ROMEO AND JULIET
A film review by Mike Joyce
Copyright 1997 Mike Joyce
When I first heard that Romeo & Juliet had been "updated" I shuddered. I thought that yet another of Shakespeare's classics had been destroyed. Fortunately, I was wrong. Baz Luhrman has directed an "in your face", and visually stunning piece with this film. It revolves around the two rival families, who in this version each run multi-million dollar enterprises. These rival companies/families are the Capulet's and the Montague's. The younger generation of these two families have formed gangs, who despise one another. As the storylines goes, Romeo Montague (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) and Juliet Capulet (Claire Danes) meet at a fancy dress party, and it is love at first site. I never believed love at first site was possible until I saw this film, the scene in which Romeo's eyes meet Juliet's through the fish tank is one of the most memorable. Of course, they cannot publicly reveal their love, for their families are arch enemies. So they marry in secret, this is where things begin to go wrong. The story, as with all good Shakespeare, ends in tragedy.
The cinematography is spectacular to say the least, and the soundtrack provides the perfect atmosphere in which to "lay our scene", as the film says. There is very little to criticise. The performances are convincing, and several of the film's younger stars may find that it provides a launch for their careers. The modernisation of the script is ingenious and clever. Despite the well known storyline, this latest version still manages to cause tears among many members of the audience (especially the younger generation), and this is certainly a great credit to the film.
5 out of 5
Film review by Adam Joyce. Please visit Movie Mania at http://www.home.aone.net.au/joyce/adamframe.htm
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