William Shakespeare's ROMEO + JULIET
120 MinutesStarring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, Brian Dennehy, John Leguizamo, Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Sorvino, Diane Venora, Paul Rudd, Harold Perrineau, Christina Pickles, Vondie Curtis-Hall, M. Emmet Walsh, Jesse Bradford
Music by Nellee Hooper
Film Editor: Jill Bilcock
Procuction Designer: Catherine Martin
Produced by: Gabriella Martinelli and Baz Luhrmann
Screenplay by: Craign Pearce & Baz Luhrmann
Directed by: Bax Luhrmann
Laserdisc Cover Copy: Baz Luhrmann (director Strictly Ballroom) tells the greatest love story of all time in our time. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S ROMEO AND JULIET is set in Verona Beach; a violent, modern city of guns, money and greed.
In this opulent world of hate, rival gangs and families at war, Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Juliet (Claire Danes), are ignited by the passion of first forbidden love and Verona Beach explodes.
Shakespeare's heart-wrenching tale of doomed love is told with passion, beauty, wit, furious energy and a world-wide best selling soundtrack.
A film that will kick you in the heart.
Francis' View: Well, do I have to re-tell you the whole plot of the movie? I won't (for now at least), since you all probably know this classic tale of love and death. Baz Luhrmann brings a heady, intoxicating energy that is just bursting throughout the movie. The colours, the sounds, the impact of the story have been brought to a new life. Romeo + Juliet was never like this. A great cast and a great story make for a great movie. Paul plays a small role in this - (Dave) Paris, Juliet's suitor. Paul is great as the dull man who wants Juliet to be his bride. Wouldn't you say yes in a second if it was Paul asking? Hehe! Check out the special Laserdisc edition of the movie. Not only is it letterboxed, so you can see how the film was originally shown in its widescreen Panavision format, but there is audio commentary from Baz Luhrmann and the rest of the crew, and a mini documentary about how the movie's look and design came about. A regular pan-and-scan videocassette copy is available for approximately $14.99 or less from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.
UPDATE!
Fox Home Video has finally re-released Romeo +Juliet as part of their Widescreen series on VHS! Now, those of you who don't have laserdisc players can see the movie the way it was intended to be seen. Unfortunately, the audio commentary and documentary are still only available on the laser version.
Last Updated : Monday January 19 1998 - 11:16:38 PM
These pages have been hittimes since its creation on June 19, 1997
Questions, comments or info to add? Please e-mail me at: cisco@ican.net
