“Hamnet” is the latest film by Oscar-winning director Chloe Zhao. “Hamnet’s” journey began with a limited release in December of 2025, before pivoting to a wide release in January of this year. Zhao is most well-known for “Nomadland”, for which she won her Oscar, and “Eternals”. Starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley as William and Agnes Shakespeare, it is a beautiful movie that reckons with death and the impact of grief.
The movie follows William and Agnes’ relationship as it grows and evolves with William’s flourishing theatre career. However, after a fateful event that leads to the death of one of their children, William and Agnes both must find a way to move forward and deal with their grief. This leads William to seem distant, with his focus on theatre, and Agnes to feel like she is the only one who truly cares. However, we realize that the play “Hamlet” is a tribute to his late son, Hamnet. The way the movie weaves together Agnes and William despite them being apart at the end of the film is genius.
Overall, this is a thoughtful movie that doesn’t hesitate to let you linger in uncomfortable scenes. It uses its pauses and slow pacing to capture you in the moment. The cinematography and music are both impactful and enhance the experience of the movie. The contrast the film draws between Agnes and William is incredible, since they are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Agnes fully embodies her grief and doesn’t hide it, which puts her at odds with William, who buries himself and his emotions in his work. Mescal and Buckley are ingenious in this movie as they portray grief. Once again, the way the movie sits in grief and doesn’t rush past it is what makes it so special. So many movies use death as an inciting incident, without making it a prevalent theme that carries weight throughout the rest of the movie. Hamnet does it wonderfully, because no matter what is going on, the loss of their son can be felt.
Paul Mescal has a masterful performance in this movie. He is a phenomenal actor who never fails to get emotion out of his audience. In this movie, he’s not quite at the level of some of his previous projects, but that’s not a knock on Hamnet. That’s just how skilled Mescal has proven himself to be. However, Jessie Buckley was the one that stole the show for me in this movie. I hadn’t heard of her before “Hamnet,” but she blew me away. It is probably easy to stereotype and force the role of the grieving mother to be one note, but Buckley is so good at adding layers to her performance without it becoming too much. It seems many others agree with this, given Buckley was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards for her role in this movie. Furthermore, Jacobi Jupe, who played their son, Hamnet, was also excellent. Child actors are usually hit or miss, but he was very good.
Overall, “Hamnet” is a touching film that perfectly plays with grief and loss in a way that invests you in the story. It’s a shame it took so long for it to get a full release so more people could finally see it. I would highly recommend checking this movie out, as it is one of the best of 2025, even though it took until 2026 for it to be released in a nearby theater. Zhao has proven herself to be a wonderful director, and I can’t wait to see what she directs next.
Four and a half out of five stars.
