"== Poster ==

Does the poster for this article look fake to anyone other than me? (talking mainly about the title part)    

Reverted. Thanks for bringing it up!   

oi todo bem!!!!!!!!!!!!!  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 189.17.120.10   

 Romeo and Juliet comparison 

This is the quote I found from the source given (the other source seems to be a dead link):
""""Our story line is maybe not the most original or creative, but it's Shakespearean,"" said Borden, who described the plot as a modern version of Romeo and Juliet. ""We took from the best.""""

I see this has been discussed before and there doesn't seem to be a conclusion, so let me give my two cents. The story of a boy and a girl falling in love with each other but not getting their way is probably the most common theme in the world, and that's the only resemblance between those the movie and Romeo and Juliet. There's an enormous difference - Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy, for one. Let's just say that this movie is nothing like Romeo and Juliet.

Moreover, if you have a basic knowledge of Shakespeare, you will know that Shakespeare created nothing. His story of Romeo and Juliet comes from an earlier story of the same name, which in turn comes from the Metamorphoses by Ovid, who probably heard the story as a folktale. His other tragedies - Hamlet, King Lear - are the same. The true excellence of Shakespeare is in his ability to transform them masterfully into blank verse. It has nothing to do with creativity, and here Borden is awfully wrong to claim that the best is Shakespeare's plot - which has been around for centuries. It shows a lack of basic knowledge about what he supposedly based his story on.

All this raises doubt to the amount of truth in Borden's claim that he based it on Romeo and Juliet - is it babbling, or is he simply ignorant? We do not know. But we do know that his comparison is, at best, doubtful. Yes, it is a verifiable source, it comes from the writer's own mouth, and it is not my place to judge him wrong, but it is also against the principle of common sense to make the comparison in an encyclopedia based on one sentence out of the writer's mouth - as far as I know, no one yet has made this comparison and no one seems to see the same way. I would suggest moving the sentence below to the plotline as ""The writer of the play claimed that..."" as it is not exactly a notable claim either (nowhere else in the article is it mentioned, except briefly in what I believe is an OR sentence). Or, better, remove it.   
I think the editor seemed to feel that what Borden said was sufficient. I'd be a little dubious because; besides it being possibly self-promotion, the only thing we can grab without a shadow of a doubt that (like what you said about the Bard) they weren't that creative.    

Ok - I have now posted 5 more references not from the author, but from mainstream critics who easily saw the similar elements. I also fixed the dead link. I also retooled the sentence to say that both the author and numerous critics have made the same (or similar) description.  As to the obvious similarities: meeting at a party, a balcony scene, each has their ""gangs"", the thwarting of a parents will, rival cliques instead of rival gangs is also referenced by 3 different critics. May this be the end to this conversation now? Thanks for allowing me to post more references.  Please read them all and you might learn something.  
Oh yes - of course their are elements of Grease and West Side Story - They too were based on elements of the R&J; story. I feel silly even having to point this stuff out, but it keeps coming up. Let's see - Grease wasn't a tragedy either (except its message of ""dress and act like a slut and you will be accepted"".  Shakespeare created nothing? Gee, I guess that is why R&J; is perhaps the most adapted play of all time. See the wiki article on Romeo and Juliet on screen just for a taste of what the play has inspired.  No one has adapted Ovid and few have even read Romeus and Iuliet (I have though - has anyone on this page read it?). I sincerely doubt if Bordon or many critics have. And just so you know - Shakespeare did indeed add to the plot and created characters that hav