A new ‘melancholy Dane’ is now a part of a South Asian dynasty in Riz Ahmed’s ‘Hamlet’

Why do artists keep returning to William Shakespeare? His plays — rife with exploration of deep humanity and emotion — provide not just a framework for hanging many different worlds upon his words, but also the kind of complex characters and twisted tales that actors and filmmakers crave, whether tragedy, romance or comedy. The latest movie adaptation of an iconic Shakespeare play is “Hamlet,” directed by Aneil Karia, which stars Riz Ahmed as the prodigal prince mourning the death of his father.

The setting is modern London, the language original. The screenplay is adapted by Michael Lesslie, who has become a versatile journeyman screenwriter, penning scripts for everything from Justin Kurzel’s 2015 version of “Macbeth” to the young adult behemoth “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.” (He even has a story credit on the magician thriller “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t.”)

Ahmed brought the idea to rethink “Hamlet” with a South Asian British family to Lesslie, who has stripped down and streamlined Shakespeare’s play to the emotional essentials, while director Karia brings a gritty, stylish look. Ahmed provides his haunted, intelligent eyes to convey the inner torment of this Hamlet, the grieving scion of a wealthy family of real estate developers.

As soon as his father’s body has been incinerated, Hamlet is rattled to discover that his uncle Claudius (Art Malik) plans to marry his freshly widowed mother Gertrude (Sheeba Chaddha). A night of debauchery with his old friend Laertes (Joe Alwyn) leads Hamlet to a visit from the spirit of his father (Avijit Dutt), who claimed that he’s been murdered and exhorts his son to avenge his death.

Hamlet spirals out of control at this revelation, exacerbated when he starts to uncover the corruption within the family company, Elsinore, which has been involved in the illegal clearing of homeless camps for their latest development. Lashing out, Hamlet sows chaos that ranges from the mischievous to the murderous, though it all always ends in bloody tragedy.

This adaptation works because ritual is so ingrained in families like the one Lesslie and Karia present on screen — it’s not such a stretch to imagine that what was expected of the Prince of Denmark in 1600 is not so far off from what is expected of this modern-day heir. Tradition, money and family have the same power now as they did then, at least in this context.

So much of what makes Shakespeare work is the performance, especially when the audience has to work through the language. Ahmed’s electrifying turn illuminates the text, carefully honed by Lesslie. But his Hamlet needs a stalwart supporting cast with whom to spar, and Ahmed tangles beautifully with Shakespeare veteran Timothy Spall, who plays Laertes’ father and family adviser Polonius, and Morfydd Clark as a steely but vulnerable Ophelia.

Karia emphasizes cinematic and visual storytelling, too, and cinematographer Stuart Bentley achieves some remarkable compositions, capturing neon lights, car headlights and concrete-dusted corners of outer London at night. Inside, a handheld camera noses into personal conversations like another participant.

Powered by Hamlet’s unpredictable emotions, the film cyclones toward a centerpiece dance performance: his “play” at the wedding of Claudius and Gertrude. It’s a truly stunning expression of his rage and betrayal — a seething accusation — told entirely through bodies and gesture. After the play-within-a-play, there’s no turning back, and the blood flows like wine or poison.

Karia doesn’t skimp on it, but then again, neither did Shakespeare, and the film is faithful, even if nipped and tucked for running time’s sake. It works for both experienced lovers of the Bard and newcomers. Who wouldn’t want to see the famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy delivered by Ahmed behind the wheel of a speeding car? The song remains the same, but it’s all in the way you play it.

Katie Walsh is a Tribune News Service film critic.

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