Romeo + Juliet (1996)
Shakespeare: Now with 100% more bullets.
Presentation:
It makes no sense to me how there are Baz Luhrmann films like Elvis and The Great Gatsby that are well received while Romeo + Juliet is not. In fact, I think this is his best film. Luhrmann’s style has always been ahead of its time through ADHD editing and artistically bold imagery. Yet this is the one film where his style makes the most sense to me. Luhrmann takes on the Shakespearean classic and places these star crossed lovers in a modern GTA playground, which revitalizes the literature for me. Interpretations like guns for rapiers were absolutely genius and they all made sense. Shakespeare has always been a medium for interpretation so critics turned off by the explosive editing aren’t seeing the vision. There was a recent remake of this film with Tom Holland and I think even that film feels more outdated than this one. Though there are nauseatingly bombastic scenes in the beginning of the movie, it makes those slow moments of tender romance infinitely more powerful by contrast. Perhaps it is nostalgia watching this growing up, but this is the Romeo and Juliet I first think about and it holds up amazingly well in 2026. Oh, and don’t forget the lethal face cards of prime Leo and Claire Danes.
Conclusion:
How is this film not exploding in virality? There are a thousands of reasons to love this movie. GTA: Verona Beach. Guns, gangs, and goddamn poetry. Love is the ultimate drive-by. They fell in love, everyone else fell down. I could literally do this for hours. Believe me, I normally can’t stand these fast edited films, but I still adore this film for the the cast and soundtrack. Why Laz Buhrman’s formula works for Shakespeare is because it refreshes some of the greatest English prose and poetry and makes it accessible to modern audiences. The problem is the audiences that dig the visual style probably won’t be fascinated by the material and the audiences that like the material will be overloaded by the presentation. Maybe because I recently appreciate literature and writing, this film appealed to both of my worlds. It’s unlikely people will be able to understand the dialogue, but that's also what makes it re-watchable and I still want to watch it again. Every time you can learn more and you slowly begin to appreciate the most poetic bars Shakespeare ever wrote. Don’t be fooled by the vacuous editing, this still has the richest prose. Would a rose by any other director smell as sweet?
Recommendations
Shakespeare: Now with 100% more bullets.