Rent Romeo and Juliet (2013)
2.8 of 5 from 64 ratings
1h 53min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- The families of Montague and Capulet use any excuse to publicly fight in the streets of Verona so Romeo (Douglas Booth) and Juliet (Hailee Steinfeld) are dismayed to learn that their new loves are of the rival family. Romeo tries to conspire a way to pursue Juliet without incurring the wrath of his family, while Juliet relies on her nurse to discreetly deliver messages to her love. But the bad blood between the two families is too strong. As the lovers grow more desperate, Friar Laurence (Paul Giamatti) attempts to hatch a plan that will allow them to be together forever.
- Actors:
- Hailee Steinfeld, Douglas Booth, Damian Lewis, Laura Morante, Tomas Arana, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Natascha McElhone, Stellan Skarsgård, Tom Wisdom, Matt Patresi, Marcus J. Cotterell, Christian Cooke, Ed Westwick, Lesley Manville, Anton Alexander, Clive Riche, Nathalie Rapti Gomez, Angelica Ponti, Paul Giamatti, Simone Grancagnolo
- Directors:
- Carlo Carlei
- Producers:
- Simon Bosanquet, Lawrence Elman, Julian Fellowes, Alexander Koll, Ileen Maisel, Doug Mankoff, Andrew Spaulding, Dimitra Tsingou
- Writers:
- Julian Fellowes, William Shakespeare
- Studio:
- Entertainment In Video
- Genres:
- Drama, Romance
- Countries:
- Italy
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 03/02/2014
- Run Time:
- 118 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles:
- English, English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.40:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Trailer
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Reviews of Romeo and Juliet
Critic review
Romeo and Juliet review by George Hooper - Cinema Paradiso
There has never been a tale that has been used to inspire other works than that of Romeo & Juliet. It's a story that never gets old, a tragedy fit for a Greek chorus instead of a British playwright. Imagine my surprise when I watched the new tale of the star crossed lovers and it left me cold, unfeeling to the problems of these two renegade youths as they try anything to be together. There was no desire for a different outcome from this viewer and part of the beauty of the tale is the wishing it didn't have to end this way leaving very little for the film to stand on.
The story to those that don't already know it is about Romeo (Douglas Booth) and Juliet (Hailee Steinfeld) and their warring families, the Montagues and the Capulets. These two proud noble houses are constantly feuding, sniping and treating each other with disdain. When the two fall in love they must hide their romance in fear of it being ripped from their hands. However the two must face far worse in their search to be together than either one of them conceived.
The tale feels like that of Romeo & Juliet, it has the same playful tongue, the same delightfully whimsical conversation style thanks to Shakespeare's insightful turn of phrase but the performers and the director make a melodrama out of the material. The film is lavish and big but never small enough to be intimate. Their romance is expressed through safe little family friendly moments, the idea of a picture perfect love, something we never get to witness.
Steinfeld is perfectly good as the naïve Juliet but Booth is a tragic Romeo, a noble born Montague who has been made into an petulant youth, one you never quite believe to be real, the kind of man his friends see in him. Supporting roles by Paul Giamatti and Damien Lewis liven up proceedings with Lewis cutting to the reputation obsessed Lord Capulet's core while providing a dose of comedy to this very static, unadventurous interpretation.
It's all very well and good to say the words but the heart of the story is lost here and I'm afraid they never really got it in the first place