WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S ROMEO AND JULIET

Baz Luhrmann’s version is genuinely unusual. Quick music-video-style editing, colorful photography and art direction, and a rock-and-roll soundtrack place Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy in a modern setting reminiscent of Miami Beach.

But the movie’s style can overwhelm the story. The source review calls it gritty, violent, and excessive, noting that the director often uses style for style’s sake. The content also requires discernment, especially because young people may see suicide as an escape rather than the tragedy it is.

This is a three-star interpretation of a classic: energetic and visually distinctive, but not the most successful. Watch it at home, where you can pause for discussion and decide whether it suits your family.

A television newscaster introduces a feud between the Montagues and Capulets in a modern city shaped like Miami Beach. At a Capulet dress-up party, Romeo arrives dressed as a knight and meets Juliet. The two quickly become enchanted with each other and secretly marry, even as their families’ hatred continues to threaten everyone around them.

Three stars means this film is memorable and ambitious, but uneven. Its quick editing, colorful photography, striking art direction, and rock-and-roll soundtrack create an interpretation unlike any other.

The weakness is that the style often becomes the point. The clothing and art direction scream extremism, and the director frequently uses visual flourish for its own sake. The result is unusual and energetic, but less successful than the enduring story it adapts.

The film is filled with Christian imagery and portrayals of prayer. Yet the Montagues and Capulets seem to have forsaken true worship for ritual, creating a religious atmosphere without a clear picture of faithful worship.

The story preserves Shakespeare’s enduring themes: hatred, rivalry, jealousy, rage, violence, love, and passion. Love triumphs over hate, but only at the expense of life itself. The film’s treatment of suicide is especially important for families to discuss, since young viewers may interpret it as an escape rather than recognize it as tragedy.

The story’s longing for love and reconciliation points toward a better answer than vengeance. Scripture says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21).

This is a vivid, energetic, and unusual Shakespeare adaptation, but its excessive style and serious content call for family discernment. Watch it at home, where you can guide the conversation. Our answer is WAIT FOR HOME.