SAM CRANE, PINNY GRYLLS | UK | 2024 | 89 MIN | ENGLISH
Something’s rotten in the state of Grand Theft Auto’s fictional world of Los Santos, yet against all odds, two out-of-work actors attempt to stage The Bard’s Hamlet entirely inside this wildly unpredictable, violent, and hilarious video game landscape. Like many in 2021, British thespians Sam Crane and Mark Oosterveen (along with the film’s co-director and Sam’s wife, Pinny Grylls), turned to the sunny beaches and beautiful vistas of GTA despite their creeping fears of an uncertain future lingering just outside the screen’s glow. Inspired by the discovery of an amphitheater inside the game, Sam and Mark realize GTA’s world would be the perfect staging ground for the tragedy, comedy, and violence that runs rampant through William Shakespeare’s oeuvre. After the pair settle on Hamlet, open casting calls reveal an eclectic mix of professional and amateur actors and crew facing their own existential crises, struggles, and boredom. As opening night approaches, the rowdy crowds of the famed Globe Theater are rivaled only by GTA’s own global audience armed with Uzis, helicopters, and a penchant for inflicting chaos. What begins as an experiment turns into a passion project and “the show must go on” rallying cry in this innovative, thrilling, and surprisingly poignant documentary.
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