Rome's and Jule's

Rating: 8/10 (16 April 2006)

Luhrmann is without a doubt a genius of a man. One of the most tricky things in bring relics into our current reality is keeping it as authentic as the first day it rolled out onto stage. Shakespeare is no easy man to copy and even more difficult to imitate.
DiCaprio wasn't the best choice for Romeo as far as the dialog and acting bits are concerned. Don't get me wrong, he's a great actor, but lacks the ability to play tough when the time comes for it. From what I understand, Romeo was a decent swordsman as the play recalls. However, little action came from the guns portrayed as the weapon of choice to match the time period.
Harold Perrineau, who played Mercutio, had a crucial role in this film as the best friend of the dear Romeo and more than anything else, protector of Romeo's dreams. It was an outstanding performance because I truly believed that Mr. Perrineau new the emotions and dialog well enough to portray them realistically.
Claire Danes is just an outstanding actress with beauty all around and a more honest approach to the Juliet in this film. It's not easy playing a love interest, but in this movie, it's clear that both DiCaprio and Danes played love interest to each other instead of one or the other.
John Leguizamo is an accomplished comedian, so portraying the ever serious and straight forward Tybalt just didn't seem the role for him. I think that Leguizamo is trying to approach all angles of his acting career which takes much talent, but once you're a comedian that stands out, it's difficult to get out of that genre.
I'd have given this movie better than an 8 if not for the fact that it was relatively uneventful. It's a Tragic Love Story. You can't really expect much more.