As
directors envision making the Claudius, Hamlet and Gertrude scene come to life,
they each have different artistic visions and visions of how the actors should
portray the scene. Gertrude for example, is commonly thought of as a deceiving mother who
has been both loving and seductive onstage. Gertrude either demonstrates her newfound
devotion to Claudius or her preserved love for her son. In David Tennant's
Hamlet, Gertrude is metaphorically torn in two by her commanding husband and
her extremely aggressive son. The spacing between her and Claudius and her and Hamlet shows how she is neither
with nor against them. She knows that she loves her son but she also knows that
it is in her best interest if she keeps Claudius content. Through her up close
and sensual speech to Hamlet we see that in this director’s version Gertrude is
a seductress, attempting to use her sexual power in order to keep her son from
going back to Wittenberg. Once called on by her newly entitled king, Gertrude
retreats from Hamlet's side and obeys like a pet leaving her son to mourn
alone. The fact that Gertrude stands on the side of the set that Claudius is on
showcases her decision to please him instead of Hamlet. In the Mel Gibson version of Hamlet Gertrude
depicted as a completely different persona. She has an air of youth and a light
that the Tennant Gertrude didn’t have. Here we see Gertrude as a tender and
loving mother, one who tends to her child and only cares for him. The intimate
space of both she and Hamlet make the scene extremely familial in comparison to
the cold and static Tennant version. One still sees Gertrude’s sensuality but
in a new light, one of care and passion. The Mel Gibson Gertrude has kept the
love she has for her son and does not allow the coronation of Claudius pollute
it.
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