Essay, Research Paper: Romeo And Juliet Movie Comparison

Romeo and Juliet: comparison of the 1968 movie, the 1996 movie, and Shakespeare's original text.

Romeo and Juliet has been a popular story for over 400 years, either by the play written by Shakespeare, or a poem written earlier than that. In the 20th century, two directors created their own interpretations of the play. In 1968, Franco Zefferelli directed a version of the play where the performers played the part of people in 16th century Verona, Italy. In 1996, Baz Luhrmann took a very creative approach when he directed a modern version of the play set in Verona Beach, California. The two were naturally very different, but there was also a theme of lightness and darkness running through both of them.
Both plays start out with the original prologue; although the modern version uses a television newscast and the 1968 version uses the traditional narrator speaking the part. Both show different scenes of the cities used to portray the story. The 1996 version uses a lighter approach with Verona Beach, and the 1968 version is mainly dark and shadowy. The first fight that we see occurs between the Montagues and the Capulets. Both films use light and dark to depict the families. In 1996, the Capulets wear darker clothing and the Montagues wear lighter clothing. In 1968, however, Zefferelli uses dark colors for the Montagues and lighter colors for the Capulets. Each version depicts the fight differently. Neither version includes a series of jokes Shakespeare wrote in the beginning of his play.
In Zefferelli's Romeo and Juliet, the fight begins in the town's market, and later moves to the town square where the whole town becomes involved. In Luhrmann's version, the starting point is a gas station. The 1996 version was much more vivid than the 1968 version. There was a lot of screaming between the two families, and it seemed as if they were fighting with each other before the initial fight began. The difference between the two families is quite noticeable because of the colors used. In 1968, the two families joked around with each other before they started to fight. The contrast of the families is not as obvious in this version.
The parents in the 1968 version are running to the fight with Lady Capulet calling her husband an old fool for wanting to fight. Lady Montague is holding back her husband trying to keep him from fighting the Capulets. The new version shows the parents in cars basically worrying about their children and relatives, but does not include the humor from the original script.
In the original play, the Prince of Verona ends the fight between the families. The 1996 movie is very fast-paced, so one might not notice that the police chief's name is actually Prince Escalus. The 1968 version uses the original casting of the Prince riding into the riot on horseback and demanding the stop of the disruption. The older version also shows the whole town being involved. Luhrmann only shows shots fired between the Montagues and the Capulets and a bit of confusion before Prince comes into the scene in a helicopter.
After the fight, in Luhrmann's version, Romeo is in a "trashy" part of town. This symbolizes his feelings over Rosaline, the girl he loves. He is sad that their love has faded and talks to Benvolio about her in this scene.
Act I, Scene IV, the scene before the party, seems to be a melancholy event in the 1996 version. Mercutio appears to be angry during the Queen Mab speech, and even before that. Plagiarism is illegal in the United States of America. In Zefferelli's movie, Mercutio is a playful, joking, happy person before and during the Queen Mab speech. When Romeo tells him to settle down in the new version, they are both screaming and Mercutio is crying; while in the old version, they are not as tense.
The party scene is also very different in the movies. Zefferelli uses a light, happy atmosphere for the scene where Romeo and Juliet meet. Mercutio disappears after they enter the party. In Luhrmann's version, Romeo meets Juliet in a dark bathroom. Mercutio dances in drag on the stairs, which shows that he is a friend of the Capulets and that he is more of a slacker or a wilder person.
The 1968 version includes the nurse at the party. She is also closer to Juliet and more of the rambling character Shakespeare made her to be. She is the one who tells Romeo that Juliet is a Capulet. In the 1996 version, she is just there to drag Juliet away, and it is then that Romeo realizes Juliet is a Capulet.
In the 1996 version, the balcony scene does not take place on a balcony. Juliet speaks while she is on the balcony, but later comes out of the house to see Romeo. The scene has a lot of light in it, despite the fact that it occurs at night. In 1968, Zefferelli left the scene on the balcony, and it was dark during the scene. Both of the movies seemed to draw out the scene to show that Romeo did not want to leave Juliet.
The weddings in each movie are both very quick and solemn. Zefferelli uses Friar Lawrence's cell as a setting. There is a quick ceremony declaring the two's marriage. In the modern version, a church is where the wedding takes place. There is a similar short ceremony.
When Tybalt and Mercutio get in a fight, Zefferelli has them taunting each other and playing around in front of the church. The whole incident makes it look as if Tybalt, Romeo, and Mercutio are only playing around. After Tybalt stabs Mercutio, though, the playful attitude does not change. Mercutio and Romeo's friends think that Mercutio is still fooling around and faking an injury to make fun of Tybalt. No one realizes he really is dying until Romeo pulls away the cloth covering Mercutio's wound. By then, it is too late, because Mercutio is dead.
In the modern version, the scene has a completely different feeling. It takes place on a barren beach. Mercutio and Romeo are clearly afraid of Tybalt. There is no laughing or mocking during this scene. Instead, the boys yell and shoot at each other. Mercutio gets a deep wound from a piece of glass, and he is angry at Romeo while he is dying. No one has the suspicion he is playing around, and he is yelling venomously as he dies.
In the modern version, Romeo kills Tybalt at night. He goes against his previous desire of not wanting to harm a relative. He shows little regret for his anger until Tybalt falls into the water and dies. Benvolio is crying as he tells the story of Tybalt killing Mercutio and Romeo killing Tybalt. The Capulets want Romeo dead, but Prince only banishes him to Mantua.
In the earlier version, Romeo fights Tybalt in a town scene, and people are involved. After Tybalt's death, Romeo looks shocked and runs away. Romeo becomes banished and goes to Friar Lawrence.
The last night between Romeo and Juliet was not obvious in Zefferelli's version, but Romeo is leaving Juliet's chamber in the morning. In the 1996 version, it is quite clear that Romeo spends the night in Juliet's room and leaves the next morning. The nurse sees him leave, also.
When Juliet's father informs her of her arranged marriage to Paris, both versions handle this as a sad scene for Juliet. In both scenes, her father becomes a harsh, strict person when he was previously only seen in good moods. He screams at Juliet as she refuses and tries to hide from him. Juliet's mother, in both renditions, is still not very close to Juliet. After Lord Capulet yells at his daughter, Lady Capulet just looks at Juliet and tells her to do what she wants because she has nothing to say to her. After her parents leave, Juliet looks to the nurse for guidance and comfort. She reminds Juliet that Romeo is not coming back and suggests that Juliet just marry Paris. Juliet seems maddened by this in both versions, but then thinks about it. After she plots about lying, she agrees with the nurse and asks to go to confession for her sins.
When Juliet goes to Friar Lawrence in Zefferelli's interpretation, it is in a dark room and he is reluctant to do anything for her. Then he remembers a potion he has that can make her appear to be dead for 24 hours, only to wake up after that. She begs him to give it to her, and he does. In the 1996 version, she does not seem to be as close to the Friar as she was in the older version. She asks him to help her, and he mysteriously talks about a plant that can help her to fake her death for a day.
The Friar in the old version gives Friar John a letter for Romeo. Friar John seems like a careless person. In the new version, he writes a letter to Romeo and sends it via Federal Express to Romeo in Mantua.
The night Juliet swallows the poison, both versions are almost the same. She does not really think about it as much in the old version, though. In Shakespeare's original script, she contemplates several things that could happen if she swallowed the concoction. She imagines herself waking up in the tomb before Romeo arrives, going insane, and bashing her skull in with the bones of her dead relatives. She visualizes several other consequences that all deal with the plan's inefficiency, which foreshadows its actual failure.
The morning the Capulets find Juliet unconscious is quite different in the two versions. In Zefferelli's production, there is a lot of commotion after the nurse finds her dead. The newer version also has a lot of commotion, but her parents are not running around as they are in the 1968 movie. Neither of the movies included a scene where the Capulets were happily preparing for the wedding, which was in Shakespeare's play.
During Juliet's funeral, Balthasar seems shocked to see her lying dead. He hurries to Mantua to tell Romeo of her death. The scene is almost identical in the two movies, except one is modern. The scene where he meets Romeo is sad in both of them, and Romeo is yelling in the newer version. Both show hints of irony as Romeo lets the plan slip through his fingers. In the older version, the boys ride right past Friar John on their horses. In the newer version, Romeo walks over the slip left by the FedEx messenger while walking to the car.
Romeo never visits the apothecary in Zefferelli's movie, so it is not clear where he gets the poison. The apothecary in the new movie is the man from the pool hall in the beginning of the movie. This suggests that he is a poor man who is probably a drug dealer of some sort. Romeo goes to him and demands poison. The apothecary declines at first. Romeo offers him money, and the apothecary states, "My poverty but not my will consents."
The tomb scenes are very different from each other. In the newer version, Romeo arrives at the church and a person is at the front. There are already police chasing him because they were aware of his return. He grabs the person in front of the church and threatens to kill him if the police try to shoot. When he finally gets into the church, he sees Juliet and delivers a long speech to her while she appears to be dead. While he is speaking, the camera captures images of Juliet's fingers twitching as though she is awakening. Romeo stands back, and Juliet's eyes gradually open. She smiles, then gasps as she sees Romeo pull a small vial to his lips. They both realize that there had been some huge mistake. Juliet watches Romeo die, and in this version he knows she is alive. After he dies, she tries to drink the poison and then kiss it off his lips. After she fails in this, she takes his gun and shoots herself in the head.
In the 1968 movie, Balthasar is included in the scene. Romeo tells him to stay outside the tomb until Romeo returns. Romeo opens the tomb by throwing a large rock at it. He enters the tomb and finds Juliet asleep, but he thinks she is dead. He tells her how much he loves her, and then poisons himself. Friar Lawrence rushes in at the last moment and finds Romeo dead on the floor. Juliet awakens, happy, and asks where Romeo is. Friar Lawrence then tells her Romeo killed himself and the plan has failed. The Friar tries to persuade Juliet to come with him or be a nun, but she refuses. Friar Lawrence leaves because people are coming, and Juliet is left in the tomb. She takes Romeo's dagger, and thrusts it into her chest while saying, "Oh, happy dagger. This is thy sheath; there rust, and let me die." Both directors left out the part of Paris. Originally, Paris was in the tomb before Romeo came. In the story, Romeo kills Paris and lays him next to Juliet. Also in the story, Balthasar goes to the tomb with Romeo and Romeo tells him to stay outside or be killed. Balthasar also has a letter from Romeo addressed to Lord Montague.
There is still more death in the story after the latest deaths of Romeo, Juliet, and Paris. When the families gather at the Capulet tomb, Lord Montague explains that his wife died earlier because of Romeo's expulsion. After the Friar explains that he is to blame for the death of the young lovers, the Capulets and Montagues agree to be peaceful. Lord Montague proclaims that he will have a golden statue of Juliet raised for the Capulets, so no one would ever forget how hate killed so many young people. The Prince closes the play by saying the sun will not rise that day, because it is too sad of a day for there to be light. The tale ends with another reference to dark and light.
The two movies have a lot of differences, but with lighting and the characters' lines, the emphasis of dark and light brings them together. The movies were, for the most part, the same as the original story by Shakespeare. There were only slight differences with minor lines cut out, but the lines that were not needed in modern times were the lines Shakespeare used to set a scene. Either way the story is told, it reflects a timeless lesson on love and hate.

Very helpful with my daughters coursework in the absence of either film at home -thank you

well its is a very good essay but it tells the story too much it does not talk about the directors techniques or how certain things affect the audience