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Film Discussion => The Vault => Topic started by: bonanzataz on May 02, 2003, 08:01:19 PM

Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: bonanzataz on May 02, 2003, 08:01:19 PM
so, my school is doing a production of romeo and juliet set in a modern day catholic high school with a live rock band in the background. i'm soundboard operator and must have seen them rehearse 20 times and i kept thinking how much better the baz luhrmann version was. so i rented it and i still really like it. it's a good production. what does everybody else think of it?
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: oakmanc234 on May 02, 2003, 08:31:50 PM
Luhrmann's version is brilliant. Truly excellent. Acting, sound, fury, emotion, design, all top notch. At least thats how I see it.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Cecil on May 02, 2003, 08:55:37 PM
same here. truly brilliant. i have not seen strictly ballroom yet. how is it?
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on May 02, 2003, 10:43:32 PM
Strictly Ballroom is boring.

I love Romeo + Juliet. Just look how many modernized Shakespeare movies it has inspired. Great great stuff.. mmm.. I should buy that DVD...

Although... Claire Danes really disappointed me. Natalie Portman would have been perfect for the role. (they thought she was too young... pfft...)
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Ernie on May 02, 2003, 11:10:09 PM
I want to see it again...I remember fucking loving it...the energy and everything. And how can you not love "love fool", that is the best song ever...I love how they put it in there.

I don't like Moulin Rouge though. It's just way too damn much for me,, you know? Too cartoonish.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: RegularKarate on May 03, 2003, 12:55:33 AM
I just saw it in the theaters and I remember hating it.

Though, I was going through my "I'm sick of all this bullshit" stage at the time and it came around during the peak of it and was just too much.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: cowboykurtis on May 03, 2003, 01:07:17 AM
after all the rave reviews of moulin rouge i buckled down and watched it -- ive tried watching the film 3 times and cant get passed the first 30 mintues. i think baz is an unbelievale visual director. i think his style seems to fit the stories he tells -- i just can't get into his films.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: oakmanc234 on May 03, 2003, 02:03:06 AM
I was aggravated by all the silly 'hyper comedy' in the first few acts of 'Moulin Rouge' at first until I realised how great a tool it is for making the later drama a lot more upsetting in comparison. The tragedy/emotion hit a lot harder. If the film was straight throughout it wouldn't have been as powerful.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Ghostboy on May 03, 2003, 02:27:47 AM
I actually think Romeo + Juliet holds the record for the most times I've actually paid to go and watch a movie. Which is five. The reason being that I was fifteen when it came out and the overwraught emotion of it all appealed to me enormously. Plus the girl I dug at the time was totally into it, so I went to see it with her as much as I could. Nothing ever came of it. But I still like the movie a whole lot. I love all of Baz's stuff, actually. Over the top, but he pulls it off.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Redlum on May 03, 2003, 08:07:46 AM
Good thought on Natalie Portman playing Juliet, JB. She (like a lot of other things) is completely wasted in the teenage romance in Star Wars.

This thread reminds me how much of a damn injustice it was that Baz wasn't nominated for best director for MR.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Alethia on May 03, 2003, 10:14:56 AM
i remember really liking it as well, but im not sure if i like it better than zefferelli's.  maybe i should watch it again, it's been a while...
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Redlum on May 03, 2003, 10:26:15 AM
Quote from: ewardi remember really liking it as well, but im not sure if i like it better than zefferelli's.  maybe i should watch it again, it's been a while...

Yeah. Hmm, I kind of preffered the traditional sword fights.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: USTopGun47 on May 22, 2003, 02:01:23 PM
I hate Baz Luhrman and his production of Romeo and Juliet.  Too much and too flashy.  Just because it's contemporary doesn't mean its that original.  How in depth is the sword idea really?  It's all cheap eye candy to me.   :evil:
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: godardian on May 22, 2003, 02:08:19 PM
Quote from: USTopGun47I hate Baz Luhrman

I second that. Being hyper and overexcitable does not a fresh or innovative director make. I look at Luhrmann's films, and Guy Ritchie's, and just think they have short attention spans and little flair for (or knowledge of) composition, performances, mood, or pacing. Take a Ritalin and study up, guys!
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Gold Trumpet on May 22, 2003, 02:47:42 PM
I've never seen Baz Lurhmann's version of Romeo and Juliet and part of me really doesn't want to at all. First off, the perfect version of Romeo and Juliet made film is in Franco Zeffirelli's version from 1968. That movie just serves as basic memory for me in imagining these characters. I will never forget the film and now that I think of it, I should definitely buy the dvd. Also, even though I liked Moulin Rouge for its adventurousness and felt it was a good touch to the musical to make up for the lack of dancing talent in the stars, I am cautious against seeing this made Shakespearean where it seems like a wrong fit in every way.

~rougerum
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: ©brad on May 22, 2003, 02:54:55 PM
check it out. its good stuff. baz does do some wild shit in it visually, but its no where as wild and over-the-top as Moulin Rouge. I think it really works well. the film has so much energy and vibe, especially the first 20 minutes. i like the scene when leo and the bitch meet for the first time at the fish tank, with that woman singing that song, its cool.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: USTopGun47 on May 22, 2003, 06:37:18 PM
Absolutely.  Guy Ritchie and especially Baz Luhrman are like little children that have just discovered a camera and sparkling objects and are out to have a field day.  It absolutely gives NO maturity to their works, just flash.  I too love the original Romeo and Juliet with Olivia Hussey from Australia.  Great stuff, as is Zeffirelli's Hamlet.  Mel Gibson is quite impressive in that adaptation.   :-D
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: brockly on May 23, 2003, 05:09:07 AM
Quote from: USTopGun47I hate Baz Luhrman and his production of Romeo and Juliet.  Too much and too flashy.  Just because it's contemporary doesn't mean its that original.  How in depth is the sword idea really?  It's all cheap eye candy to me.   :evil:

i agree. hated it.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: godardian on May 23, 2003, 09:51:01 AM
Quote from: Brock Landers
Quote from: USTopGun47I hate Baz Luhrman and his production of Romeo and Juliet.  Too much and too flashy.  Just because it's contemporary doesn't mean its that original.  How in depth is the sword idea really?  It's all cheap eye candy to me.   :evil:

i agree 100% Baz Luhrman sux. Haven't seen Strickly Ballroom, but man did R+J SUCK!!!! I especially hated the fucking fragon queen scene. Everytime I hear that song now it sends a chill down my spine, as I think of the faggotiest (i know thats not a real word) movie ever made.

That has absolutely nothing to do with it, for me. The content. It's his pseudo-style. Pick any scene in the film, and you can see how he's ruined it because it never feels like anything more than that he's trying to sell you the clothes they're wearing.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Pastor Parsley on May 23, 2003, 10:21:34 AM
Quote from: USTopGun47Mel Gibson is quite impressive in that adaptation.   :-D

are you serious?
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: SoNowThen on May 23, 2003, 10:21:35 AM
Yeah, I have to agree. I had to turn MR off after 30 min. A shitty, overwrought, boring love story with great art direction, music, color, and fast editing is still a shitty overwrought boring love story.

But I'd like to see R & J all the same. Haven't got around yet.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: godardian on May 23, 2003, 10:59:12 AM
Quote from: Pastor Parsley
Quote from: USTopGun47Mel Gibson is quite impressive in that adaptation.   :-D

are you serious?

I shudder at the thought of Mel Gibson, but I might be willing to hold my nose and give it a try... maybe...
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Sleuth on May 23, 2003, 12:30:08 PM
Oh man, Mel Gibson as Hamlet is great, his best role ever.  I saw it in school and it really wowed me
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Pastor Parsley on May 23, 2003, 03:38:09 PM
Quote from: tremoloslothOh man, Mel Gibson as Hamlet is great, his best role ever.  I saw it in school and it really wowed me

I saw it in highschool too.....it wowed me as well.........BUT I was in highschool.  Mel should be able to wow a highschool student.  Watch it again...his acting is laughable.  He is so overly dramatic it's corny.  Like I said, I like Mel in some roles.....a Shakespearean actor he is not.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: USTopGun47 on May 23, 2003, 03:47:27 PM
I see Mel Gibson's role in Hamlet as very visual.  It's not so much his dialogue, hey conveys a lot through his actions... very pacifistic.  I would relate his role in Hamlet to Adrien Brody in The Pianist ...puppy faced? if you will.  But the tension he shows inside him is impressive.  I know a lot of people really hate Mel Gibson, but I enjoy this role.  However, if you're not a fan, you probably wouldn't enjoy it.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Finn on January 24, 2004, 09:34:00 PM
I hadn't seen this movie in a long time until tonight. I think it's really brilliant. It's not up there with Moulin Rouge, but it's still a terrific movie. The cinematography and costumes are beautiful as they always are with Baz Luhrmann movies. I also love the way he uses the music, particularly the choice of using Radiohead on the end credits. What a coincidence that he used a song with the title, Exit Music (For A Film). But it's definetly a cookie-cutter movie in the sense that some will hate it and others will love it.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: SHAFTR on January 24, 2004, 09:44:43 PM
oddly enough I watched this tonight, I actually own it on dvd.   I want to point out that I really hate Baz.

Moulin Rouge is probably my most hated film, I tried many times liking it and I just cannot do it.  There are a few moments of brilliance and the rest just makes me sick and annoys the shit out of me.

Romeo+Juliet, I think is the opposite of Moulin Rouge.  There are moments that annoy the shit out of me (any non Romeo/Juliet scene) and there are other parts that I really dig (the romeo/juliet scenes).  I think both Claire & Leo pulled it off and when Baz has the fuckin' patience to let a shot linger for over 2 seconds, beauty can be achived.  Anytime the secondary characters are in the film and the flashy editing, speed up, overacted style kicks in...i hate him.  I watched the film in High School and really liked it, I bought it last year on DVD and viewings since have shown that I merely like aspects or moments of the film.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: MacGuffin on January 24, 2004, 09:56:19 PM
Quote from: SydneyBut it's definetly a cookie-cutter movie in the sense that some will hate it and others will love it.

I don't understand what you mean by this statement. Baz's version is far from being a 'cookie-cutter movie'. In fact, his style and that he kept the Shakespearian dialogue, but set it in modern day is what sets this film apart from it being a recycled retelling.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on January 24, 2004, 09:58:51 PM
Quote from: SHAFTRThere are moments that annoy the shit out of me (any non Romeo/Juliet scene) and there are other parts that I really dig (the romeo/juliet scenes).  I think both Claire & Leo pulled it off and when Baz has the fuckin' patience to let a shot linger for over 2 seconds, beauty can be achived.  Anytime the secondary characters are in the film and the flashy editing, speed up, overacted style kicks in...i hate him.
It's actually the exact opposite with me. I think the emotion in the Romeo & Juliet scenes fails pretty miserably. I love the movie for its flashy scenes and its ingenuity... and, I guess, its gimmicks.

People always talk about style over substance, but what if you're looking for the wrong kind of substance?
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: SHAFTR on January 24, 2004, 10:00:22 PM
Quote from: Jeremy Blackman
Quote from: SHAFTRThere are moments that annoy the shit out of me (any non Romeo/Juliet scene) and there are other parts that I really dig (the romeo/juliet scenes).  I think both Claire & Leo pulled it off and when Baz has the fuckin' patience to let a shot linger for over 2 seconds, beauty can be achived.  Anytime the secondary characters are in the film and the flashy editing, speed up, overacted style kicks in...i hate him.
It's actually the exact opposite with me. I think the emotion in the Romeo & Juliet scenes fails pretty miserably. I love the movie for its flashy scenes and its ingenuity... and, I guess, its gimmicks.

People always talk about style over substance, but what if you're looking for the wrong kind of substance?

well, that is where we differ :wink:
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: modage on January 24, 2004, 10:11:52 PM
i love baz.  i prefer moulin rouge to r+j, but i remember when it came out how inventive and different the film was.  like, the fact it made kids go see shakespeare was pretty good, i think.  i dunno, i think its pretty great.  moulin rouge blows my mind though.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: NEON MERCURY on January 24, 2004, 10:16:06 PM
.....this movie was whack....when i was a younng'n after this movie was released theatrically..everybody went ape-sh(it) over leo and claire annd said that shakespheare was "hip"......if shakes was still alive he would smack baz upside the head w/ a stone tablet or something.....
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Sleuth on January 24, 2004, 10:24:29 PM
"it is the eeeaaaaaaast.......and Juliet is....the sun??????????.....!!!!!"
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on January 24, 2004, 10:48:18 PM
Quote from: NEON MERCURYif shakes was still alive he would smack baz upside the head w/ a tablet or something.....
Why, because his works are alive?

New interpretations are always a good thing.

Which inspires me to start a new thread!

http://xixax.com/viewtopic.php?p=113494#113494
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Finn on January 25, 2004, 09:38:32 AM
I'm glad I could bring this up. A new thread is born.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Pedro on March 04, 2004, 09:18:49 PM
thoughts

luhrmann's version is closer to the original play than zifferelli's in one sense:  it starts more light heartedly and gets more and more tragic.  in that sense, the movie trailer editing style of the beginning defenitely works.  the Z man's version starts out very seriously and just continues on from there.

id say luhrman's version is innovative in the way that it handles the material...i'd say it's a letter to the ADD MTV generation, and how they would have to see shakespeare presented to enjoy it...

however, i still loathe a lot of it.  i can't, however, deny luhrman's visual talent.  it's remarkable, and dizzying, and i grealy admire the way he does it, but FUCK i just cant enjoy it at all.  id love to, i really would...and i think that ive grown to APPRECIATE baz...i just can't fucking stand watching his films.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Vile5 on March 04, 2004, 10:15:16 PM
i saw it and i hated it :(
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: NEON MERCURY on March 04, 2004, 11:48:43 PM
Quote from: Vile5i saw it and i hated it :(

don't be sad...that the reaction from 99.9% of people who saw this also..
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: grand theft sparrow on March 05, 2004, 09:37:31 AM
Quote from: NEON MERCURY.....this movie was whack....when i was a younng'n after this movie was released theatrically..everybody went ape-sh(it) over leo and claire annd said that shakespheare was "hip"......if shakes was still alive he would smack baz upside the head w/ a stone tablet or something.....

Would Shakespeare have smacked Branagh upside his head for the 4 hour Hamlet, in your opinion?
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: cine on March 05, 2004, 09:39:30 AM
Quote from: hacksparrow
Quote from: NEON MERCURY.....this movie was whack....when i was a younng'n after this movie was released theatrically..everybody went ape-sh(it) over leo and claire annd said that shakespheare was "hip"......if shakes was still alive he would smack baz upside the head w/ a stone tablet or something.....

Would Shakespeare have smacked Branagh upside his head for the 4 hour Hamlet, in your opinion?
I'm going to jump in and say no.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: grand theft sparrow on March 05, 2004, 09:54:52 AM
Quote from: Cinephile
Quote from: hacksparrow
Quote from: NEON MERCURY.....this movie was whack....when i was a younng'n after this movie was released theatrically..everybody went ape-sh(it) over leo and claire annd said that shakespheare was "hip"......if shakes was still alive he would smack baz upside the head w/ a stone tablet or something.....

Would Shakespeare have smacked Branagh upside his head for the 4 hour Hamlet, in your opinion?
I'm going to jump in and say no.

Good enough. Thanks.

My point is that Branagh's Hamlet was just as anachronistic as R+J.  Were there any trains in Elizabethan times?  The clothing was also very 18th-19th Century.  So if that's why Neon Mercury thinks Shakespeare would bitch out Baz, then he'd bitch out Branagh and everyone else who made a Shakespeare adaptation on film after 1970, pretty much.

I can totally understand not liking R+J for its technical merit; it's kind of a cinematic equivalent to a kid who didn't take his Ritalin.  But it's a poor excuse to not like it just because it's an update. Purism is the worst thing that can happen to art.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: cine on March 05, 2004, 10:43:13 AM
You know, when you think about it, it really doesn't matter which film Shakespeare would approve of or wouldn't, because I'd venture to say that he wouldn't like seeing ANY of his plays put on film.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: grand theft sparrow on March 05, 2004, 11:07:46 AM
Quote from: CinephileYou know, when you think about it, it really doesn't matter which film Shakespeare would approve of or wouldn't, because I'd venture to say that he wouldn't like seeing ANY of his plays put on film.

Considering that he died almost 300 years before the invention of film, I'd have to say you're right.  :wink:  

But seriously, folks... no, I just was curious to know whether the dislike of Romeo + Juliet came from the decision to update it or the decision to make it "MTV-style" (I hate that phrase)... but seeing as how I was responding to something Neon Mercury said in January (which I didn't notice before), I don't expect a response.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: picolas on March 05, 2004, 08:25:29 PM
Quote from: hacksparrowI just was curious to know whether the dislike of Romeo + Juliet came from the decision to update it or the decision to make it "MTV-style" (I hate that phrase)...
between those two, i'd say most people hate it because of the MTV, but it's also often a combination of how "theysaythelinestoofast." or "I hate DiCaprio in everything no matter what it is for no reason."

and if people think Spears would hate something because of anachronisms, they should read Julius or a lot of others i can't recall specific examples of anachronisms from..

i can't find my dvd of this right now.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Ghostboy on March 05, 2004, 08:27:11 PM
Well, I like it.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Ravi on March 05, 2004, 11:47:49 PM
I only saw the opening of it and the pool scene in high school before we read Romeo and Juliet, but I was put off by it.  The stilted Shakespearean language and the modern setting came off more as a "what if we did this" type experiment.  Granted, I haven't watched the whole thing, but I can't bring myself to, especially after seeing Moulin Rouge.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: MacGuffin on March 06, 2004, 12:46:17 AM
Quote from: GhostboyWell, I like it.

Make that two of us.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Pubrick on March 06, 2004, 01:04:27 AM
three.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: modage on March 06, 2004, 10:18:25 AM
four.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: mogwai on March 06, 2004, 10:33:09 AM
four and a half.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: Just Withnail on March 06, 2004, 10:52:31 AM
How many do I count for? I like it as well. It's romantic and makes me mushy.
Title: Romeo + Juliet
Post by: meatball on March 08, 2004, 02:05:43 PM
Seven.