Earlier, we reported about Steven Spielberg's role as a producer on director Chloé Zhao's critically acclaimed film Hamnet, starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley. With only a few weeks to go for its India release, the legendary filmmaker talked about his experience working on the film with Zhao.
In a video conversation with Zhao, Spielberg said that the Hamnet set is "probably the most dangerous set" that he has ever been on. Spielberg was referring to the lack of lights on the film's set in a tongue-in-cheek manner. The comment elicited a big laugh from director Zhao. Recalling the incident where Spielberg visited the set, Zhao said that he wondered whether or not she has lit the set. The film lacks light because it is a period drama that explores grief.
Based on Maggie O'Farrell's eponymous novel, the film follows William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) and his wife Agnes (Jessie Buckley), who grieve their son Hamnet's (Jacobi Jupe) passing. After its US release and receiving critical acclaim from festivals, the drama is finally set to have its India release through distributor Reliance Entertainment.
Speaking about its theatrical release, Spielberg said that films such as the Chloé Zhao directorial deserves it because of the communal experience it offers. "I have always found that the great equaliser is when you sit in a movie theatre and are spellbound by what is coming at you from the screen and the speakers," Spielberg said. "When you put that out there in a theatre, everyone becomes a community, where all of us become brothers and sisters. There are no differences between us because we are in communion with the story, but all together in the great unknown of a dark movie house. That is why films like Hamnet deserve theatrical release," the legendary filmmaker added.
Zhao has directed the film from a screenplay she has written alongside the original novel's writer O'Farrell. It is among the Best Picture Oscar contenders this year.
