February 6, 1991 -- ``Hamlet'' is a very glossy rendition of Shakespeare's masterpiece, but it is more form than substance and it is not the whole play. Parts of it have been cut out. It doesn't even begin with Act 1 Scene 1 as one might expect. It seems disjointed and a little slow moving in spots, perhaps as a result of the cutting.

Mel Gibson, the heart throb star of the film, brings that over the edge menacing lunacy to the role that he used in the two Lethal Weapon movies. Gibson gives a competent performance as Hamlet. Glenn Close, however, gives a terrific performance as the queen. The rest of the cast is not as impressive. Franco Zeffirelli is not as successful with this production as he was with his 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet, recognized as one of the best.

He does, however, put this film through the Ziffirelli machine and it comes out looking like his other films. The cinematography is stunning and it is slickly put together, but Zeffirelli and Gibson will always be compared to Laurence Olivier, who both directed and starred in the 1948 version of this film, and both fall short of the Olivier standard.

One thing about this film that sets it apart from current movies on the subject of revenge is that it fully explores the madness and tragedy resulting from revenge. Modern movies tend to glorify revenge, making it appear to be a desirable option for dealing with problems.

Hamlet shows that revenge is not fun and easy. More often, it results, as it does in Hamlet, in all the main characters of the drama dead in a pool of blood. But then modern audiences prefer a happy ending.

On a scale of one to 10 this film rates a six.

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