Romeo And Juliet Compare And Contrast

A film Comparsion of Romeo and Juliet

Whether on screen or on stage the romantic tragedy of Romeo and Juliet has been portrayed many times by different actors, directors, and writers but the themes always hold true to William Shakespeare's original play that was wrote in the late 1500’s. The two particular movies we watched in class were perfect examples of contrast, one was more traditional (Zefferilli’s 1968 version) while the other appealed to a new generation, (Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 version) both were great! In this essay I aim to compare and contrast these two films with each other and the play. When Zefferilli directed the 1968 version, I think he did a pretty good job; He kept very true to the script from the play. The similarity’s outweighed the differences. In example, the Balcony scene. Zefferilli kept it exactly as what it is portrayed for in the play, all the passion that was
shared towards each other was perfectly acted in this movie. In my opinion, Zefferilli recognised the importance of that particular scene and pulled it off flawlessly .In this scene the dialogue wasn’t changed as much as in others. The affection and longing that Romeo and Juliet directed toward each other was almost exaggerated when brought to the screen. Another great similarity of this particular movie to the play is the setting which is portrayed to be in Verona around the same time period which Shakespeare describes in the play.
Keeping in mind that with similarities there are differences, like the fact that many minor differences add up. I noticed that when Romeo visited the tomb the movie cut quite a few lines and even left out the scene with Paris! His last scene in the movie was when he asked Capulet if he could marry Juliet. And also in the play the friar flees in terror when he hears the watchmen is outside but is later arrested and explains the circumstances surrounding Romeo and Juliet's deaths but in the movie he isn’t seen or heard from after he flees the tomb.
The next movie I will talk about is Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet. In this movie everything is modernized, cars and helicopters replace horses while guns replace swords (but humorously all the characters use the fictional brand of guns called “Swords”). It’s pretty much what would happen if Romeo and Juliet took place in the 90’s and everyone still spoken in proper Victorian English. I enjoyed watching this movie more than the other because this movie was more action packed while keeping the dialogue the same as what Shakespeare intended it to be. One similarity is in the beginning of the movie and the play, they both kept the fight between Montagues and Capulets.
The movie wouldn’t be the same if the hate demonstrated between the two families wasn’t shown right off the bat. It let the new “MTV” generation understand the “Family Feud” that was happening.
Another similarity from this movie to the play would be when Romeo fled to Mantua after being banished for the redemption of Tybalt, he came to terms with the fact that he killed his wife’s cousin and that it means a long time until he sees his bride again (exactly like the play). Yet another similarity is the fact that Friar Laurence’s message did not arrive to Romeo causing the dramatic ending!
Although I could go on all night with similarities, there were also a few things different from this movie to the play, such as the nurse. Her character in the play was sassy and spoke her mind freely but in this movie version she was severely down played. Her lines were cut and she came over as more docile, completely different from the 1968 version or the
play.
A difference that caught my eye would definitely be the wedding. In the play and in the 1968 version of the play they didn’t show the wedding at all, only an intermission. For what I believe was to create suspense or to show that the ceremony wasn’t the highlight of the play. It wasn’t extremely important that they included in the 1996 version of the movie but it took away from the main theme of tragedy but focusing more on the love part in my opinion.
Also in my opinion the modernization that the newer movie underwent was insignificant to the overall value of the movie, it never took away from the original play it just portrayed it in a different perspective that was actually enjoyable (save for a few differences as mentioned above).
In conclusion, I hope you have recognised the differences and similarities that each movie shared with each other and the play. Romeo and Juliet is truly the original story of the struggle of love and hate which set the standard for plays and stories from Shakespeare’s time to even now and I encourage you to if you haven’t already, read or watch this play. It most certainly isn’t a waste of time.