Term Papers on Shakespeare On The Scene- An Examination Of Romeo And Juliet

Term Paper Title	Shakespeare On The Scene- An Examination Of Romeo And Juliet
# of Words	945
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.78

Shakespeare on the Scene- An Examination of Romeo and Juliet

     Sex, drugs, and violence are usually a potent combination, and only William
Shakespeare could develop them into a masterful, poetic, and  elegant story.  In the play,
"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," all these aspects of teenage life absorb the reader or
watcher.  It is understood that Hollywood would try to imitate this masterpiece on screen,
and it has done so in two films: Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 "Romeo and Juliet" and Baz
Luhrmann's 1996 "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet."  The updated Luhrmann
picture best captures the essence of Shakespeare for the present-day viewer.  Through the
ingenious use of modernization and location, while preserving Shakespearean language,
the spirit of Shakespeare emerges to captivate a large audience.
     Shakespeare's plays were designed to adapt to any audience: with this in mind, Baz
Luhrmann created a film that applies to the modern audience through this updating.
Luhrmann modernizes "Romeo and Juliet," through constant alterations of the props,
which entice the audience into genuinely feeling the spirit of Shakespeare.  First, the movie
starts with an prologue masked as a news broadcast on television.  This sets the scene of
the play by illustrating the violence occurring between the two wealthy families, the
Montagues and the Capulets.  In Zeffirelli's film of "Romeo and Juliet," the prologue takes
the form of a dry narrator relating the story of the Montagues and Capulets over a
backdrop of an Italian city.  For most modern viewers (especially teenagers), the
Luhrmann picture is fast-paced, keeping the spectator intrigued, while the Zeffirelli picture
is dreary and dull, an endless maze of long and boring conversations, foreshadowed by the
prologue.  In Luhrmann's film, the actors, instead of carrying swords with them, hide guns
in their shirts and wield them expertly.  The death of Romeo and Juliet is (as always)
blamed on the post office, for not delivering the letter properly.  And, to be politically
correct, Mercutio appears at the Capulets' ball dressed as a large woman.  The actors in
Zeffirelli's version of Shakespeare wear colored tights and bulging blouses; thus they
appear more comical because they are outdated.  By modernizing these aspects of the
play, and reconstructing the prologue, Luhrmann creates a movie that is more interesting
to the modern viewer, and captures the essence of Shakespeare's writings.  Evidencing this
viewer-friendliness, the 1996 "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet" made almost
twelve million dollars in the month of November alone due to its clever alterations.
     As well as updating Shakespeare's play to the present decade through props, Baz
Luhrmann's film is more enjoyable because of the vibrant settings.  The Zeffirelli's "Romeo
and Juliet" occurs in an ancient Italian city, with cobblestone streets and Roman mansions.
Although the original play was meant to be performed in this setting, the modern viewer
cannot relate to the environment, and thus has a hard time understanding the plot.
     In Luhrmann's v...

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