Romeo and Juliet - Movie vs. Book

Romeo and Juliet - Movie vs. Book

Often times people say that William Shakespeare was and still is a legend. They

are correct. It is amazing how Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet written

centuries ago can be better than Franco Zefferelli's movie production of Romeo

and Juliet, which had much better technology to work with only decades ago.

Although the movie appeared better, it left out some major parts. The play had

better mood and plot details which made it much more dramatic and by far a

better presentation.

One major difference between the play and the movie occurs in mood. An example

of this is the marriage scene. In the marriage scene of the play, Romeo and

Juliet act very serious. The reader can tell this by the way the two speak.

Romeo says that the Holy Words the Friar speaks can make something without an

equal (Act II, Scene 6, Line 4) which is a very intelligent thing to say.

Whereas, in the movie they kiss and giggle the entire time. This leads the

viewer to believe that Franco Zefferelli wanted the two to look like fools, that

they could not do anything the way it is normally done because they are children

in search of quick love. This is bad because it is not very realistic. In

real-life, young adults would take the matter seriously because they know it is

a major step in life. Because the play is not entirely trying to make the two

look bad, it is the better production.

Another major difference in the mood of the play and the movie is in the funeral

scene. The funeral scene of the play is a very serious event. Juliet's family

is very upset and think that they are the cause of her "death". Also, the Friar

soothes the family of the loss of young Juliet's life (Act IV, Scene 5, Line 65).

However, in the movie version of the funeral scene, again everyone is sad but

this time the Friar lets out a giggle as he pretends to pray for Juliet. This

is a major difference because if someone had seen the Friar giggle, it may have

changed the entire play. They may have questioned him why he giggled but since