Interpretation of the Balcony Scene by Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli of William Shakespreare's Romeo and Juliet

Interpretation of the Balcony Scene by Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli of William Shakespreare's Romeo and Juliet

“Romeo and Juliet” is a famous love story written by William

Shakespeare. Two interpretations were made of this text into a film by

the two directors, Baz Luhrmann (1996) and Franco Zeffirelli (1968).

The films use different types of media to portray the characters and

the overall context of Shakespeare’s play. I will be focusing on Act

two Scene ii (the balcony scene) where I will compare how the two

directors use media in the films.

In Baz Luhrmann’s interpretation of the film we are introduced to a

modern scene which makes it easier for the audience to understand and

comprehend with. Even though the background scene has changed, the

text itself has not. Meaning that Luhrmann did not change the meaning

of the film but he altered the way in which the text is portrayed.

Franco Zeffirelli’s version is set in the late 1960’s, meaning that

there is a time period difference and it makes it harder for people to

understand as it is an older portrayal of the film.

The location in this film is set on Verona Beach in Italy, which is

very contemporary style and twentieth century. The pace in which the

film goes is very fast and it changes from one location to the next in

a sequence of images, which occurs a lot during this recent film.

In Franco Zeffirelli’s adaptation to the film, there are very similar

settings as they are both set in Verona but they have a different

timescale and time period in which the film was produced.

In the beginning of Act two Scene ii (the balcony scene), Romeo

appears and is creating a lot o...

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...s coming from inside the Capulet

residents from other rooms. Again the lighting is very important and

it is dim and you cannot see a lot, which makes it more interesting

and romantic for Romeo and Juliet.

Towards the end of the balcony scene in Baz Luhrmann’s film, the scene

fades away slowly and picks up the pace when it quickly changes to a

new scene. Whereas in Franco Zeffirelli’s film, the scene does not

fade away so quickly, as there is a long shot shown of Romeo when he

is running back home from Juliet’s balcony. He is very excited and the

music starts up again.

I dislike Franco Zeffirelli’s film because it is very old fashioned

and it is much harder to understand whereas the Baz Luhrmann’s version

appeals to me and grasps my attention, it is modernised and something

that would suit all types of audience.