Hamnet Review (Film, 2025)

content warning: grief, pregnancy, medical footage

It's so rare to be utterly entranced by a film's opening shots, yet I knew from the first three static cuts of Hamnet I was in for something special. Writer/director Chloé  Zhao's adaptation of Maggie O'Farrell's novel (O'Farrell is also co-writer) opens with a series of static shots introducing us to the world of Agnes.

First, we see Agnes asleep under the roots of a massive tree in the forest, her red dress caressed by the grass and fallen leaves of nature. Second, the camera cuts to Agnes' view through the trees, an impossibly blue sky held up by the boughs of the tree she lays under. Third, the camera cuts again to Agnes' hunting hawk perched on a branch of the tree, splitting the difference between the freedom of the sky and the weight of the natural world Agnes lives in.

Agnes is a fictionalized version of Anne Hathaway, the wife of William Shakespeare, in Hamnet. She is the eldest daughter of a wealthy family William is contracted to tutor in Latin in order to pay off his father's debts. Agnes is twice removed from the world that William could ever hope to be accepted in, both as the daughter of a wealthy family and the dark sheep of her own family.

Agnes is rumored to be the daughter of a witch. Her mother emerged from the forest and bewitched her father, much to the dismay of her father's family. Agnes is bonded so tightly to her mother, learning all of her folk remedies and spells that allow the protective plants of the forest to ensure any outcome for the survival of those who know how to use them. She is loved and protected until her mother dies in childbirth, and her stepmother does everything she can to civilize Agnes. Her stepmother demands Agnes obey all the rules she should've been following her whole life.

Therein lies the central crux of Zhao's Hamnet. This historical drama about the relationship between Agnes and William Shakespeare explores the constant onslaught of microaggressions against anyone who doesn't toe the line to society's expectations. Agnes is loyal to her mother's teachings and William is loyal to his art; both value the heart and the mind over the expectations of society and both are constantly ground down by their own families for daring to pursue their own truth.

Every relationship has its conflicts and Zhao makes is clear that Agnes and William are no exception. They love each other, dearly. They have a family together. They build a life together. However, their own true comfort and sense of peace is best defined in ways that diametrically oppose what is shown on camera.

The film opened with Agnes' ideal sense of peace. She is one with nature. She is happiest in the forest, connecting with the plants, animals, and rituals her mother taught her to use for survival. When Agnes is shot in wide with a static frame, she is at peace.

William doesn't like space. He doesn't like quiet or stillness. He longs for movement, close encounters, and spontaneity. When the camera follows him and jumps to his every interest, he is at peace.

The worlds collide in marriage, creating an undercurrent of tension as the context we have for the happiest versions of these characters is constantly compromised for the good of the relationship. Agnes is not happy confined to the low ceilings and treated walls of her marriage home, yet this attic bedroom with its messy desk and noisey quill is William's escape from the world. In the same way, William is noticeably tense and seemingly searching for an escape when surrounded by the quiet of nature, while Agnes clearly feels alive and ready to teach her children what they need to survive if the sky is open above her.

This is not to say that Agnes and William do not love each other; they very much do. They love the world they built together. They are just so used to compromising in order to fit what their families and society expects of them that they will suffer quietly if they think it makes life easier; it does not. The world around them still tests their bond and their beliefs every day, dropping by unexpectedly to demand certain rules and expectations be followed even if it causes the young family to cry out in sorrow and suffering.

Hamnet is a beautiful, meditative, and harrowing historical drama about the price of choosing a different life. Agnes and William have each other and know they will always have each other; it's the world at large that needs to learn to love them as they are.

Hamnet is currently playing in theaters.