Set in Miami the film’s setting still has the same effect as Verona did in Shakespeare’s day. This is because Miami has a flashy feel to it and has associations of glamour and is known to be an exotic city. It gives the same impact that Verona gave people in the 16th century. Miami is preserved as a high-energy place and it has a strong Spanish element, which Baz Luhrmann uses well to separate the two families, giving the Capulets a polished flamenco look while the Montagues are portrayed as the bad ‘beach boys’. Everyone wants to go to Miami, as it is exciting and glamorous.
The films opening scene begins with a Newsreader reciting the prologue and it acts like a trailer, showing you all the highlights of what is to come. The camera slowly zooms in on the reader, creating a sense of entering another world, being that of Shakespeare. This works well as it relates to the modern world of today and it makes you believe that what you are seeing is real. It gives the prologue a manner of great importance as we expect big influential events to be broadcasted on the news. The effect of the newsreader helps the audience to understand that what she is saying is a focal point of the story, as it is a big report. The speed of the film then quickens to a continuous changing of scenes and the camera quickly moves onto an overview of the city. This is an effective montage of shots, combining together a preview of what is to come in the film. This generates excitement and tension is created as the audiences now know the plot and are anxious to see how it all happened. The fast pace and action of this montage keeps the viewers glued to their seats with admiration. During the few seconds of this section, you notice several scenes of a huge statue of Jesus. This illustrates how Miami is supposed to be portrayed as a religious city, reflecting the likeness of Verona. The statue also symbolises how each family is so dedicated to their own faith and it acts like a divide between the two families. Luhrmann juxtaposes each shot continuously emphasising the continuous fighting of the two families.
Baz Luhrmann wanted the story to begin at a petrol station because it represents the market place, which was in Shakespeare original writing. It contemporises well with the original setting as a petrol station is where everyone meets, it is impossible not to encounter other people as at a petrol station there is a lot of action and you are unable to avoid anyone. The location reflects the 20th century theme of the movie.
The use of costume in the film portrays the difference in the family houses very effectively. The Montagues are shown to wear Hawaiian shirts, one even unbuttoned to reveal bare chest. They have a more casual and rebellious style and dress code and hair; pink, shaved and bleached. Luhrmann uses the images of the families to make one appear submissive and docile while the other is devious and ingenuous. The Capulet’s have quite clearly been portrayed as the ‘baddies’ of the story. Set in Miami the use of flamenco style is captured clearly in the Capulet’s style giving them a superior Spanish appearance. Their overall appearance shows that they are passionate and serious about the rivalry between the families. The use of iconography also helps the audience distinguish the two families. Each house displays their coat of arms with pride and honour. Each Capulet wears a cross round their neck emphasizing their religious faith, while the Montagues wear army tags, which gives them an inferior appearance to the Capulets. An astute way of replacing the swords in the original Romeo and Juliet is by using guns. This is how Luhrmann was adapted swords to his version of the story. Also each gun is displayed bearing the family seal. Number plates on the cars are also used to distinguish the two families. On each car, the names of the house are written. This helps the audience to recognize each character and gives the sense of importance and intimidation. It suggests that they are the head of an important household and they mean ‘business’.
To create the sense of intimidation for the Montagues and the audience, shots are used to show the Capulets as fearful and powerful. Luhrmann’s elucidation of Romeo and Juliet acquaint Tybalt by showing a close up view of his feet by using a low angle shot when he enters the scene. This creates a sense of mystery and suspicion as we the audience do not know who he is. By only seeing his feet, Tybalt comes across as a very powerful and intimidating person and suggests he is going stir up trouble. With the view of Tybalt’s boots on screen, we are able to see the illustration of cats on his footwear. For someone who is familiar to the story, you immediately know the mysterious character to be Tybalt as his nickname is ‘The Prince of Cats’. The close up also emphasizes his cowboy style boots hinting that Tybalt is a character that enjoys fighting. Not only does Luhrmann modernise the play from Elizabethan atmosphere but he modernises a violent cowboy too. The camera then moves up Tybalt’s body and using a close up, focuses on the lighting of his cigarette. By dropping the match, Tybalt expresses how daring and challenging he his to his opposition and that he doesn’t care that he let a open flame fall on the floor of a petrol station. The camera then moves round, again using close-ups to focus on the faces of the Montagues. You are able to see the amount of fear and anxiety in their eyes as Tybalt is threatening their safety. With the level of tension and anxiety high within the audience and on screen, Tybalt steps on his disposed cigarette emphasizing that he is in control and no one else can get in his way.
Abra appears in double speed and the Montagues are immediately petrified which is a sudden change in mood and their conduct. Abra uses intimidation to show dominance towards the Montagues to show who is in charge. Bearing his teeth to the screen, Abra hisses and the word ‘Sin’ is written on the metal plate over his teeth. Portraying this towards the Montague’s illustrates aggression and hostility. It makes the Montagues that Abra is not one to be messed with.
Throughout the film, signs are used as visual aids to help the audience understand the plot of the story. Just as the fighting scene is about to commence, the camera zooms in on the sign ‘add more fuel to your fire’. This links in well as it suggests to the characters that they should add more rage and disgust to their hatred to the opposing family. This reveals to the audience the amount of anger and fury the houses have for each other and it also indicates that something big is going to take place. Each sign shown in the film assists the audience in understanding the characters and the story. This is a clever idea of Luhrmann’s as it helps the audience to get more involved.
With aggression and rage in the air, guns are let lose with bullets flying in all directions. The Montagues continuously hit the ‘add more fuel to your fire’ sign. This indicates that by doing this, the Capulets become more enraged and aggravated in the situation. This gives the Montague boys some power over the Capulets as they can annoy and torment them. With bullets soaring through the air and petrol pumps in range, it is apparent that this is a dangerous situation. With an explosion, Luhrmann nicely closes of the opening scene. Fire is used to show the themes of anger and the feud between the two families it is also used to hint to the viewers what will happen later in the film. There are close up scenes of the signs being destroyed by the naked flames. This suggests to the audiences that this civil brawl will never cease.
