Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli’s Interpretation of the Prologue
and Act 1 Scene 1 in “Romeo and Juliet”
The story of Romeo and Juliet has been well known for many centuries.
It has been interpreted and adapted by many people, including
Shakespeare himself! Two of the most famous versions are the 1968 film
by Franco Zeffirelli and the 1996 film by Baz Luhrmann. Each director
has adapted the story for his own purposes. I am going to study how
these two films have interpreted Shakespeare’s play in a modern style
for a modern audience. I feel that each version will appeal to a
different audience compared to the other. Language for example, should
be closely reviewed as it has to be appropriate for the humour of the
particular time in each film. This is because puns were very popular
in Shakespearean times so throughout the play there is a great deal
used. In the first scene Capulet’s servants, Sampson and Gregory, joke
together by using puns. Here are two examples of the way they use
them:
“I strike quickly, being moved” “But thou art not quickly moved to
strike”. And “…I will be civil with the maids; I will cut off their
heads.” “The heads of the maids?”
“Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads, take it in what
sense thou wilt.”
A modern audience however, would not find this humorous so the
directors would have had to accommodate to this and adapt to it. The
use of common, everyday language has also changed dramatically since
the 16th Century so people today would not necessarily understand the
plot if they went to watch ‘Romeo and Juliet’ in it’s original theatre
form. Zeffirelli and Luhrmann both kept Shakes...
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...new setting for a new generation and I
feel that Luhrmann has achieved this very well. This is because
Shakespeare's plays were designed to adapt to any audience and with
this in mind, Baz Luhrmann has created a film that applies to the
modern audience through this updating. I also watched a part of “West
Side Story”, however, this takes a very free view of its source
material as it uses Shakespeare's tragedy for its plot value more than
anything else. This is unlike Zeffirelli’s or Luhrmann’s as they have
produced an interpretation of the film and included most of
Shakespeare’s text. It is difficult to compare “West Side Story” to
the other two versions as it departs so much from the story “Romeo and
Juliet” that it is hardly recognizable as an adaptation. However, it
does keep to the idea of the two rival gangs.
contrast to Baz Luhrman's production, with the exception of the language used in both productions. Zefferelli's production however is far more effective, as he has tried. to keep the film close to the original script and intended exactly how. Shakespeare wrote it. This approach clearly portrays the concept.
Romeo and Juliet is a play about two lovers who have to risk their lives in order to demonstrate their love and will to stay together, regardless the feud between their families. By the end, the death of Romeo and Juliet finally bring the reconciliation to these two families. It is fate that the two most shall-not meet people fall in love and it love that eventually won against hatred. Since then, there have been many different versions of Romeo and Juliet, whether it was for film, stage, musicals. These different recontextualised adaptions change the original play by many ways, some modernise the language, environment, props as well as changing the original characteristics of some characters. Out of all the different adaptions of Romeo and Juliet, two stood out the most. One was the Romeo and Juliet (1996) and directed by Baz Luhrmann and the other one was Romeo and Juliet Broadway (2013) play version,
Kenneth Branagh creates his own individualistic adaptation of this classic through the use of visual imagery, characterization, and setting. Branagh cut many lines and speeches from the text to better support his interpretation of a more open and informal society of warm-hearted, affectionate characters. Though Shakespeare's mood is more formal, Branagh remains true to the essence of the play as all of the same characters and most of the dialogue are justly included in the film. Although distinct differences can be made between Branagh’s film and Shakespeare’s written work, they both share a common denominator of good old-fashioned entertainment; and in the world of theater, nothing else really matters.
Now in the play in act 5 a total of four of the characters died but in the movie only two died in Act 5. The only real similarities are that Romeo and Juliet die and Balthazar told Romeo that Juliet died. At the same time the differences are that in the movie Romeo never went to the apothecary witch in the play he did. Also In the movie when Romeo and Balthasar went to the Capulet tomb Romeo never gave his servant the reason why he did go into the tomb and he opened the tomb with a boulder but in the play he told Balthasar that he was going to give juliet a final kiss and retrieve a ring from her. Romeo also opened the tomb the a iron crowbar. And the biggest Difference was that Lady Montague died from grief but in the movie she lived and Romeo never fought Parris in the movie at the Capulet
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would
Young love; a questionable topic since the early days of mankind. Even after centuries have passed, many still wonder whether it is considered true love or just plain lust. This mystery reincarnates itself through Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The question that arises in this tragic love story of young, supposedly star-crossed lovers is who is to be truly blamed for their deaths within the first two acts? With a story as complex as this one, the blame can fall on various characters. However, the most evident characters to take the fall are Benvolio, Romeo and Friar Lawrence.
One major and the most notable difference in the films is the setting. The setting of the 1968 version is set in Verona, Italy with buildings, courtyards, and streets similar to the middle ages. It follows the play as closely as possible that effectively brings us back to
Luhrmann’s 1996 Romeo and Juliet is compelling when communicating the main ideas of the play by providing the audience with a modern translation of the play using the motifs in the film which correlate to the play.
Romeo and Juliet presents an ongoing feud between the Montague and Capulet families whose children meet and fall in love. Markedly, the meeting scene depicting love at first sight continues to be praised by today’s critics. Romeo and Juliet then receive the label of star-crossed lovers whose tragic demise is written in the stars. In fact, Shakespeare 's work is well received and its numerous adaptations have made it one of his most enduring and notorious stories. The cinematic world brings to the screens a disastrous approach by Baz Luhrmann to do the play justice. A glance at Baz Luhrmann’s productions allows audiences to assume he delivers movies which are unlike those of any other filmmaker today, or perhaps ever. Therefore, blending a delicate
There is no doubt that Lawrence Olivier's version does a better job of sticking with the letter of the play, bringing us all the richness of the Elizabethan dialogue and costume, allowing us to experience the events as they happened.
...e tragic celebration of young, forbidden love told by William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, has been tailored for many motion picture adaptations. The most famous of these adaptations are Franco Zeffirelli’s version and Baz Lurhmann’s film produced in 1996. These two films applied Shakespeare’s most well-known work as a basis for their motion pictures. Both films had similarities, but the differences were much more apparent. Ever since William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been debuted, it has and forever will be an artistic influence for playwrights, directors, and other artists.
Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, is a tragic love story about two young lovers who are forced to be estranged as a result of their feuding families. The play is about their struggle to contravene fate and create a future together. As such, it was only a matter of time before Hollywood would try and emulate Shakespeare’s masterpiece. This had been done before in many films. Prominent among them were, Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 “Romeo and Juliet” and Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 “William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet.” Both films stay true to the themes of Shakespeare’s original play. However, the modernised Luhrmann film not only maintains the essence of Shakespeare’s writings, Luhrmann makes it relevant to a teenage audience. This is done through the renewal of props and costumes, the reconstruction of the prologue and the upgrading of the setting, whilst preserving the original Shakespearean language. Out of the two, it is Luhrmann who targets Romeo & Juliet to a younger audience to a much larger extent than Zeffirelli.
Baz Lurhmann’s creation of the film Romeo and Juliet has shown that today’s audience can still understand and appreciate William Shakespeare. Typically, when a modern audience think of Shakespeare, they immediately think it will be boring, yet Lurhmann successfully rejuvenates Romeo and Juliet. In his film production he uses a number of different cinematic techniques, costumes and a formidably enjoyable soundtrack; yet changes not one word from Shakespeare’s original play, thus making it appeal to a modern audience.
Zeffirelli’s ultimate goal for his version of Romeo and Juliet was to capture Shakespeare’s original intentions for the play while targeting the teenage audience of his generation. Luhrmann’s intentions were different however; he changed the way an audience looks at Shakespeare’s masterpiece by modernising the props, costumes, and sets. Obviously, to match film time quotas Zefirelli and Luhrmann has both cut many lines out of the play.
How Baz Luhrmann Uses Props, Iconography, Costumes, and Settings to Create His Own Version of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare’s best loved tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, has been portrayed in theatres and on film in many different ways. But none have been quite like Baz Luhrmann’s imaginative and unconventional adaptation. He has brought aspects of the plays Elizabethan origins and transfused them with a modern day background and created, what can only be described as a masterpiece. I believe that his use of Props, iconography costumes and the settings he has chosen has helped him to make this film such a great success. The settings of each scene have been specifically chosen to create a desired affect.