Product: Romeo and Juliet [Region 2] (1968)
Rating: 3.0
A Mediocre Butchering of a Literary Classic
It's a shame to see that a large number of highly positive reviews posted here are reviewing the movie based on its sentimental value and not its actual merits. I understand the feeling (in my eyes, "Teen Wolf" is a modern classic), but still would urge people to try and be a little more objective (I would, in no way, call "Teen Wolf" a great movie).This version of the film, while staying "true" to setting and wardrobe, butchers the structure of the play so badly that it is almost rendered unrecognizable. For whatever reason, Zeffirelli chose to not only chop up the dialogue (which is common for a cinematic rendering of Shakespeare), but also do away with several small, but integral scenes that give context to the characters words and actions.For instance, in the first act of the movie, Rosaline is not mentioned at all, and much of Romeo and Benvolio's playful banter about Romeo's romantic woes is curiously absent. This gives no context to his pitiful pouting that we see when he first appears. Also missing is the small, but necessary, scene in which the servant haphazardly invites Romeo (a Montague) to a Capulet party. Therefore, if we're watching the movie without a grounding in the play, we cannot understand why Romeo is going to this masquerade at all (forget the fact that his real reason for going in the play is that he might see his beloved Rosaline).Also missing (from every movie version, as far as I can tell) is the dialogue in the very first scene from Sampson and Gregory, and very badly misinterpreted is Mercutio's "Queen Mab" speech. For some reason, Zeffirelli interprets the latter as some sort of breakdown, completely misreading, and taking strength away from, the character of Mercutio.Zeffirelli seemed to prefer over-the-top action (the brawl in scene one) and ridiculous musical interludes (the awkward singer at Capulet's ball) to the actual text of the play. This kind of interpretation does not honor the text at all, but renders it completely impotent and unimportant. When you remove the dialogue and subtext from Shakespeare's plays you strip them of all their worth. It doesn't matter how good the visual is.I say that people need to set aside their precious high school memories and ridiculous sentiments about a "beautiful love story" and see this hack rendering for what it really is, a nod to the lowest common denominator, trading real drama for a sappy love story.