The best version of Romeo & Juliet I've seen - brilliant!

Rating: 9/10 (24 January 2002)

I think the best thing about this movie is that it brought Shakespeare to millions of people who would never have normally appreciated it. When Baz made this movie he didn't want to make yet another 'boring' drama that would turn people off - more long dresses and men in tights? How many times did we sit through these movies in high school studying for our next English exam? Big yawn!
Instead, he took the story and threw it into modern times, cast fresh young actors, gave it a modern soundtrack and directed a masterpiece. The story otherwise remains exactly the same, word for word. Most of the kids who saw this don't even realise they've just had an English lesson by the end of the movie! Hey, knock it if you like but I think anything that might get more people reading or appreciating the written word can't be that bad.
Highly entertaining, a heartbreaking romance, and a visual feast, Romeo + Juliet is a movie I've treated myself to at least once a year since I first saw it in '96. After seeing Moulin Rouge this year I watched it twice in a row. A must for any romantics - just keep an open mind and expect the unexpected if you've never seen a Baz Luhrmann film before - you either love or you hate this hopeless romantic but you should at least appreciate what he does.