Romeo And Juliet Comparative Essay

Whereas the Zeffirelli (1968) adaptation of Romeo and Juliet takes place in a traditional Elizabethan setting, Luhrmann's (1996) version has a modern day setting. During the prologue, Zeffirelli opens with a long distance shot of Verona. This shows the older setting and time period of the play, which closely matches what the audience would imagine. The introduction of the Luhrmann's film is divided into two parts: the first begins with a television news broadcast where the reporter talks about recent events, and the second part shows footage of the Montague and Capulet families quarreling, with shots of skyscrapers, helicopters, and police officers. During the Capulet party, Luhrmann's movie has the characters doing drugs and getting high,

In the Zeffirelli version, Romeo is portrayed by Leonard Whiting as a very naive teen, such as when he has to leave Juliet during the balcony scene. He takes a really long time to let go of her, making it seem as if this is his first true love. He repeatedly climbs up a tree several times to stay with Juliet for longer, which shows how he is hesitant to leave. However, in Luhrmann's movie, Leonardo DiCaprio plays Romeo as a more reckless character who lets his emotions control him. During the balcony scene, Romeo hides behind a wall and surprises Juliet, which causes her to fall into a pool. Romeo also jumps into the pool to save her, and they exchange vows. Luhrmann's version of this scene depicts Romeo careless behavior which foreshadows him always having to resolve conflicts he causes. Zeffirelli version illustrates Romeo as a gentleman who can be childish at times. In the incident at the church, Romeo proceeded to give the nurse money as a gratitude for her helpfulness in bringing Juliet his messages. Despite the nurse rejecting the offer to accept his money, Romeo carries on to leave the money in the donation box, in which the nurse finally accepts it. Romeo’s action displays his generous nature amongst his loved ones especially to Juliet; he is willing to go through any length and hardship just to be able to be with her. Although Romeo is very passionate and loving, his loyalty ultimately leads to his