Extended Essay

Table of Contents

Introduction:I wrote my paper to compare and differentiate the two interpretations of Shakespeare’s infamous play Romeo & Juliet in the movies made. In my paper, I compared and differentiated The Original Playwright script used in Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 movie and Baz Luhrman’s 1996 version. Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli depicted the film Romeo and Juliet in altogether different ways. The vast majority of the scenes in the film are depicted in various ways in spite of the fact that there are a few similarities. There are some extremely clear differences including the target group, the setting, the place and the time periods of each movie. There are some littler contrasts just as, for example, the music, camera edges, lighting, and the manner in which characters are presented and more. Although they are different, they all mostly have the core elements and important scenes from Romeo & Juliet. The main scenes of each movie that I will be comparing and contrasting are the Opening Scene (Act 1 scene 1), Romeo and Juliet first encounter (Act 1 scene 5) the Balcony scene (Act 2 scene 1), The secret wedding (Act 2 scene 5), Romeo kills Tybalt (Act 3 scene 5), The fake death potion (Act 4 scene 1) Nurse finds Juliet “dead” (Act 4 scene 4), Romeo plans suicide (Act 5 scene 1), and Tragic death scene (Act 5 scene 3). Throughout these scenes, Romeo & Juliet experience the trials and tribulations of having a forbidden love because of the bad blood between the Capulets and Montagues.The Original Story of Romeo and Juliet:The original Romeo and Juliet film happens in Verona, Italy, where a rough, antiquated feud between the Montague and Capulet families wreaked havoc on the city and threatens the townsfolk. At some point, a short spat between the foe families emits into an undeniable street fight, which is then separated by Prince Escalus, who cautions that starting now and into the foreseeable future, the individuals who battle will be executed. Romeo Montague, a nice looking youth of around 17, is pitiably infatuated with a young lady named Rosaline, who shows up in either the film or the first play. In the meantime, Juliet Capulet and her family are getting ready for their masquerade ball hosted at their home that night. A well off, more seasoned single man, Count Paris, has solicited the consent from Juliet’s dad, Lord Capulet, to wed his only girl, which her dad requests to delay until her moving toward fourteenth birthday celebration. That night, Romeo and alternate Montagues covertly go to the Capulet soiree. The goal of the night is for Romeo to defeat his affection for Rosaline, and when he meets and shares the dance floor with Juliet, the two adolescents quickly begin to instantly fall hard for one another.Afterward, in a standout amongst the most acclaimed scenes in the majority of Shakespeare’s works, Romeo approaches Juliet’s private garden and hears her talk about her affections for him from underneath her balcony. He unintentionally startles her, disclosing to her that he has similar sentiments and that he would revoke his family name on the off chance that he could be with her. The two make arrangements to see each other again the following day.Romeo goes to Friar Lawrence, a companion and friend of his, and requests that he marry the two sweethearts secretly. The Friar is disappointed that Romeo’s interests have changed from Rosaline to Juliet so consistently, however consents to wed them, referring to his expectation that it will convey harmony to their families. Next, Juliet sends her Nurse to meet Romeo in broad daylight. Romeo requests that the Nurse have Juliet meet him that evening to get hitched secretly. The Nurse is elated and concurs. At the chapel, the Friar cautions Romeo to adore Juliet with some restraint, in case their adoration meet its inauspicious end. He at that point continues to wed them.The following day, another fight in the road breaks out between one of Romeo’s closest companions, Mercutio, and Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt. Tybalt at first needs to face Romeo, referring to his interruption at the disguise ball as a grave affront. Romeo, be that as it may, is riding the high of his new marriage to Juliet and welcomes Tybalt with warmth and regard. Believing he’s taunting him, Tybalt affronts Romeo, and Mercutio bounces to safeguard his companion. He and Tybalt duel, and however Romeo attempts to stop the battle and make harmony, recalling the ruler’s notice, he inadvertently gets in the middle of them, and Tybalt erroneously wounds Mercutio under Romeo’s arm.Mercutio passes on a horrendous, prolonged death which he asks for help and his companions just giggle, believing he’s joking. When they at last understand that he was covering a mortal wound, it is past the point of no return. Romeo ends up incensed and retaliates for the loss of his closest companion by dueling with and butchering Tybalt. The collections of Mercutio and Tybalt are brought before the sovereign, where Benvolio, another of Romeo’s closest companions, discloses to him that Romeo acted to vindicate Mercutio. The sovereign, a relative of Mercutio’s, indicates kindness and expels Romeo from Verona as opposed to condemning him to death.Unknowingly that Juliet has effectively hitched Romeo, Lord Capulet organizes her to wed Paris. Juliet won’t, sending her dad into a fierceness in which he compromises to toss her out in the city. The Nurse begs Juliet to overlook Romeo and wed Paris, which Juliet sees as a massive treachery. She searches out Friar Lawrence and together they compose an arrangement to counterfeit Juliet’s demise so she can escape and be with Romeo. The Friar gives Juliet a mixture to drink that will make her search dead for around 42 hours. The arrangement is that the Capulets, figuring her to be perished, will send Juliet to her tomb, and after that Friar Lawrence will send another Friar, Friar John, to caution Romeo of his sweetheart’s phony passing. In the meantime, Friar Lawrence will intend to meet Juliet at her tomb and help her escape.Friar John is postponed in conveying Romeo the letter, in any case, and a companion of Romeo’s named Balthasar observes Juliet’s memorial service and reports to Romeo the false news she has passed away. In depression, Romeo goes to Juliet’s tomb and, deprived at what he supposes is his sweetheart’s downfall, slaughters himself by drinking a toxin that he purchased in Mantua. Monk Lawrence arrives and discovers Romeo’s body by Juliet’s. She at that point awakens, and the Friar attempts frantically to get her out of the tomb without seeing Romeo’s body. She sees it and declines to abandon him. Hearing the police drawing closer, the Friar escapes. Juliet attempts to figure out how to get the mixture out of Romeo, and when she can’t, she utilizes his knife to wound herself. She falls onto his chest, dead. After the police arrive, the two families and the Friar go to the burial service for Romeo and Juliet and the families consent to end their quarrel.Romeo and Juliet became one of William Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy. Many producers and directors were inspired by Shakespeare and decided to create their own spin on it. The most accurate movie of Romeo and Juliet was made by Franco Zeffirelli in 1968 including the dialogue at which Shakespeare originally wrote it in. In 1961 Robert Wise and Jerome Robins created the movie West Side Story that was a musical in which a modernized Romeo and Juliet are associated with New York street gangs. Then there came the 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet made by Baz Luhrman putting the setting to a postmodern city named Verona Beach, very well known as the one Leonardo DiCaprio plays as Romeo. These movies are very similar yet different so I will investigate just how similar and different they are in the most important scenes of the original Romeo and Juliet.Opening Scene Act 1 Scene 1:In Zeffirelli’s version of Romeo and Juliet, much like Shakespeare’s, the scene opens with Samson and Gregory of the Capulet house exchanging in witty banter: SAMSON: I strike quickly, being moved.GREGORY: But thou art not quickly moved to strike.SAMSON: A dog of the house of Montague moves me (1.1 5-7).They continue to go back and forth until two serving men, one named Abraham, of the Montague house join in. Gregory starts interaction with them by saying, “Draw they tool. Here comes of the house of Montagues” (1.1 29). Samson adds on saying, “Quarrel, I will back thee” (1.1 30). Gregory furthers their action by suggesting that they frown in the Montagues direction but Samson disagrees:SAMSON:  Nay, as they dare.  I will bite my thumb at them, which is a disgrace     to them if they bear it. [He bites his thumb]ABRAHAM: Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?SAMSON: I do bite my thumb, sir.ABRAHAM: Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?SAMSON [to GREGORY]: Is the law of our said if I say ‘Ay’GREGORY: No.SAMSON [to ABRAHAM]: No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I bite my thumb, sir (1.1 37-45).They continuously debate of whose master is best and fight until Benvolio shows up and advises them to put away their swords. But Tybalt arrives and instigates the fight to proceed.The corresponding scene in Baz Luhrmann’s film instead shows Benvolio and the “Montague boys” cruising along the freeway in a brilliant yellow convertible, snickering boisterously, with one of them pivoting to confront the camera and shouting: “A dog of the house of Capulet moves me!” They pull up to a gas station, Benvolio heads inside, and promptly a short time later arrive Tybalt and the “Capulet boys,” Abraham (here contracted to Abra) and another. Tybalt heads inside, however Abra stays by the vehicle, sees the Montague boys, and faces them with an intimidating glare. The Montague young men tremor with terror and hop when Abra shouts, “Boo!” Abra, giggles insanely and gets once again into his vehicle; prepared to head out until the point that he sees one of the Montague young men bite his thumb.Next, the fight scene breaks out and in Zeffirelli’s version they draw swords. In Luhrmann’s modernized film they draw guns with the names of the houses they serve engraved onto them. Strangely enough, however, when Benvolio implores the Capulets and his kindred Montagues to bring down their weapons, the wording does not trade swords for firearms, but rather stays as it peruses in the original context (1.1 57).Lurhmann’s movie setting has a devious spin unlike Zeffirelli’s: rather than the events taking place in Verona, Italy, they occur in an abounding shoreline city called Verona Beach (looking to some extent like current Miami) that has been desolated by the continuous fight among Capulet and Montague. Verona Beach is a current city, with vehicles, elevated structures, service stations, and hot dog stands, none of which were even imagined (or substantially less, accessible) amid the time that Romeo and Juliet was composed or performed.The outfits of the movie set on Verona Beach are also modernized to fit that scene and time period. This opening scene finds the Montague men marching around in Hawaiian shirts and donning unnaturally colored hair, while the Capulet men support leather and metal-heeled boots. These are some extraordinary changes from the traditional Elizabethan clothing of the time mirrored in Zeffirelli’s rendition.Moreover, the film makes no representation to any English or Italian (to fit the original setting) accent from its characters. Luhrmann clarifies this is on the grounds that he considers the American dialect as better suit to Shakespearean content: “When Shakespeare wrote these plays, they were written for an accent that was much more like an American sound, and when you do Shakespeare with an American accent it makes the language very strong, very alive” (Weinraub). Musically in this scene, the audience is given present day hip-jump, electric guitar audio effects, a gesture to melodic themes from spaghetti Western showdowns, and a chorus reciting an immediate Latin translation of the play’s prologue. Luhrmann clarifies in an interview on the Music Edition of Romeo + Juliet that Shakespeare utilized all assortments of music to contact the profoundly varied audience in the Globe Theater: church music, folk music, and well known music of that time. Luhrmann mimics this in his form of the play.Act 1 scene 5:In this particular act and scene, Romeo and Juliet meet for the first time at a grand party that Juliet’s family, the Capulets, are hosting. Romeo’s current crush Rosaline was said to be attending the party so he and a group of friends get invitations because they are Montagues and could never personally receive one. But when Romeo sees Juliet he instantly forgets that he was even there for Rosaline. On the other hand Juliet is to soon be married to a man named Paris and was told to court him at the party. She sees Romeo and also forgets that she had the task of courting Paris. In Baz Luhrmann’s film adaptation the scene is set in a luxurious and extravagant ensemble party at the Capulet’s house. Main characters, for example, Romeo, Juliet, Lord Capulet, Paris, and Tybalt all have outfits crucially to embody their motives in the original play. For example, Juliet is wearing an angel costume. This to connote that she is the heavenly vision of magnificence and her presence is intended to uplift the room in some sort of angelic way. Romeo is wearing a knight’s suit of armor. This is to indicate he is the generalization of a brave figure, and this connected with the sentimental scene of being swept away by your knight in shining armor. Paris is wearing a space suit to mean the current rendition of the ideal man to carry you away. Tybalt is wearing a devil costume and smoking a cigar demonstrating that he is to some degree mischievous, as appeared in the play when he constantly taunts Mercutio in the original play.