Its not improbable that william shakespeare had someone who looked a lot like leonardo dicaprio in mind when he created romeo, a youthful hero at once innocent and reckless. Last night i watched romeo and juliet 20 film directed by carlo carlei. Luhrmann chooses a modern city as the setting for his film adaptation of romeo and juliet to present a chaotic urban world familiar to a 20thcentury cinema audience. My favorite scene was the scene were mercutio is killed by tybalt. The colourful settings add youthful vigour to the film and keep the spectator spellbound from the moment romeo and juliets first glimpse each other through a glass aquarium, with muted blue lighting and the camera.
The next morning romeo, his cousin tybalt and his best friend mercutio are discussing the previous nights events when juliet s nurse appears and demands to speak to romeo alone. Describe the setting of the story romeo and juliet. Baz luhrmann romeo and juliet analysis artscolumbia. Shakespeares famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of verona still retaining its original dialogue.
Compare and contrast romeo and juliet 1996 and 1996 bartleby. Romeo and juliet 1968 and 1996 movie comparison essay. With leonardo dicaprio, claire danes, john leguizamo, harold perrineau. Too bad the boat movie shoved him further into the spotlight than he had ever wanted.
Romeo and juliet 1968 and 1996 movie comparison essay sample. While the 1968 classical version of shakespeares romeo and juliet should be appreciated, the. Romeo and juliet film 1996 the balcony scene summary and. Romeo pumps tybalt full of lead while shouting incomprehensible lines. When juliet awakes to discover romeo s corpse, she uses tybalts gun and shoots herself in the head. The films of franco zeffirelli versus baz luhbrmanns version of romeo and juliet two films, both alike in content, set in fair verona, where the directors laid out their scene, one created by franco zeffirelli in 1968 and the other by baz luhbrmann in 1996. The 1968 version and the controversial 1996 version give different perspectives of shakespeares famous play.
Baz luhrmanns 1996 movie set it in the fictional verona beach, california. Analysis of setting in the opening scenes of luhrmanns film. The key difference between the manner in which the film and the play deal with location is that the film is primarily an. Elizabethan and jacobean audiences had special prejudices about italy, so when a dramatist of the time set a play in italy it was a kind of shorthand that said. The dead dagger verona italy pistol verona beach new york in the play. Romeo and juliet deals in extremes that overlap or transform into. Set in a city that is made of different parts of miami, mexico city, and veracruz, the story is given a modern feel. Baz luhrmanns romeo and juliet 1996 is an absolute. The film stars douglas booth, hailee steinfeld, damian lewis, kodi smitmcphee, ed westwick, stellan skarsgard and paul giamatti. In this version, the capulets and the montagues are two rival gangs. Luhrmann chooses a modern city as the setting for his film adaptation of romeo and juliet to present a chaotic urban world familiar to a 20thcentury cinema. The setting is a postmodern california city named verona beach, with guns and gang violence, rave culture and flamboyant colors. Essay about romeo and juliet movie and text comparison. Romeo and juliet act 4 scene 3 commentary romeo and juliet a comparecontrast essay comparing the balcony scenes in the movie productions of baz luhrman and franco zeffirelli.
The 1996 version of romeo and juliet, a short clip of them meeting for the first time in the capulets party. Shakespeares verona is not a fleshed out place as a reallife, physical city, but rather as a. William shakespeares romeo and juliet is a 1996 american romantic crime tragedy film directed, coproduced, and cowritten by baz luhrmann, co produced. Most of the action takes place in verona and a small portion in mantua. I found it really disturbing and gut wrenching because. Shakespeares setting of verona is more like a shorthand for exotic and crazy than a real setting. From the films production design to the costumes, the 1996 version outperformed franco zeffirellis romeo and juliet due to luhrmann taking a more entertaining and modern approach to the famous play. While the 1968 classical version of shakespeares romeo and juliet should be appreciated, the modern version portrays the. The first movie was made in 1968 and the second was a much more modern remake of the classic tale which was made in 1996. Sensing that he cannot leave yet, romeo leaps out of the montague convertible.
Romeo hears about her death and buys poison before visiting the family crypt. Romeo and juliet film 1996 study guide contains a biography of baz luhrmann, literature essays, quiz questions. Romeo and juliet is truly a classic play written by shakespeare. Seeking to avoid the academic label and setting the story in a violent big city. She forgives him, but hes banished from verona and juliets parents decide they want her to get married to paris that very week. Costumes were updated with hawaiian print shirts and casual styled dresses. While some praise the strange interpretation of the old tale, there are also those. William shakespeares romeo and juliet is a cherished piece of literature that has been remade into movies many times throughout history. Most movies follow shakespeares play and set the action in verona, italy. The setting is a beach city where cars and buildings are vibrant with color. In the film version, we see how the two opposed families dominate verona beach from the way skyscrapers bearing the names montague and capulet overshadow the citys horizon. The lovers thoughts of suicide, as when romeo threatens to kill himself after killing tybalt.
Its a strange one because the language remains unaltered, yet the setting and a lot of the plot has changed rather drastically. They have to hide their love from the world because they know that their parents will not allow them to be together. When mercutio dressed as a woman for the party i was very surprised and disgusted. Act 1, scene 1 on the streets of verona, two young capulet servants, sampson and gregory, are hanging out and trashtalking the montagues. Out of the two renditions of shakespeares romeo and juliet, the 1996 version directed by baz luhrmann is better for a plethora of reasons. This article will compare and contrast between the play itself and two famous romeo and juliet movies.
The films of franco zeffirelli versus baz luhbrmanns version of romeo and juliet 664 words 3 pages. The scenery as portrayed in the 1968 film is correct, according to description provided within the text of romeo and juliet. Romeo and juliet is a tragedy that follows the juvenile love between the capulet and montague families. The montagues and capulets are warring mafia empires, and the film stars a 20yearold, pretitanic leonardo dicaprio and the 17yearold claire danes, as well as john leguizamo as tybalt. By general consensus the original and worlds greatest epic concerning love, romeo and juliet is presented here by baz luhrmann in a thoroughly modern and accessible format, whilst retaining the original plot and utilising some of the worlds bestknown text. The challenges of luhrmanns romeo and juliet, which attempts to combine old language, modern attitudes and settings, south beach style and latin exotica, all while shooting on a location chosen. The classic story of romeo and juliet, set in a modernday city of verona beach. The two lovers elope to escape the violence between the families, but neither family is willing to forge a peace agreement for the sake of love. In this sense, the italian setting reinforces the plays overarching theme that the lovers cannot escape their fate. Jan 26, 2008 the 1996 version of romeo and juliet, a short clip of them meeting for the first time in the capulets party.
In addition to reflecting popular beliefs about italy, romeo and juliet also emphasizes the division between two symbolic worlds that romeo and juliet inhabit within verona. The timeless tale of romeo and juliet has been told again and again. Believing that his lady love is dead, romeo drinks the poison. Romeo and juliet movies and play comparison hubpages. Fate has other plans as paris encounters romeo and is killed by the latter.
It also has a contemporary time setting when most productions set the play sometime in the middle ages or early. Mercutio desperately calls after him, thinking he is still lamenting rosaline, when in fact romeo is setting back out to find juliet. The media coverage of the feud makes the plays events familiar to a modern audience as they watch violent video of the chaos on the streets of verona beach and are drawn into the. The montagues and capulets are two feuding families, whose children meet and fall in love. Oct 16, 2016 romeo and juliet is truly a classic play written by shakespeare. Romeo and juliet by william shakespeare is a loved classic. Romeo and juliet 1968 and 1996 movie comparison essay example.
Enter romeo, mercutio, benvolio, with five or six other maskers. Two movies were made based on the classic love story, romeo and juliet. Romeo and juliet film 1996 literary elements gradesaver. Sep 06, 1996 the challenges of luhrmanns romeo and juliet, which attempts to combine old language, modern attitudes and settings, south beach style and latin exotica, all while shooting on a location chosen. She intimates to him that juliet has arranged for the two of them to be married in secret by romeo s priest and so romeo and juliet meet and are married at last. Two versions of william shakespeares romeo and juliet are asburys gnomeo and juliet 2011. What is the setting of the movie romeo and juliet answers. The two families were already in a feud when the romance began between romeo and juliet. That is part of the reason i chose to compare the act 2, scene 2 in the films that were made by franco zeffirelli in 1968 and also the newer version of romeo and juliet made by baz luhrmann in 1996. Apr 20, 20 romeo and juliet by william shakespeare is a loved classic. He tenderly undresses juliet and they spend the night together.
Analysis of setting in the opening scenes of luhrmanns. Concerned but now holding up the motorcade of guests leaving the capulet party, mercutio and the other montague boys drive away, leaving. The following article originally appeared in the september 6, 1996 issue of entertainment weekly. Shakespeares death scene in the tomb lacked a dramatic payoff for luhrmann, who has juliet regain consciousness just as romeo poisons himself, so that she can use her sweet alases while he can still hear them. Over the years it has been remade into movies, ballets and childrens books. Baz luhrmann helped adapt this classic shakespearean romantic tragedy for the screen, updating the setting to a postmodern city named verona beach. Baz luhrmanns romeo and juliet 1996 is an absolute masterpiece. The 1996 version, on the other hand, is a different story entirely. It showed the romance between romeo and juliet very well. On average, completing this movie guide will require about 3045 minutes in addition to the length of the movie. It is an adaptation and modernization of william shakespeares tragedy romeo and juliet. The question and answer section for romeo and juliet film 1996 is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel. Romeo and juliet movie versus play 612 words 123 help me. The first of these worlds is the dangerous, masculine.
Reviewing baz luhrmanns william shakespeares romeo. Romeo and juliet is set in verona, italy in the 0s, though it was written in the 1500s. Romeo and juliet decide to get married anyway, but less than an hour after they say their vows, theres a big brawl and romeo ends up killing juliets cousin, tybalt. When juliet awakes to discover romeos corpse, she uses tybalts gun and shoots herself in the head. The film updates the setting to modern day and the swords and daggers mentioned in the original text have been changed to pistol models. Apr 04, 2008 in the 1996 version by baz luhrmann, the story of romeo and juliet is portrayed with a modern day twist. The film stars leonardo dicaprio and claire danes in the title. Its hyperstylised contemporary setting described by luhrmann as a hybrid. Shakespeares verona is not a fleshed out place as a reallife, physical city, but rather as a convenient. The other part of the reason i chose to analyze it was because i have seen and read the play. While watching the latest version i thought a lot about the 1968 version which is similar to the 20 film, the 20 film is a.
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