William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
(20th Century Fox)Director: Baz Luhrmann
Producers: Gabriella Martinelli, Baz Luhrman
Screenwriters: Craig Pearce, Baz Luhrmann
Director of Photography: Donald M. MacAlpine
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, Paul Sorvino, John Leguizamo, Brian Dennehy, Pete Postlethwaite, Miriam Margolyes, Harold Perrineau, Vondie Curtis-Hall
QUICK REVIEW: MTV in Iambic Pentameter. Whenever Shakespeare is taken out of his time, some elements work and some don't. In this case, what works is the TV commentary and the decadent, violent society that fosters the famous feud. What doesn't work is the language -- either as delivered by DiCaprio and Danes (novices both in Bard talk) or when it tries to compete with the cacophony of sounds and the frenzy of sights. Still, the love story -- yes, the "greatest love story of all time" -- still compels interest. It's easy to see why young people, especially teenage girls, are flocking to see it. It was even clever to manipulate expectations of the nature of the ending for t hose whose knowledge of Shakespeare is shaky at best, and the style will attract even those who don't understand a word. Shakespeare would have approved: He wrote his plays for both the masses and the elite.
Rating (on a four-star scale):
Interview with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.
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