Romeo + Juliet (1996)

Shakespeare's famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of Verona still retaining its original dialogue.

Director:

Baz Luhrmann

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play), Craig Pearce (screenplay),

Stars:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 13 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Romeo
Claire Danes	...	Juliet
John Leguizamo	...	Tybalt
Harold Perrineau	...	Mercutio
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Father Laurence
Paul Sorvino	...	Fulgencio Capulet
Brian Dennehy	...	Ted Montague
Paul Rudd	...	Dave Paris
Vondie Curtis-Hall	...	Captain Prince
Miriam Margolyes	...	The Nurse
Jesse Bradford	...	Balthasar
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Apothecary
Zak Orth	...	Gregory
Jamie Kennedy	...	Sampson
Dash Mihok	...	Benvolio

Storyline

Shakespeare's famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of Verona still retaining its original dialogue. The gun-toting members of the families wage a vicious war on the streets as the star-crossed lovers meet their tragic destiny.

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Plot Keywords:

love | star crossed lovers | fight | gangsta grip | exploding gasoline station | 

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Taglines:

Two households both alike in dignity, In fair Verona where we lay our scene. From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for scenes of contemporary violence and some sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet

Filming Locations:

Alameda, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$14,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

ITL 692,167,000 (Italy) (28 February 1997)

Gross:

ITL 3,795,630,000 (Italy) (2 May 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bazmark Films, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The music playing as Juliet shoots herself at the end of the film is Isolde's 'Liebestod' from Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde, where it is used in the exact same context.

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Goofs

When Mercutio fires his gun at the beach as the Nurse is leading Romeo away to talk to him, there is a gunshot, but no flash or blowback.

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Quotes

Benvolio: Part, fools! Put up your swords. You know not what you do!

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Connections

Referenced in Essayette (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Slow Movement"
Written, Orchestrated and Arranged by Craig Armstrong
Courtesy of Melankolic Recordings/Virgin Records Ltd.

User Reviews

Moderized Without Losing the Shakespeare

I'm a sucker for William Shakespeare even though I like it done better in the theatre. This one however, kept my attention and seemed to do a great job with modernizing the whole quarreling families thing. The movie kicks off with a street brawl between the Montegues and Capulets. The Prince forewarns them that if they ever disturb the peace again their "lives will pay the forfeit of the peace." We are then introduced to the character Romeo who is played by Leonardo DeCaprio. Leo does a great job as Romeo, but that's because Leo is a good actor in this film. Soon after that we are introduced to Juliet who is played by the beautiful Claire Danes, someone I haven't seen in too many movies. Danes does a great job playing the flirty Juliet. The movie follows the original script very accurately. The symbolism is also used very well throughout the movie. If you look at the guns you'll notice that some say sword, some say rapier, and I believe some say dagger. The Montegues always wear a Hawaiian style shirt. The Capulets dress more like mobsters or thugs even though both sides could be viewed as thugs in some sort or another. In either case each family wears a certain kind of clothing that makes it easy to tell who's who. One great part I absolutely love is the party. Juliet wears angel wings and Romeo wears a knight outfit. Romeo's best friend (and I wish I could spell his name but I'd rather not butcher it) dresses up as a women. So to explain this form of symbolics, for those who aren't getting it, it's Romeo is the "knight in shinning armor," Juliet is the angel of Romeo's dreams, and Romeo's best friend is the comic relief. There's other things you'll notice at the party also, like Tybalt wears devil horns(i.e. he's a villain). Both families you'll also notice are rich, which also follows the script accurately. Overall, if you're a Shakespeare fan, a fan of romantic movies, a fan of tragic movies, or a fan of artistic movies then make sure to look into this one. It'll sweep you off you're feet, make you laugh, make you cry, and make you fall in love.