Romeo + Juliet
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, Paul Sorvino, Brian
Dennehy, Miriam Margolyes, Pete Postlethwaite.
Wow! This is the most visually exciting movie I've seen in years.
Not only did I love this movie but I willingly paid full price twice
to see it at the movies. I probably would have gone again if it had
stayed around a few more weeks.
To call it William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet seems to
be mildly tongue-in-cheek. To be sure, it is Shakespeare's dialogue,
or at least a subset of it, and the original plot remains largely in
tact, but this is William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet like
pavlova is
meringue. Sure, meringue is an ingredient but pavlova is so much
more. Mr. Luhrmann takes the original play and reshapes it, dresses
it up and produces something magnificent to watch, making a four
hundred year old play exciting and fresh.
My sister likened the visual imagery to feeling like a kid in a candy
store: things happening everywhere, so much from which to choose,
everywhere you look a new delight. Romeo + Juliet includes
all sorts of camera shenanigans that fit so well and make the film
magnificently alive and vibrant.
The casting is inspired. While Mr. DiCaprio (Romeo) and Ms. Danes
(Juliet) are not the thirteen or fourteen years olds that Shakespeare
intended, they at least have the appearance of teenagers, something
that is essential for the level of angst sustained throughout the
film. Romeo broods sublimely, Juliet pines gloriously and yet, when
they are together on screen, they light up. The playfulness of their
relationship contrasts sharply with the harsh world outside.
What a world it is. Mr. Luhrmann takes everyday images and constructs
an environment that is simultaneously familiar and foreign. It is
impossible to fix a time for the action. This, however, does not
detract from the reality of the story. I believed in the characters.
I wanted a happy ending. I wanted Tybalt to listen to Romeo. I cared
about these people in their strange world.
The costuming is also of note. The combination of romantic clothing
with 'street-cred' clothing creates a mood totally fitting with the
film. Added to this a magnificent soundtrack and the film is an event
to delight multiple senses.
Rating: HD
© Nikki Lesley 1997