Monday 20 July at Dulwich Picture Gallery
Includes free food and wine and more, see below
The Classic Love Story Set in Our Time
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo
Running time: 120 minutes Cert PG
Luhrmann and his two bright angels have shaken up a 400-year-old play without losing its touching, poetic innocence
Synopsis: Classic story of Romeo and Juliet, set in a modern-day city of Verona Beach. The Montagues and Capulets are two feuding families, whose children meet and fall in love. They have to hide their love from the world because they know that their parents will not allow them to be together. Although it is set in modern times, it is still the same timeless story of the “star crossed lovers”.
Video clip
Peter Travers – Rolling Stone – “It’s a good thing that Shakespeare gets his name in the title, or you might mistake the opening scenes for Quentin Tarantino’s Romeo and Juliet. No dialogue, just gunshots, as two gang families — the Montagues and the Capulets (each has its name in lights on the roof of a high-rise) — go to war. Welcome to mythical Verona Beach, where the gangs fire on each other, and soldiers in choppers fire on them. Shot in Mexico in a style that might be called retrofuturistic, since it encompasses castles and armor, as well as bulletproof vests and boomboxes, the film reworks Shakespeare in a frenzy of jump cuts that makes most rock videos look like MTV on Midol”.
“Without the right actors, puppy love could never become the grand passion that tragedy requires after Romeo and Juliet are secretly married by Father Laurence (a splendid Pete Postlethwaite) in defiance of their families. DiCaprio delivers the line “I am fortune’s fool” with wrenching power as violence seals his fate. Luhrmann goes hog wild for the climactic double suicide on a flower-strewn altar lit by 2,000 candles, with Romeo swallowing a lethal drug picked up from a seedy dealer (M. Emmet Walsh) and Juliet holding a semiautomatic to her head. Amid the clamor from outraged purists and Shakespeare spinning in his Stratford-on-Avon grave, you should notice that Luhrmann and his two bright angels have shaken up a 400-year-old play without losing its touching, poetic innocence”.
James Berardinelli – ReelViews – “Romeo and Juliet’s camera is restless, always moving. There are times when the rapid cuts and raging soundtrack might cause understandable confusion between the movie and a rock video. Indeed, with all the camera tricks, special effects (such as a roiling storm), and riotous splashes of color, it’s easy to lose the story in the style.
“Romeo (DiCaprio) and Juliet (Danes) first come face-to-face, gazing at each other through the transparent panes of an aquarium while a love ballad plays in the background. It’s a delicately romantic and magical moment. Danes makes a breathtaking Juliet, merging strength and fragility into one. DiCaprio isn’t quite as successful as Romeo; there are times when his delivery of Shakespeare’s dialogue sounds forced.
“The supporting cast has its share of successes and failures. John Leguizamo plays a particularly effective Tybalt, Juliet’s Latino cousin. Despite a terrible accent, Miriam Margolyes gives a delightful interpretation of Juliet’s nurse.
In a daring move that works, Harold Perrineau’s Mercutio is presented as a high-energy drag queen who gets a chance to strut his stuff to a disco tune with Shakespearean lyrics. Pete Postlethwaite (as Father Laurence) and Vondie Curtis-Hall (Captain Prince) are both at ease in their roles. Brian Dennehy’s presence is, as always, imposing, but, as Lord Montague, he doesn’t have more than a handful of lines. Less successful are Paul Sorvino’s cartoon-like portrayal of Lord Capulet and Diane Verona’s Blanche DuBois-flavored version of his wife.
“There are moments of comedy in Shakespeare’s play, and Luhrmann tries to transfer some of these over, in addition to adding a few of his own. One in particular, with Romeo ineptly scaling a trellis for the famous balcony sequence, is ill-placed. Also, there are times when the director gets a little too cute. A run-down theater in Verona is called “The Globe”, and the astute viewer will catch visual references to “The Merchant of Verona Beach”, “Rozencranzky’s”, “Wherefore L’Amour”, and “Out, Out Damn Spot Cleaners”.
“Ultimately, no matter how many innovative and unconventional flourishes it applies, the success of any adaptation of a Shakespeare play is determined by two factors: the competence of the director and the ability of the main cast members. Luhrmann, Danes, and DiCaprio place this Romeo and Juliet in capable hands. And, while such a loud, brash interpretation may not go down in cinematic history as the definitive version of the play, hopefully it will open a few eyes and widen the audience willing to venture into any movie bearing the credit “based on the play by William Shakespeare.”
Award winners:
Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music: Nellee Hooper
BAFTA Film Award Best Production Design: Catherine Marti
Best Screenplay – Adapted Craig Pearce & Baz Luhrmann
David Lean Award for Direction: Baz Luhrmann
♥Includes wine and canapes kindly donated by Romeo Jones, that amazing deli in Dulwich Village
♥A free prize draw for a potted red rose (what else?) kindly donated by Alleyn Park Garden Centre
♥Film notes and an introduction to the film
♥DVD sales table (bring along your unwanted ones and sell them to support the Gallery – £5)
♥Join the team afterwards at the Crown and Greyhound to continue the evening
All this for £8 or £6 if you are a Friend of Dulwich Picture Gallery or a GalleryFilm facebook member.
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Buy tickets: 020 8299 8750
