In general Luhrmann has tried modernising the whole film and using familiar images of today to give a sense of security so the people watching aren’t completely lost.
One of the ways this was used was to have the setting in a place similar to somewhere like Miami Beach, but then changing the name to Verona Beach, the original name of the town. They have chosen this location to give an element of fun into it and lift the weight off the heavy content of the play, and since the original play was set in Italy, they mixed it in with a little Rio De Genero, giving it a Catholic slant.
To make the 2 families bear a visible difference, Luhrmann dressed them in a very different style of clothes. The Montagues were dressed in easy–going Hawaiian shirts and beach like clothes, whilst the Capulets are dressed in black with cowboy boots and spurs on the end. This idea is used when the two houses fight and some western style music plays and it’s like a showdown. They also have pictures of Mary and Jesus on their guns which has a link to the catholic theme of the city.
Luhrmann’s used music to weave its way through the film so that even if you don’t understand the complex language just by listening to the music and watching the screen you can get a hold on what is going on surprisingly well. He also uses special effects in the same way, so that anyone can work out the gist of what’s going on. He used different camera angles to create some of the effects, for example long shots to generally set the scene for action, or to show the aftermath of something, for example at the scene of Mercutio’s death.
At the very beginning of the film, they show the prologue as a news reporter reading it out on the news. This immediately sets the scene by showing the audience that it set in the relatively modern day. A man then repeats it while it’s showing some quick flashes of fights and the statues in the city and their buildings. This adds drama and properly sets the scene, as it really shows what level the fighting is at and how much each house hates each other.
Looking more closely at a particular scene you can see how the special effects and music and all the elements of the film come together and make it work. The scene I chose to look at is like a turning point in the film, where the good turns bad and the true tragedy begins to unfold. At the start of the scene there is a long shot of some of the billboards near the beach. There is some dancy background music coming from a radio and the camera is darting around and pans from side to side giving the impression of someone looking around, and to establish the surroundings. Then it has a series of close-ups on people’s faces, for example people in a car driving past in bikinis and beach clothes. A beat starts then it goes to Benvolio and Mercutio walking down and play fighting with the guns and doing tricks on them. A western style of music comes on and they carry on walking down the beach. The use of guns is relevant to the society and the camera angle is rolling which gives it a strong feeling of unease, like there is something wrong.
A while later the nurse arrives wearing a red outfit, which is the colour of love, so it means that love is in the air.
