Some critics, notably Stanley Kauffmann, declared the film to be the finest motion picture version of "Hamlet" yet made. Online film critic James Berardinelli wrote the film a four star review and declared the Branagh "Hamlet" the finest Shakespeare adaptation ever, rating it as the best film of 1996, the fourth best film of the 90s, and one of his top 101 favourite films of all time, saying, "From the moment it was first announced that Branagh would attempt an unabridged "Hamlet", I never doubted that it would be a worthy effort ... I have seen dozens of versions of this play, and none has ever held me in such a grip of awe".