Romeo And Juliet: Franco Zeffirelli's 1996 Film
According to Friedrich Nietzsche, “there are no facts, only interpretations”. The tragedy Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, has been recreated on countless occasions to be in different films, books, and television shows. Each time, however, the author or director of this new media uses dramatic license to alter the play and interpret it according to their target audience and their production. Franco Zeffirelli and Baz Luhrmann, both directors, took the words and plot of this play into their own hands to create a movie of their own interpretation. Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 movie interpretation of Romeo and Juliet was more accurate to the actual play than Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 movie because the characters’ personalities were more
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In order to make the party seem more hectic,included was a scene in which Romeo takes drugs right before entering. The allows the viewer to see how disillusioned Romeo was at the party, not only controlled by his desperation for love, but also his impaired senses (Luhrmann). This made it seem like Romeo attended the party to have a great time and indulge in all of the festivities. The drugs amplified the crazy atmosphere of the party and made it clear how disorienting everything was to Romeo. However, Romeo does not take drugs in the play, and he did not attend the party with a good night in mind. Romeo was on the search for a lover, as he had been recently rejected by Rosaline, another beautiful woman he wanted to be with. With his task in mind, early into the party, Romeo spots Juliet and asks himself “did [his] heart love till [then]?...For [he had] ne’er saw true beauty till [that] night” (Shakespeare, Act I, Scene v, lines 50-51). All Romeo wanted was to find a beautiful maiden, and he got his wish. This establishes Romeo’s purpose for love, rather than a fun time. Romeo carries this purpose throughout the rest of the play, so it should have been a major theme of Luhrmann’s scene to let the viewer understand Romeo’s wishes and
In order to make the party seem more hectic,included was a scene in which Romeo takes drugs right before entering. The allows the viewer to see how disillusioned Romeo was at the party, not only controlled by his desperation for love, but also his impaired senses (Luhrmann). This made it seem like Romeo attended the party to have a great time and indulge in all of the festivities. The drugs amplified the crazy atmosphere of the party and made it clear how disorienting everything was to Romeo. However, Romeo does not take drugs in the play, and he did not attend the party with a good night in mind. Romeo was on the search for a lover, as he had been recently rejected by Rosaline, another beautiful woman he wanted to be with. With his task in mind, early into the party, Romeo spots Juliet and asks himself “did [his] heart love till [then]?...For [he had] ne’er saw true beauty till [that] night” (Shakespeare, Act I, Scene v, lines 50-51). All Romeo wanted was to find a beautiful maiden, and he got his wish. This establishes Romeo’s purpose for love, rather than a fun time. Romeo carries this purpose throughout the rest of the play, so it should have been a major theme of Luhrmann’s scene to let the viewer understand Romeo’s wishes and