For those not familiar with this storyline Essay

For those not familiar with this storyline, Romeo + Juliet is just your average boy-meets-girl, boy-and-girl-fall-hopelessly-in-love, boy-kills-girls-cousin, girl-feigns-death, boy-and-girl-commit-suicide plot. Not unmatchable to watch with a box of chocolates and a boyfriend bonfire, but a box of tissues may well be needed. Director Baz Lehrmann chooses to set this epical in Mexico, a perfect contemporary backdrop for the violent gangdom culture Shakespeares script conveys in a modern context.The both families-the Capulets and the Montegues- are beautifully contrasted the light sprightlinessed Montegues in open Hawaiian shirts, once morest the unshakable black clad Capulet boys sporting m any gold accessories. These two groups of pie-eyed nemeses are, however, united by their mutual habit of openly wearing guns with such flair and style they could easily pass as a invent accessory, rather than an accessory to murder. In the prologue the role traditionally work oned by the c horus is adopted by a real life U. S anchorwoman.The prologue is so turned into a news bulletin. You are literally displace in to the film as the shot slowly zooms in on the television showing the newsreader, before the shot hurtles down a metropolitan street, dragging the audience, with trailing stomachs, behind it. Lehrmann captivates his audience from the outset with a visually stunning repeat of his prologue, utilising imagery from the whole film and conveying the undefiled storyline in under a minute. Contrary to what you may think, this in fact draws the viewer into the film.The imagery used in the prologue directly cerebrate to and supports the words in the scripted opening, and translates them into the modern context. Two houses, both besides in dignity is represented by two giant skyscrapers all side of a road, one bearing a huge mansion saying Capulet, the other Montague. As Romeo, Dicaprio shows the full depth of his acting ability. From lovelorn-Did my heart love t il now? to murderous Either thou or I or both must go with him and back down again through all the levels of shock, anxiety, and of course suicidal.Clare Danes gives a beautiful portrayal of new innocent Juliet. Her facial renderions are convincing and manage to wordlessly express every feeling perfectly. Her lines are also delivered with huge compassion and emotion. Danes on with Dicaprio shows a huge variety in her performance, keeping a bulky audience interested in a script labelled by many as boring. This is not the first time modern directors have messed around with the star crossd lovers. Most notably Bernsteins all singing all dancing West emplacement Story, but also China Girls and-more loosely- Romeo Must Die.However, this is the first modern adaption to stick with Shakespeares script. Lehrmann has obviously had to make cuts in the text for the pursuit of the length of the film, but the dialogue he leaves in is fantastically effective. This spunked up version a timel ess classic engrosses a viewer of any age from the outset, and keeps its grip almost complete through to hugely sorrowful finale. Even staunch traditionalists must see that dragging this dusty play kicking and screaming in to a twentieth century pierce with guns, drugs, and rock n roll has revived it in a centering no amount of Lawrence Olivier ever could.