An Analysis of the Opening Sequence of Baz Luhrmann's Interpretation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet.

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An Analysis of the Opening Sequence of Baz Luhrmann's

Interpretation of William Shakespeare's

Romeo & Juliet

By David Blick

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In This essay, I am going to be analysing the opening sequence of Baz Luhrmann's Interpretation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. I will talk about the prologue, which is repeated three times, how it shows the seriousness of the conflict between the houses of Capulet and Montague and finally an analysis of the opening scene.

This film directed by Baz Luhrmann's, it is an updated version from the original written by William Shakespeare and which was first performed in 1595. This interpretation was released in cinemas in 1997. Differences in Baz Luhrmann's Interpretation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet to that of the original by William Shakespeare that I have been able to notice are that swords become handguns manufactured by gunsmiths called "Sword", Romeo takes a mind-expanding drug before Capulet's ball and Mercutio is killed on a beach, with a sliver of glass, Baz Luhrmann's also cuts out Romeo's fight with Paris in Act 5 - so at the end of the play, amongst many other differences.

After watching the opening sequence of Baz Luhrmann's Interpretation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Julie, I have been able to identify that these short scenes are made up of The Prologue which In Greek tragedy was a speech or brief scene preceding the entrance of the chorus and the main action of the play. This was usually spoken by a god or gods. Subsequently, the term has referred to a speech or brief scene that introduces the play, as by an actor in certain Elizabethan plays such as Romeo and Juliet. In Baz Luhrmann's Interpretation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet the prologue is repeated three times, each of which are in different contexts, one is of a black newsreader giving a news broadcast and the prologue is delivered in her persona, next the prologue is repeated by a South-American-accented man, then thirdly the prologue is shown to us with another male voice-over, but this time images from the film and newspaper cuttings flash across the screen. Another section of the opening sequence also comes from act one scene 1, where we see the servants of the Caplets are on the street waiting for some of the Montague's to arrive. When they do, one of the Capulet "bites his thumb" at them, essentially a strong insult. The Montague's accept the insult and the men start to fight in the petrol station.

In my opinion, I think that Baz Luhrmann has chosen to repeat the prologue three times to make people understand what was to come, and this gives us a sense of foreboding about the play of Romeo & Juliet, and Baz Luhrmann defies conventions of the traditional director and he tells us what is going to happen even before the film has barely begun. He tries to make people understand what was to come, but he defers form adding in the last two lines of the prologue, which are "In which if you with patient ears attend, what here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend". In other words this means that if you have not understood this piece then they hope that the rest of the film helps you to understand it and appreciate their hard work.
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The first time the prologue is seen, we are shown a black American woman. The sequence starts with interference, and then automatically tunes into the news, then after taking breath the news reader systematically starts to give her broadcast through the original words of William Shakespeare. To talk in media terms I would say that the first few shots of the prologue, a zoom effect gives us a sense of building up to the eventual extreme close up of the news reader. The black American woman uses a modern accent whilst giving a news broadcast, and she keeps ...

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