this point. Ophelia adds that she herself has regrets, as does Gertrude's sister.
- Daisies, which here Ophelia refers to as "the day's eye; all seeing", indicating that Gertrude is not invisible and her actions are noticed by others, including Ophelia.
- Ophelia says she would've offered her violets but "they all withered when my father died"; violets can be symbolic of faithfulness, honesty and innocence, all of which has been lost at the Danish court.
Functional Addict: Gertrude has become addicted to a tonic that her twin makes her. It doesn't appear to stop her from functioning as Queen of Denmark though. Then again, she's never depicted doing much in the way of ruling, leaving that to her husbands and their advisors, but she's functional enough to hide her addiction from the public.
God Save Us from the Queen!: Heavily downplayed. While she's not evil and is portrayed rather sympathetically at times, she is a rather oblivious and self-absorbed woman who tends to put her own wants and desires before everything and everyone else, resulting in Claudius – who is definitely evil – gaining power and causing a lot of the drama in the story.
Gold Makes Everything Shiny: The majority of Gertrude's clothing has golden-colored material or embroidery, and she tends to wear gold jewellery such as earrings and circlets. She goes all-out in a ballroom scene, wearing a gold-toned dress, a wreath of gold flowers and gold face paint. The only time she holds back on the gold is with the all-white outfit she wears in her final scene, where she is greatly diminished both personally and as a queen.
Graceful Ladies Like Purple: When she marries Claudius and on several occasions after that, Gertrude wears deep purple gowns. Purple is a color commonly associated with royalty / nobility, not to mention luxury, with Gertrude reasserting her position as queen by marrying the new king. Darker shades of purple are also sometimes associated with mourning and sadness; Gertrude herself avoids mourning her first husband by rushing into marriage with Claudius, though her clothing reflects the darker shift in the royal court. Purple can further be associated with arrogance / self-importance and immaturity, both of which Gertrude displays via her actions in the second half of the film.
Happily Married: Initially to Claudius. Not so much by the end after all the tragedy that has occurred, especially when Gertrude finally realizes what kind of man Claudius really is.
Heroic BSoD: She has one when her first husband dies, tearing down the curtains of her room and sobbing uncontrollably. She has another one near the end after Hamlet dies and the Norwegian forces invade the castle accompanied by her own sister and it's at this point she visibly crosses the Despair Event Horizon.
Horrible Judge of Character: Her people-judging skills leave something to be desired. She's aware Claudius has a reputation as a scoundrel and witnesses him being a jerk to her own son on multiple occasions, but she dismisses this as harmless ribbing and thinks of Claudius as a charming rogue rather than the calculating and power-hungry borderline-sociopath he actually is. Despite having known Ophelia since childhood, she is also quick to believe the worst of her and thinks she's intentionally turning Hamlet against her despite Ophelia's earnest protestations of innocence. If Gertrude had actually listened to Ophelia more, she might've saved both herself and everyone else a lot of pain.
Hypocrite: The woman who very likely cheated on her husband with his brother, then married him less than two months after she was widowed, has the nerve to criticize Ophelia over a rumor she sleeps around.
I Am Not Pretty: Gertrude is very self-conscious and sensitive about her looks because she's getting older. Claudius assures her he thinks she's beautiful; she's also played by Naomi Watts.
If Only You Knew: Gertrude disparages Ophelia over a rumor she was sneaking off into the countryside to hook up with some peasant boy. She has no idea that Ophelia was actually sneaking off to get married and has just gotten back from her wedding night. Oh, and the 'peasant boy' is Gertrude's son.
It's All About Me: She has an unfortunate tendency to put what she wants first, sometimes to the detriment of others, even including her own son. She's not usually actively malicious; she just rarely thinks about the consequences of her actions until it's too late and has a self-pitying attitude.
Love-Obstructing Parents: In a stark contrast to the original Hamlet, where she declares at Ophelia's funeral she hoped her son would've married her someday, here Gertrude makes it plain she doesn't approve of Ophelia's closeness to Hamlet, at one point ordering her to stay away from him. It's more because she (wrongly) thinks Ophelia is a bad influence on Hamlet than anything else, and she seems to warm up to the idea near the ending, but by this point the damage has already been done.
Mama Didn't Raise No Criminal: She blames Hamlet's increasingly erratic and rebellious behaviour - including nearly attacking her husband in public - on his girlfriend being a bad influence, despite this not being the case. After Hamlet inadvertantly kills Polonius, Gertrude desperately insists it was an accident and that Hamlet has mental issues in an attempt to de-escalate the situation.
Marry for Love: It's implied that she thinks she's marrying Claudius, her brother-in-law, out of love after being stuck in a passionless marriage for years, but their feelings for each other actually seem closer to infatuation, not to mention Claudius desires the throne first and foremost (which Gertrude appears oblivious to).
Mean Boss: She becomes one to Ophelia after she weds Claudius. She no longer confides in Ophelia as much and all but discards her in favor of Cristiana, which is especially hurtful considering she was a mother-figure to Ophelia. Gertrude slut-shames Ophelia over bawdy rumors about her and publicly berates her for for 'corrupting' her son, ordering her to "stay out of [her] sight". She regrets it after Polonius is killed though, and especially after Ophelia goes mad.
My God, What Have I Done?: She gets one moment of this after another towards the end of the film, as she realizes her selfish actions have led to several deaths and a tyrant on the throne. Upon encountering Ophelia's 'ghost' and being told by her that Claudius was the man who betrayed her sister, she falls to her knees and begs for forgiveness.
Outliving One's Offspring:
- Gertrude outlives Hamlet, though not by very long.
- Prior to this, she watches Ophelia, whom she had viewed as a daughter of sorts, drown in a river though she subsequently learns Ophelia is still alive.
Parental Betrayal: Due to the film emphasizing the mother-daughter relationship between Gertrude and Ophelia, the queen's increasingly cold and dismissive attitude towards Ophelia comes across as this. From Gertrude's (warped) perspective, Ophelia has betrayed her by sowing discontent between her and Hamlet after she married Claudius, but as Ophelia points out, it's actually the other way around.
Gertrude: I was a mother to you. And you turned my son against me.
Ophelia: Forgive me, my lady. You erased me.
Gertrude: I think you protest too much. [Gertrude slaps Ophelia] You cannot know what it is to love a son.
Ophelia: I know what it is to love yours.
Parental Obliviousness: She's extremely oblivious to the fact that Hamlet and Ophelia are in love with each other, despite Hamlet's lack of subtlety about his feelings (he openly flirts and dances with Ophelia, has her ribbon tucked into his shirt - which Claudius draws attention to - and even follows Ophelia into his mother's bathing chamber to continue talking to her while she's present). Gertrude is also able to deduce from rumors and Ophelia's reactions that she has an admirer, but still doesn't twig that it's her own son. It's not until the aftermath of the Mousetrap Play - where Ophelia is the only one who can talk down Hamlet from attacking Claudius - that Getrude finally puts two-and-two together ("I thought your lover too low. But now I see he's too high.").
Parental Substitute: She's the closest thing Ophelia has to a mother, as her own mother died when she was a small child. Unfortunately, she turns into more of an Abusive Parent after marrying Claudius.
Pimped-Out Dress: She wears lots of very beautiful, complex and elaborately-decorated gowns, seeing as she's the queen.
Secret-Keeper:
- She knows her twin sister faked her death and lives in the forest near the castle, but tells no one save for Ophelia, whom she swears to secrecy.
- She learns Ophelia has faked her death and says nothing to protect her.
Stepford Smiler: She starts out as one, doing her best to put on a happy face in public, as befits a queen, while angsting in private over her personal troubles such as her barely-existent relationship with her husband, her feelings for her brother-in-law and her low self-esteem. After marrying Claudius, she becomes genuinely joyful and at ease...unfortunately it's at the expense of other people, including her son.
Til Murder Do Us Part: In this version, Gertrude is the one who kills Claudius, her second husband. Considering by this point she'd found out he'd killed her first husband, caused the death of her only son and was the one who impregnated then abandoned her own sister, her actions are pretty understandable.
Took a Level in Jerkass: At the beginning of the film, Gertrude is a kind and maternal though clearly lonely woman, who dotes upon Ophelia and Hamlet. However, after King Hamlet dies and she marries Claudius, she becomes increasingly self-absorbed and judgmental, even slapping Ophelia for 'turning her son against her' when it's actually her own behavior that has caused Hamlet to grow cold towards her. She does get better and regrets how she treated Ophelia and Hamlet, but sadly it comes a little too late.
Unlimited Wardrobe: She's rarely seen wearing the same outfit twice, which is justified as she's a queen (and it's implied she indulges in fancy clothes as a distraction from her personal troubles).
White Shirt of Death: She wears a white gown in the climax, where she meets her end; notably it's one of the few times she wears white besides a nightgown.
Woman Scorned: She slowly starts to turn against Claudius as she realizes he killed her husband, poisoned her against her son and Ophelia, and betrayed her sister. After her son dies due to his machinations, she reaches her breaking point and stabs him to death with Hamlet's sword.

Hamlet

Prince Hamlet

Portrayed by: George MacKay; Jack Cunningham-Nuttall (young)

"I prefer not to learn at the point of a sword. My sharpness is within."

The only child of King Hamlet and Queen Gertrude, Prince of Denmark and the love interest of Ophelia. When he suspects his uncle of having murdered his father, he vows to uncover the truth and seek vengeance.

Adaptational Nice Guy: Hamlet is a lot less of a jerk to Ophelia in this film than he is in Hamlet. A prominent example is the "Get thee to a nunnery" scene; here Ophelia tips off Hamlet that they're being watched and they pretend to argue to throw off Claudius. Hamlet's "Go to a nunnery" line is also not meant as an insult (though it appears that way to those spying on them), but as an actual warning to go shelter in a nunnery to protect her from Claudius.
All for Nothing: Subverted. In this version, he actually fails to kill Claudius and avenge his father, meaning everything he and his loved ones suffered, either because of Claudius or through Hamlet's own mistakes, was nearly pointless, until Gertrude kills Claudius in his stead.
Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: He's the Brooding Boy to Ophelia's Gentle Girl; he's moody, obsessive and rather dramatic, but has a good heart and a strong sense of justice.
Byronic Hero: Clever, well-educated and snarky? Check. Attractive and charming? Check. Bitter about problems in his personal life? Check. Prone to melancholy and anger? Check. Considered an outsider who sticks to his principles even if it causes him trouble? Check. Intensely devoted to achieving his goals? Double check.
The Champion: He tries to be this to Ophelia, but Ophelia is mostly unimpressed by him throwing his weight around even in her defense. When Claudius publicly insults the woman whose favor Hamlet wears - unknowingly insulting Ophelia while she's within earshot - Hamlet is angered enough to fight Claudius. Ophelia is concerned for his safety more than anything, though she's quietly impressed by Hamlet's graciousness in defeat. Later, Hamlet comes to Ophelia's rescue when a group of guards harass her, though she ends up pulling him away to avoid things escalating and then tells him she didn't need saving.
Death by Adaptation: Of the "died earlier than in the source material". He doesn't get close enough to kill Claudius before dying this time.
Died in Your Arms Tonight: He dies in Gertrude's arms.
Disappeared Dad: Given the strong implication Ophelia was carrying his child, he's this to their daughter, as he died before she was even born.
Easily Forgiven: Ophelia forgives Hamlet quite quickly for killing her father; in fairness, she knows it was an accident as Hamlet had meant to kill Claudius and he's clearly distraught by what happened.
Excessive Mourning: Claudius acts like he's doing this in response to his father's sudden death, sneering that when his father died he and Hamlet Sr. were "men about it". It's made very clear this is not the case; Hamlet's father has been dead for only two months, the funeral was held while he was away and by the time he gets home, his mother has remarried his uncle and everyone is brushing it aside. Even Gertrude tries to defend Hamlet's very public outbursts, stating his grief for his father is understandable.
Establishing Character Moment: In his first scene, Hamlet thinks nothing of sitting with his head on his mother's knee until Claudius mocks him, promptly him to quickly stand up in a rage. He's stopped from doing anything drastic by Ophelia's comments distracting everyone and gives her a smile afterwards. This shows that Hamlet is affectionate towards those he loves, but is also proud and easily angered, and always had an antagonistic relationship with Claudius which in turn will drive a wedge between Hamlet and his mother. He also appreciates those who are loyal to him and is calmed by Ophelia's presence.
Fatal Flaw: It's debatable as to what precisely Hamlet's fatal flaw is in the original; here, it's made more clear than his ultimate flaw is a combination of wrath and pride. He won't tolerate anyone humiliating and manipulating him or his loved ones; when he finds out about the betrayal and murder of his father he is consumed with getting revenge, leading to his death.
Geeky Turn-On: He and Ophelia are both attracted to each other's wit and intellect.
Gentleman Snarker: Hamlet is a snarky and sharp-witted prince, which is one of the things that draws Ophelia to him. She gives as good as she gets, which he likes about her.
Guyliner: Hamlet wears this a few times, particularly at court festivities. During the Mousetrap scene, it gives him the impression of having Creepy Shadowed Undereyes, helping project the idea he's insane.
Hair-Trigger Temper: He is rather easily provoked to anger, sometimes to the point of violence, flipping out even over mere insults to himself or those he loves. It occasionally manifests more as Tranquil Fury, but either way his quickness to anger causes lots of issues for himself and those around him.
Happily Married: To Ophelia, all too briefly.
Hero of Another Story: Literally in his case. He's the deuteragonist to Ophelia and we only see what he does in Hamlet on-screen when it overlaps with Ophelia's story.
Innocently Insensitive: While viewing a tapestry of the goddess Artemis, Hamlet remarks that he thinks she looks too old and decrepit, and that he always imagined Artemis as a youthful and wild girl. He'd intended it as a compliment to Ophelia...only to be informed that the tapestry is meant to be modelled on his mother, who is standing right there. The cringe is palpable.
King Incognito: Hamlet disguises himself as a peasant to accompany Ophelia – also dressed in peasant garb – to the countryside so they can get married.
Marry for Love: He expresses a desire to marry Ophelia out of love, but says he can't because she's not nobility or royalty; while he personally couldn't care less about her lack of wealth and social standing, he knows his father wants him to become king and would never approve of him choosing someone like Ophelia as his future queen. After his father dies and Claudius becomes king instead, he decides "screw it" and marries Ophelia in secret.
Master of the Mixed Message: While he's not quite as bad about it as he is the play (where he's also doing some of it intentionally as opposed to just being ignorant), Hamlet gives Ophelia some pretty mixed signals early on. He enthusiastically courts her, culminating in him kissing her at a ball. However, Ophelia learns the next day that Hamlet is heading back to university soon and never thought to mention it. He tries to explain he intended to say goodbye but wasn't sure how, kisses Ophelia... then tells her he could never marry her because she's common. Ophelia is pretty annoyed by it and is cold towards him afterwards, even when he apologizes. She realizes Hamlet does genuinely care for her when she learns he's held onto her ribbon all this time.
My God, What Have I Done?: Has this reaction when he inadvertently kills Polonius (after mistaking him for Claudius), screaming for Ophelia to forgive him as he's taken away.
My Own Private "I Do": He and Ophelia secretly get married in a private ceremony presided over by a country priest. They never formally get around to telling anyone before Hamlet finds out his father was murdered, after which the honeymoon is definitely over.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: After confirming that Claudius murdered his father using the Mousetrap play, Hamlet attempts to kill him but accidentally kills Polonius, who had gone to see the queen about forgiving Ophelia. Things quickly go From Bad to Worse.
Obfuscating Insanity: Hamlet pretends to be crazy to throw off his uncle and the other courtiers, so they won't catch wind of his plot to uncover whether Claudius murdered his father and his intended revenge against him.
Parent with New Paramour: Type 3; not too long after his father's death, Hamlet's mother marries his uncle - who has aways treated him poorly - and they openly flaunt it while dismissing Hamlet's grief. And then he finds out Claudius murdered his father...
Pretty Boy: He is handsome in a delicate, boyish way and has a lean though still muscular build. Ophelia is very smitten.
Significant Wardrobe Shift: Hamlet starts out wearing earthy colors like brown and gold. When he begins falling in love with Ophelia, he also wears clothing with blue on it, reflecting Ophelia's own habit of wearing blue. After his father's death, however, Hamlet starts wearing black constantly, both in mourning for his father and to reflect his darkening mindset. The only time he wears earthier-toned clothing similar to his earlier outfits again is when he dresses up as a peasant to marry Ophelia, which is also the last time in the film he's truly happy.
Two Roads Before You: Just before his duel with Laertes, Ophelia reveals to him she's still alive and begs him to run away with her, saying they can start a new life. However, this is Hamlet's only chance to kill Claudius and thus avenge his murdered father, though it will likely result in his death. Hamlet ultimately chooses the latter. He does tell Ophelia he loves her and will come find her if he's able, but she correctly predicts he won't.
Uptown Girl: Gender-inverted. Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark, while Ophelia is lowborn but was elevated to one of Queen Gertrude's ladies-in-waiting, though people often look down on her for her background. Hamlet even mentions that his father would never approve of a marriage between them, upsetting Ophelia. After his father dies and Claudius is elected king, though, Hamlet decides he doesn't care anymore and marries Ophelia in secret.
You Killed My Father: Hamlet swears vengeance against Claudius for killing his father once he realizes he was murdered. He actually doesn't succeed in killing Claudius, but then Gertrude has the reaction of 'You Killed My Husband and Son!'

Claudius

King Claudius

Portrayed by: Clive Owen

The younger brother of King Hamlet and uncle to Prince Hamlet. After his brother's untimely death, he marries his widow, Gertrude, and becomes Denmark's new king. It soon turns out he murdered his brother to take the throne and doesn't mind committing a few more to keep his power.

Adaptational Jerkass: Claudius is no saint in the original, but many adaptations portray him as Affably Evil. Not so much in this one; he's Faux Affably Evil at best and comes off as a churlish bully who preys on vulnerable people. The film also omits the scene where Claudius privately expresses some guilt over murdering his brother (though he doesn't regret what he gained from it). All in all, this is one of the least sympathetic portrayals of Claudius in a major Hamlet adaptation.
Adaptational Villainy: On top of all the stuff he pulls in the original play, in this version it's revealed that Claudius seduced and knocked up Gertrude's sister Mechtild after falsely promising to marry her, then accused her of being a witch when their child was stillborn and would've let the townsfolk burn her just so he could be rid of her. He's also a massive asshole to Ophelia, threatening her with violence on a few occasions and trying to force her into an unwanted marriage.
Ambition Is Evil: His desire to be king and to keep his newfound power drives many of his most despicable acts, for which he never expresses remorse or reservations. His ruthlessness in removing any obstacles to his goals leads Ophelia to bleakly conclude that he loves nothing but power.
Animal Motif: Claudius is associated with snakes. In his first scene, he mentions the Biblical story of Eve eating from the Tree of Knowledge and causing humankind's fall from grace, only for Gertrude to point out that technically it was a serpent who persuaded her to do so. Claudius uses snake venom to kill his brother and take the throne, with the king's death being attributed to a snake bite. In the Mousetrap play, Hamlet depicts the king being poisoned by a snake. When Ophelia visits Mechtild and sees a cloaked man whom she eventually recognizes as Claudius, a snake slithers across her feet as she hides.
Big Bad: As in the original story, he's the primary cause of most of the film's conflict, killing the Danish king to take his place and attempting to get rid of Ophelia and Hamlet in one way or another after he realizes they suspect what he has done.
Blood from the Mouth: After Gertrude stabs him through the chest, blood is seen trickling from his mouth.
Cold-Blooded Torture: It's implied that this is how he "persuaded" a country priest into telling him he had officiated Hamlet and Ophelia's wedding.
Cool Crown: Claudius dons a fancy gold crown with black gemstones for formal occasions. After Gertrude stabs him, the crown slips down to lie tilted on his head, symbolizing the end of his power.
Didn't See That Coming: He barely has time to react when Gertrude comes at him with a sword and stares at her in shock as he dies.
Dies Differently in Adaptation: In the original story, Hamlet kills Claudius in the climax. In Ophelia, Hamlet succumbs to Laertes's poisoned sword before he can kill Claudius, prompting Gertrude to take his sword and run Claudius through herself.
Evil Uncle: To Hamlet. Even before he murders his own brother to take his throne and wife, he is shown to be a real jerk to Hamlet, mocking him for not being 'manly' enough and being a bit of a Momma's Boy. It only escalates from there, culminating in him plotting to murder Hamlet to keep the throne.
Flower Motif: Ophelia gives Claudius two particular flowers: colombine and fennel. She bluntly states that fennel is "for flattery" and that Claudius "will miss it now [her] father's gone". Colombine has been used to symbolize faithfulness, especially in marriage, so in this case Ophelia is using it to mock Claudius due to him having committed adultery with his brother's wife and gone back on his promise to marry Mechtild.
He Knows Too Much: Claudius starts to realize that Ophelia knows he murdered his brother and so could help Hamlet expose him. He initially decides to marry her off to his loyal guard Edmund to keep her from making trouble, but when he learns Ophelia is already married to Hamlet and she confronts him with her knowledge of what he did to Mechtild, Claudius appears to decide killing her as a traitor is a better option, pointing out that no one would miss her. Unfortunately for him, Ophelia outwits him and fakes her death to escape.
Kneel Before Zod: He orders Hamlet to kneel before him in front of the court, after Hamlet angrily confronts him about the handling of his father's death and Claudius's marriage to Gertrude. For a moment, Hamlet seems to seriously consider defying him, before giving in and kneeling at his uncle's feet; as Claudius points out, he is Hamlet's king.
Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe: During an argument with Gertrude, Hamlet Sr. makes comments suggesting Claudius may only be his half-brother, stating "Claudius shares my name but the blood in his veins is impure" and that "he's his mother's son alright, but there's nothing of my father in him". Gertrude dismisses this as baseless rumor, though Hamlet Sr. appears to take it seriously.
Manipulative Bastard: He manipulates everyone around him, though especially Gertrude, Laertes and Mechtild, taking advantage of them when they're at their most vulnerable to get what he wants.
Meaningless Villain Victory: Claudius has gotten his meddling nephew Hamlet killed and Ophelia is out of the way too, so there's no one left to challenge him. However, his own wife than snatches up Hamlet's sword and plunges it through his chest in a grief-fuelled rage. And even then, Fortinbras's army was only minutes away from storming the castle, aided by Claudius's vengeful ex-lover Mechtild.
Non-Action Big Bad: Claudius is shown to have some skill with a sword, but he never does any real fighting himself; he tends to choose more passive methods such as poison, or manipulating someone else into doing his dirty work. During his 'friendly' duel with Hamlet, his nephew is initially shown to be the better fighter and Claudius only beats him by attacking him from behind, indicating he's unwilling to put himself in harm's way if there's a chance he won't come out on top. The only other person he's seen being directly violent towards is Ophelia, a young woman who is physically and legally incapable of fighting back.
Outliving One's Offspring: It's revealed he fathered a son with Mechtild many years ago, although the baby died in her womb. Claudius doesn't appear that upset about the loss - when Ophelia brings it up he merely appears surprised she even knows about it - and he took advantage of the miscarriage to brand Mechtild a witch, spreading rumors she was responsible for the baby's death via sorcery and thus ridding himself of the whole 'problem'.
Sibling Murder: Claudius kills his brother so he can marry his sister-in-law and steal the throne from his nephew, thus setting off the main conflict of the film.
Sketchy Successor: It's indicated he's this to King Hamlet. And he was elected. While we don't get too many details, Claudius is not as good at ruling as his brother; he's spends most of his time partying with Gertrude and is completely unprepared for Fortinbras's invasion, to say nothing of how he became king and what he's willing to do to remain so. Under his reign, Edmund and some other guards think nothing of trying to rape a maid in a courtyard in broad daylight and threaten to assault one of the queen's own ladies. It's also telling that Laertes is able to stir up a mob against Claudius with relative ease.
The Unfettered: He has few moral compunctions around getting what he wants, including murdering his own brother and seducing his sister-in-law to get the throne, and putting about a rumor his nineteen year-old lover is a witch to cover his own ass.
The Usurper: Played with in this case. Denmark is an Elective Monarchy, so Hamlet wasn't guaranteed to become king after his father, although Hamlet's father wanted his son to succeed him. Hamlet grudgingly accepts Claudius as king because he appears to have gotten the position legitimately (albeit seducing the queen helped)...until he learns Claudius murdered his father, at which point he declares that Claudius stole the throne.
Wicked Stepfather: Claudius technically becomes this to his nephew Hamlet after marrying his mother. He barely hides his contempt for Hamlet, enjoys humiliating him, intentionally drives a wedge between Hamlet and his mother, and eventually plots his murder.
Would Hit a Girl: He manhandles Ophelia several times, including dragging her by the hair in the scene where he tries to figure out if she's the cause of Hamlet's 'craziness', holds a knife to her throat and reminds her of what happens to traitors. Although he didn't personally lay a finger on her, it also turns out he would've let a mob burn his lover as a witch to get her out of the way.

Mechtild

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/op_metchild.png

Portrayed by: Naomi Watts; Anna Rust (young)

"Let them do to each other whatever they want to up on their hill."

A purported witch and healer who lives in the woods near Elsinore Castle, whom Ophelia visits on behalf of Queen Gertrude to get a special tonic for her and seeks out herself later on for help. She's revealed to be Gertrude's estranged twin sister.

Angsty Surviving Twin: She ends up outliving her twin sister Gertrude and holds her as she dies. She's clearly devastated, regretting that they never reconciled and that she in-directly caused Gertrude's death (especially as it was one of Mechtild's poisons Gertrude used to take her own life). The last we see of Mechtild is her tearfully embracing her dead twin, now truly alone in the world.
Big Brother Instinct: Twin sister instinct, in this case. Gertrude mentions she would defend her from bullies while they lived together in a convent growing up.
Broken Bird: She's a bitter, abrasive woman, yet it's not hard to see why when her Dark and Troubled Past is revealed, and she shows a more vulnerable side when she opens up to Ophelia.
Burn the Witch!: Mechtild nearly suffered this fate, but was able to prevent it by faking her death using snake venom, which made her appear dead.
Canon Foreigner: The most prominent example. There's no character named Mechtild and no witches in Hamlet, and it's never mentioned if Gertrude has any siblings.
Dark Is Not Evil: She has a rather sinister and haggard appearance, wearing primarily black and Excessive Evil Eyeshadow, but while jaded and unfriendly, she's not actually malevolent and warms up to Ophelia.
Dishonored Dead: Following her supposed 'death', Mechtild was tossed into the woods and left to rot by the townsfolk on account of her allegedly being a witch. This worked in Mechtild's favor, as it allowed her to drink an antidote to the paralyzing potion she'd taken and disappear into the forest.
Faking the Dead: After being accused of witchcraft, Mechtild used snake venom that temporarily paralyzed her and thus made her appear physically dead to avoid being burnt at the stake, then went into hiding in the woods.
Fallen Princess: She was a Danish noblewoman whose sister is the queen, and was forced to abandon her old life and live in the woods as a healer when she was just nineteen, after being marked for death as a suspected witch.
The Hermit: Mechtild has lived by herself in the forest for years ever since losing her son, getting accused of witchcraft and faking her death to escape being burned as one.
Limited Wardrobe: Outside of a flashback to her younger years, Mechtild wears the same roughspun gray dress and black apron in almost all her scenes. She probably can't afford other clothes and the outfit serves a practical function given her outdoors-based life.
Love Martyr: She admits to Ophelia she still loves her ex-lover, even though he ultimately abandoned her for her twin sister, no less. This is why she supplied him with the poison he used to kill his brother; though she didn't know what he intended to use it for, she didn't ask too many questions either. Then Ophelia reveals that Claudius was actually the one who her accused of witchcraft in the first place and wouldn't have lifted a finger to save her. She is not amused.
Marry for Love: Mechtild thought that her ex-lover would marry her after she got pregnant and that they genuinely loved each other, but it turns out he probably didn't love her at all.
Meaningful Name: Her name may be inspired by Mechtild of Magdeburg (also spelt as Mechthild), a 13th century German Christian mystic who wrote several books on the subject and joined the Beguines (a semi-monastic religious order of women active from the 13th to 16th centuries). It may also be a reference to Mechtilde of Hackeborn, a 13th century Saxon Christian saint and noblewoman who had a sister named Gertrude; both joined a monastery at a young age.
My God, What Have I Done?: Mechtild's expression smacks of this when she helps invade the castle with the Norwegian army to get revenge on Claudius, only to watch her twin sister poison herself right in front of her, leaving her utterly alone.
Outliving One's Offspring: Played for Drama. It's revealed that Mechtild was accused of being a witch partly because her unborn child was stillborn. It's later revealed that Claudius was the child's father.
Prematurely Grey-Haired: She's the exact same age as Gertrude (Naomi Watts was 48/49 during filming), but while her sister still has blonde hair, Mechtild's hair has turned completely gray, probably due to the stress of her life (and to help distinguish the two).
Rebellious Princess: Mechtild is hinted to have been one (while it's unclear what her exact title was, she was considered nobility). As a teenager, she studied potentially dangerous herbs and poisons, and secretly had a lover who she hoped to marry. Unfortunately, this backfired on her in one of the worst ways possible; she got pregnant, her lover abandoned her and after her baby was stillborn, she was accused of being a witch, forcing her to fake her own death and flee.
The Resenter: Mechtild's comments about Gertrude strongly indicate she resents her sister for having the life that she herself was denied and still not being satisfied. This intensifies after Gertrude marries Claudius for good reason, as Mechtild explains to Ophelia that Claudius was the man she once hoped to marry and the father of her deceased child.
Romantic Runner-Up: She's revealed to be this to Gertrude for Claudius; Gertrude doesn't appear to be aware Claudius was her sister's lover until Ophelia reveals it.
Shout-Out: Director Claire McCarthy stated her character is a reference to another Shakespeare play, namely the witches of Macbeth; she's a witchy figure with a ragged appearance who indirectly helps a king take his throne via murder and deception, then plays a role in his downfall.
Slut-Shaming: She reveals to Ophelia that part of the reason she was branded a witch and forced to go into hiding was because she got pregnant out of wedlock.
Solitary Sorceress: She's said to be a witch and lives alone in a hovel in the woods, although technically she's a healer with a great knowledge of plants, rather than possessing actual powers.
Teen Pregnancy: She states she was only nineteen years old when she discovered she was pregnant. This wasn't unusual for the time period; rather, it was the fact she was pregnant and unmarried that caused her problems.
Tragic Stillbirth: Mechtild reveals to Ophelia that when she was nineteen she fell pregnant with her lover's baby, who promised to marry her. However, her baby son died in her womb, which was the catalyst for the townsfolk turning on her and calling her a witch, while her lover dropped out of the picture. Mechtild escaped execution but was forced to live alone in the woods to avoid persecution. She makes it very clear to Ophelia that decades later, she still grieves for her stillborn son.
Unwitting Instigator of Doom: It turns out she was unknowingly the instigator of the entire plot because it was from her that Claudius got the means to kill his brother.
Woman Scorned: When Mechtild is told by Ophelia that Claudius, her former lover and the father of her stillborn son, was actually the one who orchestrated the townsfolk turning against her, she is so incensed she goes to Fortinbras's army as they're camped in the woods and helps them get into the castle undetected, even marching with the army into the throne room to confront Claudius.

Horatio

Portrayed by: Devon Terrell

Prince Hamlet's closest friend, who attends university with him and also befriends Ophelia.

Bearer of Bad News: He's the one who comes to tell Ophelia her father is dead. She immediately knows something is wrong and initially fears Hamlet has been killed attempting to assassinate Claudius, only for Horatio to tell her that Hamlet is still alive, but her father is dead. When Horatio takes her to the scene of the act, she inevitably learns that Hamlet was responsible.
Best Friend: To Hamlet. Besides Ophelia, he's the character Hamlet is closest to.
Chekhov's Skill: Grave-digging, of all things. It's mentioned early in the film he has experience sneaking into cemeteries and digging up bodies undetected. He's later able to slip into the cemetery outside Elsinore Castle and quickly dig up Ophelia before she suffocates.
Creepy Good: He goes body-snatching so his university can cut the corpses up and study them, which Ophelia finds ghoulish, but he's otherwise one of the nicest characters in the film and proves himself a loyal friend.
Death by Adaptation: Possibly. In Hamlet, Horatio is the only main character who doesn't die (he does consider suicide, but a dying Hamlet urges him to live on). Here, the last we see of Horatio he's been punched across the face by a Norwegian soldier and falls down, but it's unclear if he was killed.
Interclass Friendship: With Hamlet; he doesn't have a noble title and is invited to Elsinore by Hamlet after they became friends at university. This is probably why he and Ophelia get along, because she's a bit of an outsider too.
Nice Guy: He's consistently one of the kindest, most moral and open-minded characters in the film. He also aspires to become a physician to help people.
The Only One I Trust: By the third act, he's the only person at court Ophelia trusts to the point that she employs his help in faking her death without hesitation.
Secret-Keeper: He knows more of Hamlet's secrets than Ophelia (for her own safety) and he knows Ophelia is faking her madness and drowning.
Shipper on Deck: For Hamlet and Ophelia together, encouraging their relationship and trying to help them reunite in the third act. He never tries to force or coerce Ophelia into situations she might be uncomfortable with, though.
Talking Down the Suicidal: When he finds Ophelia standing on the battlements following her father's death at Hamlet's hand, he slowly approaches her, looking concerned, and begs her to come away; he also tells her Hamlet is still alive and returning to Denmark to give her hope. It's unclear if Ophelia really is contemplating suicide, but it's not unreasonable that Horatio believes she is and intervenes.

Polonius

Portrayed by: Dominic Mafham

"Our new king is baying for blood! I am just trying to survive."

The father of Ophelia and Laertes; he's a royal counsellor to both King Hamlet and his successor, Claudius.

Adaptational Context Change: In the play Polonius sneaks into Gertrude's chambers to spy on Hamlet, as per Claudius' orders. Here, he goes to the queen's chambers to intercede on his daughter's behalf, as Gertrude was on the verge of firing Ophelia as her lady-in-waiting.
Adaptational Nice Guy: In Hamlet, Polonius comes across as quite controlling of Ophelia (though how much of a jerk he is depends on the adaptation; in some he's just overprotective, in others he's an outright Control Freak). Here, he is more considerate, open-minded and gives her a lot of freedom. While he's misguided at times, he does want Ophelia to be safe and happy more than anything. Polonius also doesn't use his daughter to spy on Hamlet here; Claudius is the mastermind of this ploy, with Polonius reluctantly going along with it and even trying to talk Claudius out of it to the best of his ability.
Adaptational Sympathy: He comes across less as a Professional Butt-Kisser driven mostly by ambition and more as an ordinary man trying to keep his job, protect his family and not piss off an increasingly tyrannical king willing to kill anyone who threatens his power.
Anger Born of Worry: Due to his daughter's closeness to the prince and Hamlet's acrimonious relationship with his uncle, Polonius grows increasingly fearful that Claudius will turn his wrath on his family. Following the Mousetrap play, we see Polonius lose his temper with Ophelia for the first time, expressing concern that not only will he lose his position but they might even be accused of treason. Considering that Claudius openly states he regards Ophelia as "dangerous" and is definitely willing to kill those he sees as a threat, Polonius' fears aren't unfounded.
Doting Parent: He's a proud and loving father to Laertes and Ophelia; in the latter's case in particular, he gives her an unusual amount of leeway for a medieval girl, as he wants her to be happy. However, when Ophelia starts getting into trouble with the king and queen (not really through any fault of her own, mind you), he starts to think this was a mistake and he should've been stricter with her.
Happily Married: He was to his late wife until her death and it's clear from when he speaks about her that he still loves her.
Killed Offscreen: Due to the film focusing on Ophelia's perspective, we don't get to see Polonius' death. Ophelia is woken by Horatio and told that her father has been killed; Ophelia is then taken to see his body while Gertrude tearfully explains how it happened.
Marry for Love: It's mentioned that Polonius's marriage to Laertes's and Ophelia's late mother was a love match.
Murder by Mistake: He's fatally stabbed by Hamlet, who had mistaken him for Claudius when he had slipped into Gertude's rooms to try and talk her into forgiving Ophelia.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Polonius claims that the cause of Hamlet's 'madness' is his love for Ophelia. He thinks he's helping and that the prince's interest in his daughter would be advantageous, but this results in Claudius getting tipped off that Ophelia and Hamlet might both be onto him as a murderer and leads to him figuring out they're secretly married.
Oh, Crap!: When Claudius drags Ophelia off to force her to break up with Hamlet so they can observe his reaction, Polonius is left hurrying after them, frantically stating he's sure the whole romance was just an innocent game between children. Considering he was the one who suggested to Claudius that Hamlet's erratic behavior was due to his relationship with Ophelia and thus made his daughter a target, his panic is understandable.
Parental Hypocrisy: A slight example. He talks about arranging a marriage for Ophelia now she's of age, only for her to point out he married her mother from love. It's enough to make him back off from the idea for a bit.
Parents as People: It's obvious he loves his children, but he's rather oblivious or slow on the uptake at times, especially when it comes to Ophelia. He also straight-up admits he has no idea how he's supposed to raise a daughter after his wife died (given the Deliberate Values Dissonance of the time period).
Sacrificial Lion: He's a rather significant supporting character and gets accidentally killed by Hamlet in the third act, after which things quickly go From Bad to Worse. Polonius is the first significant character to die (besides Hamlet's dad much earlier in the film) and he sure isn't the last.
Smart People Wear Glasses: He's an advisor to the King of Denmark and keeps a primitive pair of reading glasses on a chain around his neck.
Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Of his own doom. He had gone to see Gertrude to apologize and persuade her not to cast away Ophelia, after she had inadvertently offended the queen. As a result, he's in the wrong place at the wrong time, and gets killed by Hamlet. This has the knock-on-effect of dooming Hamlet and Polonius' own son as well, after Laertes swears revenge for Polonius' death.
You Remind Me of X: When Ophelia passionately argues against having a potentially miserable arranged marriage purely for "survival", he sighs and says "You are so like your mother."

Laertes

Portrayed by: Tom Felton; Calum O'Rourke (young)

"Ophelia, be afraid. Afraid of all he can take from you. You will only be safe if you are afraid."

Ophelia's older brother, who is away at university for much of the story.

Beware the Nice Ones: For the most part, Laertes is a kind and easy-going young man. But kill his dad and make his sister go insane, and he will end you. Claudius is lucky he was able to put all the blame on Hamlet, as Laertes was fully prepared to take him on with an angry mob to get justice for his family.
Big Brother Instinct: He looks out for Ophelia and tries to give her advice to keep her safe. After she appears to go mad from grief, Laertes doesn't shun her and instead gently encourages her to approach him, also protesting Claudius having her locked up. In fact, when the guards try to drag her away, he jumps to his feet and nearly draws his sword, demanding that they unhand her. He later challenges Hamlet to a duel to the death due to believing he is the cause of his sister's tragic fate unaware she's actually still alive.
Can't Get Away with Nuthin': The first and only time Laertes does something morally questionable in the movie is accepting Claudius' offer to anoint his blade with poison, for his duel with Hamlet. Guess what happens?
Cool Big Bro: Ophelia views him this way; he talks to her in detail about his lessons because she can't attend them herself, answers all her questions honestly and teaches her how to read.
Despair Event Horizon: While he's certainly distraught and furious when his father is killed, after his beloved sister drowns in a probable suicide Laertes loses it completely (especially as she was the last of his family). He spends the climax in a seething rage, caring about nothing but killing Hamlet to avenge his family. He's even willing to go along with Claudius' idea of poisoning his blade to ensure Hamlet dies, even though this is considered extremely dishonorable in the setting and pretty out-of-character based on what we've seen of Laertes. In the end, not even killing Hamlet gives him much satisfaction, especially as he's mortally wounded too.
Early Personality Signs: The scenes with young Laertes double as an Establishing Character Moment: he follows the other boys to their lessons in the library, which Ophelia is barred from attending, but promises to tell her everything afterwards. A little later, when he and Ophelia are watching a royal banquet celebrating the prince's birthday, Laertes tries to stop Ophelia from getting too close and hangs back. This establishes that Laertes is mindful of his duty and place in society, is a lot more cautious than Ophelia, and is also loving and protective of his sister.
Poisoned Weapons: Claudius gives him a sword coated in poison to guarantee Hamlet's death in their duel. It backfires on Laertes, as while the poison kills Hamlet, Laertes himself gets cut by the blade and quickly dies too.
Rabble Rouser: Upon learning Polonius was murdered, he is able to persuade some townsfolk to march on the castle and confront the king.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: About midway through the movie, Laertes announces he intends to continue his studies abroad. He tells Ophelia that he's become increasingly uncomfortable by the toxic atmosphere at Elsinore since Claudius took the throne and cautions Ophelia to be careful. He returns near the end after learning his father has been killed.
Shipping Torpedo: He cautions Ophelia against getting involved romantically with Hamlet, even expressing mild horror over the rumors Hamlet "no longer sees [her] as a child". Ophelia's response is to roll her eyes and state "I am no longer a child". Laertes indicates he's worried that Hamlet will only break her heart and ruin her reputation due to him being too far above their station to consider marrying her. Ophelia tells their father he has nothing to worry about she "want[s] nothing to do with [Hamlet]", although not long after Laertes leaves for university she quickly rekindles her romance with the prince.
Stunned Silence: When his now-insane sister runs shrieking into the hall, twirls around in a circle, then starts loudly humming, he can initially only stare at her in shock before asking her to sit next to him.
Vengeance Feels Empty: After killing Hamlet, Laertes' expression is one of despair rather than triumph. Upon seeing Gertrude stabbing Claudius, he appears to realize how Claudius has manipulated his grief to get rid of Hamlet, and quickly collapses and succumbs to the poison.
You Killed My Father: When he finds out his father has been killed and Claudius is allegedly responsible (technically, it's indirectly his fault), Laertes raises an angry mob to storm Elsinore and demand justice. Upon learning that Hamlet killed Polonius (albeit unintentionally) he turns his animosity upon him instead.

Cristiana

Lady Cristiana

Portrayed by: Daisy Head

"Today the queen loves me above the rest. But she is fickle and another day you might be back in favour."

One of Queen Gertrude's ladies-in-waiting, who bullies Ophelia and sees her as a rival.

Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: She has dark hair and is quite haughty and composed, with the other ladies looking up to her.
Bitch Alert: Her first scene involves her mockingly telling Ophelia she "dance[s] like a goat", which tells you pretty much all you need to know about her.
Canon Foreigner: Possibly combined with Ascended Extra. In the play, none of Gertrude's ladies-in-waiting are named or receive any characterization save for Ophelia.
Character Death: She's killed by the invading Norwegians when they take Elsinore.
Fair-Weather Friend: She blatantly flirts with Hamlet and all but flings herself at him during a ball, but the moment he falls out of favour at court due to the public rift between him and Claudius, she barely interacts with him. In a deleted scene, she even tells Ophelia she wouldn't be friends with the prince for any reason. While her fear of being accused of treason is understandable, it also suggests she's only interested in relationships that will advance her position.
Green-Eyed Monster: It's implied part of the reason she dislikes Ophelia is because she's jealous of her being Gertrude's favorite lady-in-waiting, even though she's lowborn. She's petty enough to rub it in Ophelia's face when Gertrude begins favoring her instead.
Kick the Dog: Her cruellest moment by far is when she smugly tells Ophelia - who is grieving for her father - that Hamlet was murdered en-route to England; she even refuses to divulge the full circumstances of his death until Ophelia physically threatens her. This also means Cristiana was aware that Claudius ordered the death of Gertrude's son behind her back and yet said nothing, not even showing much sympathy for her queen in this instance.
Pet the Dog: A mild example. Upon learning of the king's death and seeing how distraught the queen is, Cristiana and the other ladies all look genuinely upset. When Ophelia asks Cristiana what happened, for once she doesn't take the opportunity to be mean to her and just tearfully tells her the king is dead.
Rich Bitch: She's a wealthy young noblewoman and acts like the medieval court equivalent of an Alpha Bitch, spreading gossip with her Girl Posse and picking on the lady-in-waiting that doesn't quite fit in. She's particularly mocking about Ophelia's lack of social standing and wealth.
The Rival: She sees herself as this to Ophelia, competing with her for the queen's attention and friendship. Ophelia doesn't seem to view it the same way and just wants Cristiana to leave her alone. She briefly serves as a romantic rival for Hamlet, but Hamlet never shows any serious interest in Cristiana and after Claudius becomes king, her own interest swiftly wanes.
Social Climber: She seeks to endear herself to Queen Gertrude to advance her own position at court. Her initial flirtation with Hamlet is indicated to be for similar reasons.

King Hamlet

Portrayed by: Nathaniel Parker

"My kingdom needs me."

The King of Denmark, first husband of Gertrude, father of Hamlet and older brother of Claudius. His untimely death is the inciting incident of the story's conflict.

All Women Are Lustful: It's implied that he believes this. When Gertrude points out that by suggesting Claudius isn't his father's son, he insults his mother by indicating she was an unfaithful wife, the king simply replies "She's no worse than any other woman." Given he'd been chastizing Gertrude for publicly fooling around with Claudius moments before, he's clearly referring to her too, which she doesn't take well.
Ambiguous Situation: He appears to be aware of his wife and brother's attraction to each other, though it's left ambiguous as to whether they actually had a full-blown affair or how much he knows. He does warn Gertrude that people watch her constantly and her behavior could potentially reflect badly on them all.
Dead Sparks: By the main events of the film, his relationship with his wife comes off as distant at best. He rarely spends time with her outside of public events and even then he barely interacts with her, preferring to focus on his kingly duties. Their longest conversation is a heated argument where Hamlet Sr. reprimands Gertrude for being too affectionate with his brother and suggesting she's loose and faithless. He refuses to listen to her tearful pleas to stay with her (though in fairness, she had just thrown a glass at him).
Doomed by Canon: We actually see him alive in this adaptation, but we know he won't stay that way for long because his death is central to the plot.
Follow in My Footsteps: He wants his son to succeed him as Denmark's king and has been preparing him for the role, even though Danish kings are elected rather than inheriting the position (it can be assumed that Hamlet Sr. believed if he prepared his son well enough, he'd be seen as the best candidate by the nobles). Hamlet himself doesn't appear to mind the idea of becoming king, although it does cause some angst in his personal life as Hamlet believes his father wouldn't let him marry Ophelia despite his love for her.
Forgotten Fallen Friend: Played for Drama. After he dies, he's mourned and then everyone quickly moves on and rarely mentions him...everyone except for his son, that is, who is disgusted by this and makes sure no one, least of all Claudius, forgets his father.
Make It Look Like an Accident: His cause of death is believed to be from a snake bite. He was actually intentionally poisoned by Claudius using snake's venom, who wanted it to look accidental so he could get the throne.
Married to the Job: He's greatly preoccupied with his kingdom, causing his relationship with his wife to suffer as she feels neglected.
Parental Marriage Veto: Discussed; Hamlet tells Ophelia his father would never approve of his son marrying someone like her, as she's too far beneath his station, which is why they can't be together. After he dies, it becomes a moot point and Hamlet proposes to Ophelia.
Plot-Triggering Death: His sudden death causes the film's central conflict, as it does in the play.
Royals Who Actually Do Something: He's shown poring over documents even during a royal ball and is deeply concerned about Norway's threat to invade, struggling to keep the peace.
Unwitting Instigator of Doom: If he'd just been more affectionate with his wife, she probably wouldn't have been seduced by Claudius and thus given the opening he needed to kill his brother and take the throne.

Edmund

Portrayed by: Sebastian de Souza

A minor courtier and royal guard, who causes trouble for Ophelia.

Abhorrent Admirer: To Ophelia. He's good-looking, but his personality is deeply unpleasant. He makes unwanted, bawdy comments towards her after she stops him from sexually harassing another woman and attempts to assault her after she's betrothed to him against her will.
Arranged Marriage: Late in the film, Claudius arranges for him to marry Ophelia, to stop her from exposing him as a murderer. Edmund has no issues with it, though Ophelia is clearly not so keen. The wedding never takes place, though, as Ophelia feigns madness and drowning to escape.
Asshole Victim: Considering his horrid behavior throughout the film and the fact he's Claudius' lackey, one doesn't feel too bad for him when he becomes a casualty of Fortinbras' invasion.
Canon Foreigner: He has no known counterpart in Hamlet.
Establishing Character Moment: In his first onscreen appearance early in the film, he can be seen leering at the queen's ladies-in-waiting while they're practising their dancing, hinting at his general attitude towards women.
Expy: He can be seen as a douchier version of Paris from Romeo and Juliet; like Paris he desires a woman who doesn't return his feelings and arranges to marry her without consulting her; he doesn't realize she's already secretly married and she gets out of their betrothal by faking her death.
Groin Attack: Ophelia knees him in the groin when he tries to rape her.
Marital Rape License: After Ophelia is betrothed to him, he sees no issue with trying to force himself on her, because she's 'his' now. To his detriment, Ophelia very much disagrees.
Number Two: To Claudius; he's often never far from his side and Claudius trusts him to carry out anything he asks of him.
Redemption Rejection: When Ophelia gets thrown into a cell and left alone with him, she begs him to help her escape Claudius, as he may well have her killed for 'treason'. Edmund barely listens to her pleas and instead tries to rape her.
Slashed Throat: He gets a Norwegian soldier's blade in his throat in the climax.
Slimeball: He's a sleazy, misogynistic jerkass who treats women like objects to be used and discarded as he sees fit, as well as kissing up to Claudius. He can barely hold any conversation with Ophelia that doesn't involve him making gross sexual remarks or disregarding what she's saying.
Tap on the Head: Ophelia hits him on the head with a flaming torch hard enough to knock him to the ground, incapacitating him long enough for her to run up to the great hall and convince the court she's gone insane. However, he's has recovered enough to catch up with Gertrude and the other guards at the riverside to witness Ophelia's apparent drowning and seems no worse for wear afterwards.

Fortinbras

King Fortinbras

Portrayed by: Ivo Hanel

The King of Norway who plots to invade Denmark (mostly offscreen).

Demoted to Extra: He's got even less screentime and prominence in Ophelia than he did in Hamlet, and has no lines (the film doesn't include the scene where a dying Hamlet gives Fortinbras his blessing to become king, as in this version Hamlet is already dead by the time Fortinbras turns up.
Hero of Another Story: "Hero" might be pushing it, but Fortinbras is at the center of his plot involving him trying to take over Denmark, which is barely mentioned until things come to a head at the end.
Out of Focus: For the entire movie, right up until the climax where he storms Elsinore. He almost comes across as an Outside-Context Problem, as the primary threat to Ophelia throughout the plot is Claudius and Fortinbras is treated as an afterthought following any early conservation mentioning he might invade.
Royals Who Actually Do Something: He personally leads the charge to take the castle and seize the Danish throne.

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

Rosencrantz portrayed by: Noel Czuczor

Guildenstern portrayed by: Martin Angerbauer

Two minor courtiers who are rarely seen apart and get dragged into Claudius' schemes against Hamlet.

Adaptational Villainy: The play implies that they were ignorant of Claudius' order to have Hamlet killed and their complicity in this. In Ophelia, it's stated that Claudius directly ordered them to kill Hamlet and they seemingly went along with this, although for what it's worth it's mentioned they "did not like their orders".
Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In the play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are childhood friends of Hamlet and he is hurt by their agreement to spy on him for Claudius. Here, there's little-to-no interaction between them and no indication they're close friends at any point.
Anti-Villain: They knowingly go along with Claudius' plan to assassinate Hamlet en-route to England here, although it's mentioned they're not happy about it and they're never previously depicted doing anything villainous. It's unclear if they're just obeying their king (especially as Hamlet comes off as an insane murderer at this point in the story) or if they're worried Claudius will have them killed if they refuse.
Demoted to Extra: In the play they're supporting characters who serve as Comic Relief, while here they barely get any lines and are largely background characters until the third act; even then their most significant actions occur offscreen.
Those Two Guys: They're constantly accompanying one another in all their scenes, mostly reacting to the events such as the king's death and Claudius freaking out over the Mousetrap play. The only time they're actively involved in the plot is when they're sent to accompany Hamlet to England after he kills Polonius.
Uncertain Doom: We don't see them again after Hamlet is sent off to England; given Hamlet survived their attempt to bump him off and that they were killed in the play, it can be assumed something similar happened here, although we don't get any confirmation.

Characters / Ophelia

Ophelia

Queen Gertrude

Prince Hamlet

King Claudius

Mechtild

Horatio

Polonius

Laertes

Lady Cristiana

King Hamlet

Edmund

King Fortinbras

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

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Characters / Ophelia

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Ophelia

Queen Gertrude

Prince Hamlet

King Claudius

Mechtild

Horatio

Polonius

Laertes

Lady Cristiana

King Hamlet

Edmund

King Fortinbras

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

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Index

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