Time for our first movie review!
We just watched Romeo and Juliet 2013
this weekend and were absolutely astounded. It was awesome! "Awesome" as in
tears were rolling down all our faces at the end of the film! (all except my
macho brother's, but whatever.)
After seeing Zephernelli's Romeo and Juliet, I
was critical of this one since I feared they would change the dialogue and add
inappropriate scenes (which they did in Zephernelli's anyway with unneeded
nudity). But I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this version just as well if not even more!
I must admit though that Olivia Hussy will
probably always be my favorite Juliet. I mean look how gorgeous she is...
Hailee Steinfeld was a lovely Juliet too, but... I
was not too fond of her acting in the balcony scene. She appeared a bit too
nonchalant. Her part at the death scene was beautiful though!
But Douglas Booth made up for it as I found him
to be the best Romeo I have ever seen. No, actually... He's just the perfect
Romeo. Seriously.
Also, the casting for Tybalt and Mercutio were
great! (Tybalt was so cool!)
Tybalt...
Mercutio...
And Benvolio was so sweet! Whenever he cried, we all went, "Aw..." Such an amazing actor! Bravo, Kody!
As to the actual script... It's definitely
not completely Shakespeare. I mean, the Shakespeare is there, but... just not
completely. This didn't really bother me (that much) because I guess it will be
easier for our modern-day audience to understand. It only bothered me when they
said "you" instead of "thee" at the balcony scene. I mean,
why couldn't they just leave it as "thee"...? Kind of disappointing.
Now, to my favorite part…The music! It was
incredible! It soared in all the right places and really gave the movie this
beautiful atmosphere of tragedy! I loved it! It is now on my list of favorite
soundtracks along with Narnia, Downton Abbey, Alice in Wonderland, and
Braveheart! Two thumbs up!
Below is my favorite piece from the soundtrack... You better stop and listen to it!
Damien Lewis as Lord Capulet was an excellent idea. He was great! He played the scene in which he throws a fit at Juliet perfectly! He made me so annoyed – in a good way! Also, his revolting haircut was a great idea for making the audience hate him even more. Capital idea.
I cannot write this review without mentioning the scenery. It was phenomenal! And best of all, it was actually shot in Verona! I am now dying to go there! The Capulet’s mansion was to die for! My dad (a lover of Italian architecture) was drooling! And as an Art History buff, I was too. It was just beautiful and made me wonder… “Now why is it that I am the only one who sees that I was meant to live in such a house?”
I posted some pics of the scenery so you have a slight understanding of what I’m talking about. Feast thy eyes, oh reader!
And now for the most important part of Romeo and Juliet… The death scene!
Let me just say… It was excruciating.
My reaction was first dread because I knew what was coming. And then rage at that stupid messenger boy! And then the sob wedged itself in my throat and it all went down from there. I became completely lost to utter grief – “the depths of despair”, as my literary twin, Anne Shirley, words it.
Just thinking about it makes me want to cry – that’s how fantastic it was!
The best part was when the drug starts blurring Romeo’s vision and he looks at Juliet who is beginning to waken… He thinks that she is a hallucination, but she was actually alive. And then he smiles and says, “Juliet…” (That’s when I started sobbing) Then of course the famous kiss and “Thus with a kiss I die.” You just have to see it though. It was beautifully directed!
And the ending…? Okay, that was just cruel. It was so sad, I thought I was going to explode. My dad and mom were staring at the screen with wide eyes streaming tears. The last time we all cried like that in a movie was Les Mis. So… yeah, this was THAT good!
Never was there a tale of more woe
than this of Juliet and her Romeo.
But that wasn’t what made our heart break. It was when Benvolio got up and strode towards their corpses. He took Romeo and Juliet’s hand and joined them *cue soaring music*… and the camera zooms in and we know within our heart of hearts that nothing could ever keep their souls apart.
~ Fiona
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