Romeo and Juliet (1936)

Young love is poisoned by a generations long feud between two noble families.

Director:

George Cukor

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play), Talbot Jennings (adaptation)

Stars:

Norma Shearer, Leslie Howard, John Barrymore

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Norma Shearer	...	Juliet - Daughter to Capulet
Leslie Howard	...	Romeo - Son to Montague
John Barrymore	...	Mercutio - Kinsman to the Prince and Friend to Romeo
Edna May Oliver	...	Nurse to Juliet
Basil Rathbone	...	Tybalt - Nephew to Lady Capulet
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Lord Capulet
Andy Devine	...	Peter - Servant to Juliet's Nurse
Conway Tearle	...	Escalus - Prince of Verona
Ralph Forbes	...	Paris - Young Nobleman Kinsman to the Prince
Henry Kolker	...	Friar Laurence
Robert Warwick	...	Lord Montague
Virginia Hammond	...	Lady Montague - Wife to Montague
Reginald Denny	...	Benvolio - Nephew to Montgue and Friend to Romeo
Violet Kemble Cooper	...	Lady Capulet - Wife to Capulet

Storyline

The Montagues and the Capulets, two powerful families of Verona, hate each other. Romeo, son of Montague, crashes a Capulet party, and there meets Juliet, daughter of Capulet. They fall passionately in love. Since their families would disapprove, they marry in secret. Romeo gets in a fight with Tybalt, nephew of Lady Capulet, and kills him. He is banished from Verona. Capulet, not knowing that his daughter is already married, proceeds with his plans to marry Juliet to Paris, a prince. This puts Juliet in quite a spot, so she goes to the sympathetic Friar Laurence, who married her to Romeo. He suggests a daring plan to extricate her from her fix. Tragedy ensues.

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Plot Keywords:

challenge | duel | tragedy | shakespeare's romeo and juliet | poisoning | 

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Taglines:

Scenes of combat that will stir your pulse...tender haunting romance that will stay ever fresh in your memory...spectacular beauty that will set a feast for your eyes...in the greatest melodramatic romance of all time...presented as it has never been before...the final glorious flower of motion picture achievement.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 September 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

Romeo og Julie

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The shoot lasted over six months with the budget going over $2 million. This made it MGM's most expensive sound film at the time.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life.

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Connections

Version of The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet/II (1947)

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Soundtracks

'Welcome, Sweet Pleasure
Written by Thomas Weelkes

User Reviews

Not a fan of Norma

Unlike so many of the other commentators below, I am not a fan of Ms. Shearer. In her opening scene, she gushily keeps herself wide-eyed and smiling--all the time acting innocent, while Olivia Hussey and other screen Juliets don't have to act innocent: they are innocent.

That said, this film has much to offer, despite its lacking the passion of other more recent versions. The verse is spoken well, and Barrymore is brilliant as Mercutio. Yes, he's pure ham---but a succulent one. His Mercutio is, as the character's name implies, mercurial as well as absurdist, ironic, and virile. Rathbone is like a living rapier and gets my vote as the best Tybalt the screen has ever seen. However, don't believe producer Thalberg's ballyhoo that every word spoken in this film is from Shakespeare's play: it isn't, although it's close.