“For never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.”- William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. The 1968 film version of Romeo and Juliet is a British-Italian romance film based on the tragic play by William Shakespeare. The film was directed and co-written by Franco Zeffirelli, and starred Olivia Hussey as Juliet Capulet, and Leonard Whiting as Romeo Montague. The film of 1968 is by far the best and most adapted version of the play, and most popular version as well. …show more content…
This version was the first to use actors who were close to the age of the characters from the original play. Not only were the actors age very accurate, their portrayal of the characters were so believable because the actors playing Romeo and Juliet actually fell in love in the making of the film. All of the actors of the film played their characters very well and made them come to life. Olivia and Leonard told the story of Romeo and Juliet very accurately not only through their lines but with their body language. Viewers can really feel the emotional connection between the two. All the relationships between characters was spot-on, my favorite being Lord Capulet and Paris. Although the acting throughout the film was very good, some scenes weren't as good as the others. The worst scenes would have to be the deaths of Mercutio and Tybalt. Those two death scenes were very unbelievable and unrealistic and didn’t give viewers the burden of emotion as
In order to compare and contrast the play to the movie,first I will discuss the play .In the play there is a character named Romeo.Lovely Romeo wanted to marry Juliet and stay with her in Verona,Italy.But
Ever wondered who produced a “Romeo and Juliet,” movie or play, other than Shakespeare himself? If you didn’t well it’s time you do. Franco Zeffirelli is both an Italian producer and director. Zeffirelli was born February 12, 1923 in Florence, Italy. Baz Luhrmann, another producer and director, also produced a movie of “Romeo and Juliet”. Luhrmann’s version took place in modern time, when the Zeffirelli version was closer to the plot of the book. This is why the Zeffirelli does an exceptional job in retelling the tragedy.
Romeo and Juliet is a timeless, classic love story written by the incomparable William Shakespeare. Many of Shakespeare’s works are considered literary classics, but none are more loved than Romeo and Juliet. This play masterfully tells the love story of two teenagers in Elizabethan England. The title characters Romeo and Juliet are members of two feuding families, Romeo is a Montague and Juliet is a Capulet. There are different stylistic ways of portraying Romeo and Juliet, and the two most popular film versions portray two very different styles of this one play. Zeferelli's Romeo and Juliet was made in the 1970s, and is the film version most commonly shown in high school classrooms. The newest film version of this play is Baz Luhrmanns
The film and the play, Romeo and Juliet is an ever grey due to tragic over tones play which draws undivided attention of Shakespeare’s writing even during this modern era. The 1996 version, Baz Lurhmann adopted the storyline to reflect the revealing trend of dispute between two feuding families. A film which shows a detailed study of the play of the immensely popular 1996 version directed by Baz Lurhmann.
Luhrman has based his version at Verona Beach; America and instead of basing it in the 16th century like Zeffirelli, he had his film based in the 20th century, with mansions, shiny cars and bright lights. While Zeffirelli paced his film in an Iambic pentameter – a traditional Shakespeare pace; Luhrman never kept his film at a solid pace. “By modernizing these aspects of the play, and reconstructing the prologue, Luhrmann creates a movie that is more interesting to the modern viewers.” ("Franco Zeffirelli and Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet." 123HelpMe.com). As Zeffirelli may have believed famous actors would steal his show he instead hired fresh new faces to give the movie a more fresh, innocence value, But Luhrman used well known actors to play the lead roles. This worked because more people were attracted to the film by the actors.
Romeo and Juliet is a timeless story about two ill-fated lovers. Originally written by, Shakespeare, this story has been adapted by different directors who all commonly try to add their own unique twist to it. Two of the most prevalent adaptations of Romeo and Juliet have been done by Franco Zeffirelli and Baz Luhrmann, who have taken this love story to the big screen. Franco Zeffirelli’s movie, which was produced in 1968, is extremely authentic and stays true to Shakespeare's vision, whereas, Baz Luhrmann’s version produced in 1996, is contemporary and appeals more to younger audiences. There are various differences and a couple of similarities between Zeffirelli’s and Luhrmann’s movie versions such as the costumes, their interpretations of
The time period of the play and the time period of the movie are very different. In the movie, the prologue was on a T.V. screen and it was not in the play. Also in the movie, they used cars instead of horses to get around. In the movie, Romeo and his friends always smoked and would take drugs and they did not do that in the play. In the play, the different families owned castles and in the movie they own different businesses and buildings. They also had guns instead of swords in the movie. Also in the movie, they dressed more modern than they would have in the play.
Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet was an accurate representation of the famous Shakespearean play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, and was very entertaining for today’s audience. First, this modern version presented the original play in both an appealing and entertaining way for the younger generation. People today are interested in movies that are more romantic yet action packed, and Luhrmann’s version of Romeo and Juliet met these preferences. The film included many scenes from the original play that were changed to be action packed and tragic, such as the gunfights between the Capulets and Montagues, which appealed to the younger audience because of their modern day thinking. Because the film was action packed, the audience took an interest
The scene takes place in a pool, rather than on an actual balcony. Also, instead of the actors coming together from far apart, they are close together the whole time in Luhrmann’s rendition, making the scene seem somewhat unrealistic. The costumes Juliet and Romeo were wearing were more modern, so they did not even look like costumes. Perhaps due to having more experience, the faces of the actors were difficult to read. They also spoke their lines as if in an everyday conversation, as opposed to being actors in a play. These characteristics are why the 1996 version varies from its 1968
The play, Romeo and Juliet, is a tragic love story written by William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet are two young teenagers that are from two different households, the Capulets and Montagues. The two families have an ancient grudge against each other devastating Romeo and Juliet. Defying their families they fall in love and marry with the help of Friar lawrence. After many unfortunate events occur they end up killing themselves over each other’s deaths. They could not live without each other. Friar Lawrence and timing were most at fault for Romeo and Juliet’s death.
Romeo and Juliet is a novel that is a great tragedy written by William Shakespeare. This love story is about two young lovers who wanted to be together, but both of their family’s had a feud against each other and really disliked each other and could never get along. Romeo and Juliet end up getting married but neither of the two family’s are aware of it. At the end of the story the two young lovers tragic deaths ultimately ended their family’s feud. Romeo was truly in love with Juliet.
Romeo and Juliet, the famous play written by Shakespeare, is one that even many centuries later is still constantly retold and talked about. It conveys the uplifting story of two lovers who unfortunately were not allowed to be together, due to the ongoing feud between their families. Despite all of the risks and even at the cost of their own lives, they still went against everything that they had ever known and got married. However, shortly afterwards, a fight broke out between the Montague and the Capulet when Tybalt comes to confront Romeo about being at the party. Even when refusing to fight, Mercutio draws his sword and battle rages out, ending up with the death of both Mercutio and Tybalt. Due to how well-known and celebrated the play is, many different versions were made out of it, including the 1968 version by Zeffirelli and the 1996 version by Luhrmann. They both have many differences in the way they present the fighting scene. Nevertheless, due to the symbolism, mood, props, and other characteristics of this version, the 1968 version of the fight between the Montagues and Capulets is the better portrayal of the scene.
The story of a young girl falling in love at first sight and be willing to die for her love is a difficult concept for a modern audience to relate to. To enforce this idea, the director had to make sure of a few things. The first being to make sure the audience could easily accept that Romeo is a naive guy, hoping for love to come his way. And secondly, Juliet being so innocent she could fall in love with Romeo so easily. These ideas are portrayed in believable characteristics when we first see Romeo and Juliet in the film.
Romeo and Juliet is perhaps one of the most well known plays ever written. Shakespeare wrote many play about love and lust ,but romeo and Juliet has to be the most famous. There are many different movies reenacting Romeo and Juliet. Some of the best movies are the “1996”, “1968” ,and “2014”. The movie producers all put their own twist and turns into the movies.
Some of the most dramatic films inspired by Romeo and Juliet directly used Shakespeare’s sonnets in the films. First of all 1936 brought MGM’s black-and-white Romeo and Juliet produced by Irving G. Thalberg. On the good side, the film was unbelievably luxurious and authentic, spending close to the equivalent of $80 million dollars (Rosenthal 122). Sadly the young lovers could not be accurately portrayed by the well-aged actors of 35 and 43 years (Rosenthal 122). As the 19th century continued, Franco Zeffirelli directed his highly successful 1968 Romeo and Juliet in full color (Zeffirelli, “Romeo and Juliet”). Contradicting the 1938 rendition, “he chose actors almost as young as their characters” with 17-year-old Leonard Whiting as Romeo and 15-year-old Olivia Hussey as Juliet (Rosenthal 128). Despite the controversial wedding-scene nudity, in addition to some minor changes in Shakespeare’s words, the film was still highly successful (Rosenthal 128). Finally in 1996 came the film William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet. Using Shakespeare’s verse in a modern 1990s Miami-like Verona Beach, Baz Luhrmann, the director, stated, “We wanted to look at how Shakespeare would’ve made a movie if he were here today” (qtd. in Rosenthal 130). Luhrmann’s truly stunning couple is played by