Techniques Used by Baz Lurhmann in the film Romeo and Juliet

Techniques Used by Baz Lurhmann in the film Romeo and Juliet

In the film "Romeo and Juliet" Baz Lurhmann uses a number of

techniques in order to make the prologue more accessible for a modern

audience. This is done very effectively and it makes the themes easier

for a contemporary audience to understand. The main themes in this

film are love, religion, rivalry, violence and justice and throughout

the prologue we can see many images that symbolize these themes. For

example the statue of Christ overlooking the city lets us know how

important religion is for these people, and the numerous guns flashed

over the screen symbolizing the violence and rivalry between the two

families. Baz Lurhmann uses repetition, music, modern context, sound

effects, costume, types of footage and many other techniques to

explore the themes and de-mystify the language, making the themes

easier for us to understand.

The use of a news broadcast is used very effectively to draw the

audience's attention to the fact that something serious is being said

and taking place. This technique also sets the mood for the prologue,

the majority of people are always interested in news so the broadcast

will attract people to listen carefully. The female broadcaster speaks

in a very clear and well spoken accent so that she will be understood

by the viewers who need the story of Romeo and Juliet explained.

Another technique used over and over again is the use of repetition,

mainly when the man with a serious voice is talking and he repeats the

passage "in fair Verona, two star crossed lovers, take their lives",

twice fully and once partly. When the serious voice is played ...

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...sents the need for

justice and fairness which is one of the main themes in the story.

Again this powerfully simplifies the need to explain in language the

ideas used by Shakespeare and because the film is fast moving and

colourful, it will appeal to young people.

In conclusion it is clear the Baz Lurhmann has been extremely

successful in explaining to a young modern audience the ideas and

language used by William Shakespeare. It will enable the beautiful

story of Romeo and Juliet to be accessible to many people who would

otherwise have difficulty in understanding this timeless classic. In

an age where television and videos etc are being used far more by the

majority of the population, the film will serve to draw even young

people back to values and message William Shakespeare was trying to

convey to his audience.