There’s barely a year that goes by in the Australian arts calendar without a significant production of Hamlet (ArtsHub reviewed two just in 2024, here and here), but the latest adaptation of one of the Western canon’s most performed works may be genuinely original. Grand Theft Hamlet, a new documentary film directed by the UK’s Pinny Grylls and Sam Crane, documents the pair’s attempt to stage Hamlet in the chaotic world of the online video game Grand Theft Auto V.
Grand Theft Auto V is one of the most successful video games ever. Its long-awaited 2025 sequel is likely to be the biggest release of the year. It’s online world, populated by millions of players, takes place in a fictionalised version of Los Angeles. As the title implies, crime and violence are the central gameplay mechanics.
For actors Crane and Grylls, the choice of venue seemed a natural fit. “People are violent in Shakespeare,” Crane told the ABC. “It’s f***ing brutal.” Indeed, one of the funniest sections of their documentary film shows Crane and Grylls approaching other players and offering them the chance to be cast in the show – only to be regularly punched, shot at or burned to a crisp.
While Grand Theft Hamlet is one of the most thorough investigations of Shakespeare in video games, it is not alone. The open world game Fallout 76, played in a post-apocalyptic dystopia, features a band of dedicated players who tour the virtual world performing Shakespeare’s plays.
The documentary Grand Theft Hamlet is screening on Mubi.
Watch the trailer for Grand Theft Hamlet:
5 best new films to stream this week:
1) Abbé Pierre: A Century Of Devotion – Stan (11 March)
Film (2023). In this French biographical drama, we get the life story of Henri Grouès, AKA Abbé Pierre, from his time in the World War II Resistance to his battles against poverty and on behalf of the homeless.
The question being: are you interested in the life story of Henri Grouès, AKA Abbé Pierre, from his time in the World War II Resistance to his battles against poverty and on behalf of the homeless?
If you’re willing to give it a shot, we think you’ll be très entertained.
Directed by Frédéric Tellier and starring Benjamin Lavernhe, Emmanuelle Bercot and Michel Vuillermoz. Watch the trailer.
2) The Electric State – Netflix (14 March)
Film (2025). Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt star in this – deep breath – retro-futuristic science fiction adventure comedy drama about an orphaned teen who hits the road with a mysterious robot in a quest to find her younger brother after a robot rebellion.
It’s kinda set in the 90s, but also in the future, and loosely based on the 2018 illustrated novel of the same name by Simon Stålenhag.
With a reported budget of US$320 million, we’re hoping it’s at least going to look great.
We also like that it stars Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, Ke Huy Quan and Jason Alexander – what a combo! Watch the trailer.
3) F*** Marry Kill – Prime Video (14 March)
Film (2025). A comedy thriller that has divided viewers (much like the guy’s Tinder profile you show your friends that leads some to say, ‘yeah, he looks hot’, while others say, ‘seriously, run for the hills and don’t look back’). We’re not fully committed, either, but we’re willing to meet up and see …
As a serial killer targets women on dating apps, a true-crime junkie must figure out which of her three dates is a f-boy, marriage material, or the infamous Swipe Right Killer.
This comedy thriller, directed by Laura Murphy, stars Lucy Hale, Virginia Gardner and Brooke Nevin. Watch the trailer.
4) Asteroid City – Paramount+ (15 March)
Film (2023). Wes Anderson and ‘quirky comedy’ go hand in hand, of course, and so it is with Asteroid City, which takes place in a fictional American desert town circa 1955.
The itinerary of a junior Stargazer/ Space Cadet convention, organised to bring together students and parents from across the country for fellowship and scholarly competition, is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events. A coming-of-age story of sorts …
Come for the signature camera work and colour scheme, stay for the off-kilter performances.
Directed by Wes Anderson and starring Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks and Jeffrey Wright. Watch the trailer.
5) Memes & Nightmares – Disney+ (15 March)
Film (2024). This documentary promises to ‘blow your damn mind’ – and, yes, we’d like our damn minds blown, thank you very much.
When one of the world’s most popular memes goes missing without a trace, it’s up to Josiah to solve a mystery that goes to the highest levels of the Association. The NBA Twitter king’s quest unravels the fleeting nature of online content and human bonds in the digital era, shaping our ephemeral connections.
