Orpheus, filled with grief, journeys to the underworld to take her back. He charms this three-headed dog, Cerberus. He beguiles Hades until finally… he’s allowed to take his love back with him to the world of the living but… under one condition. She must follow behind him, and he must not turn around to look at her. Now, as they begin their ascent, Orpheus can’t hear her footsteps, so he listens… and listens and listens and listens. But all he can hear is the sound of his heartbeat. And the rest is silence. And as he approaches the gates of the underworld… he can’t contain himself any longer. He turns around to look at her, and she is… trapped in the underworld forever.
Hamnet (2025) dir. Chloé Zhao











