1996
Romeo and Juliet was released on November 1, 1996 (USA.) You may be thinking if you've never seen this version, ANOTHER remake? Well you thought wrong! This film, starring Leonardo Dicaprio and Claire Danes, is a modern version but still using the old Shakespearean lingo. Which was a huge risk towards the end of the millennium. The film was directed by Baz Luhrmann. Baz is directing the upcoming film starring none other than the Romeo of this film, Leonardo Dicaprio. This film was nominated for one Academy Award but had 13 wins and 20 nominations total in other award shows. The movie had a budget of $14.5 million and raked in over $147 million
SOME DIFFERENCES:
Romeo and Juliet is a romantic drama adapted from Shakespeare's original playwright. The feuding families, Montague and Capulet, are represented by feuding business empires. And instead of using actual swords they use the gun called Sword. In this film the Lords and Ladies were given first names; Fulgencio and Gloria Capulet and Ted and Caroline Montague. Mercutio is invited to the Capulet party and just before the party Romeo tells of his dream, foreshadowing, and showing that he thinks that something bad will eventually happen is he goes to this party and in his dream he sees a church. The scene they show is the same one when Romeo enters the church to see Juliet's dead body. Also just before the party, Romeo takes an ecstasy pill. Friar Lawrence became Father Lawrence, to go with the modern time period. And Prince Escalus was renamed Captain Prince and was the Chief of Police of modern day Verona (actually Miami, Florida.) And Friar John wasn't in the play and screwed up the letters, it was a FedEx that basically killed the star crossed lovers. Also, like the original, Paris did not visit Juliet at the same time Romeo did, thus Paris did not die, at least that we know of. The most intense scene, this scene gave me anxiety, was that just as Romeo poisons himself, Juliet awakens and the two see each other alive just before he dies, she then shoots herself after the love of her life takes his.
FUN FACTS:
SOME DIFFERENCES:
Romeo and Juliet is a romantic drama adapted from Shakespeare's original playwright. The feuding families, Montague and Capulet, are represented by feuding business empires. And instead of using actual swords they use the gun called Sword. In this film the Lords and Ladies were given first names; Fulgencio and Gloria Capulet and Ted and Caroline Montague. Mercutio is invited to the Capulet party and just before the party Romeo tells of his dream, foreshadowing, and showing that he thinks that something bad will eventually happen is he goes to this party and in his dream he sees a church. The scene they show is the same one when Romeo enters the church to see Juliet's dead body. Also just before the party, Romeo takes an ecstasy pill. Friar Lawrence became Father Lawrence, to go with the modern time period. And Prince Escalus was renamed Captain Prince and was the Chief of Police of modern day Verona (actually Miami, Florida.) And Friar John wasn't in the play and screwed up the letters, it was a FedEx that basically killed the star crossed lovers. Also, like the original, Paris did not visit Juliet at the same time Romeo did, thus Paris did not die, at least that we know of. The most intense scene, this scene gave me anxiety, was that just as Romeo poisons himself, Juliet awakens and the two see each other alive just before he dies, she then shoots herself after the love of her life takes his.
FUN FACTS:
- Ewan McGregor, Christian Bale and John Leguizamo auditioned for the role of Mercutio before Baz Luhrmann decided to make Mercutio black.
- A number of important moments (and a lot of trivial ones) involve water. When we first see Juliet, she is holding her head under water; when Romeo and Juliet first see each other, it's through a fish tank; the balcony scene is moved from a balcony to a swimming pool; Mercutio is killed at the beach; when Tybalt is shot, he falls into a pond; when the banished Romeo comes to Juliet's room he is drenched from the pouring rain, and when he leaves the next morning he falls into the pool again
- Claire Danes wears a wig throughout the movie and also had a special aquatic wig for her underwater scenes.
- Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Kate Winslet and Christina Rici were considered for Juliet. Gellar's commitment to "All My Children" interfered, and Hewitt was considered too youthful-looking. Natalie Portman was also considered.
- Luhrmann sent British alternative-rock band Radiohead a videotape containing the last 20 minutes of the movie and asked them to make a song for the end credits. They composed the song "Exit Music (for a film)", which appeared on their 1997 album "OK Computer" (the director has said in the DVD commentary that he believes it's one of the best exit themes ever written)
- Like most of Shakespeare's work, the verse of Romeo and Juliet is written in iambic pentameter. Pete Postlethwaite, who plays Father Laurence, is the only actor in the movie who speaks using this meter.
- Key hair stylist Aldo Signoretti was kidnapped by gang members and held for $300 ransom which Luhrmann paid.
- When Tybalt's car rolls over, the roll cage, which is used to protect the stunt driver, collapsed, almost breaking the stunt driver's neck.
- In Luhrmann's native Australia, the soundtrack was the second highest selling album of the year, going platinum five times.
- It was Claire Dane's first experience of performing Shakespeare.
- The Jesus statue that dominates Verona was actually a visual effect. In reality, it was 2 feet high.
- The opening gas station encounter took 7 days to film with 2 days of pick-ups in Vera Cruz.
- Claire Danes' rendition of Juliet's line "I long to die!" is sampled in the background of the Evanescence song "Tourniquet."
- At the Capulet masquerade ball, the major characters wear costumes that reflect their personalities: Romeo as a knight, Juliet as an angel, Tybalt as a devil, Capulet as an emperor, etc.
- Neil Patrick Harris was considered for the role of Romeo.
Leonardo and Claire were good friends, in the picture above Leo and Claire goof around on the red carpet.
Click the play button to watch the trailer to the 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet.