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William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet

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William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet

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Summary

Director Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of Shakespeare's romantic tragedy, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. In Verona Beach, teenagers Romeo and Juliet meet by chance and fall in love. They plan to marry secretly because of the hostility between their families, the Montagues and the Capulets. But when Romeo kills Juliet's cousin in a gang fight and is banished, his plan to be reunited with his intended goes tragically wrong.

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Review

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

Andrew Collins

Baz Luhrmann's flamboyantly hip, achingly modern and unashamedly teen-targeted update of Shakespeare's enduring romantic tragedy casts Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes in the star-crossed title roles. The lovers are transplanted from 15th-century Italy to MTV-era "Verona Beach" - a place of gang warfare, raves, motorbikes and party drugs. The dialogue is true to the text, but delivered as if it were modern parlance, while the soundtrack (a mix of alt-rock, dance and orchestral) keeps the narrative pumping along. A closer cousin to West Side Story than Franco Zeffirelli's lush 1968 classic, it couldn't be more palatable to younger audiences, while Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Sorvino and Miriam Margoyles add adult thespian gravitas. A bold, infectious and courageous entry to the canon of Shakespeare adaptations - abridged and tweaked, inevitably - it made DiCaprio a teen pin-up and minted Luhrmann as one of modern cinema's master showmen.

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6.7/10

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Credits

Cast

rolenameRomeoLeonardo DiCaprioJulietClaire DanesTed MontagueBrian DennehyTybaltJohn LeguizamoFather LaurencePete PostlethwaiteFulgencio CapuletPaul SorvinoGloria CapuletDiane VenoraMercutioHarold PerrineauDave ParisPaul RuddBalthasarJesse BradfordBenvolioDash MihokNurseMiriam Margolyes

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Crew

rolenameDirectorBaz Luhrmann

Details

Released on

2013-02-15

Languages

English

Guidance

Some violence, a sex scene.

Available on

video, DVD and Blu-ray

Formats

Colour

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