Romeo + Juliet
We all had pretty mixed feelings about Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of Romeo + Juliet when it was released in 1996. Donna initially loved it, but was already fairly lukewarm on it the following year. Carlos always enjoyed the film and still regards it as his favorite cinematic version of the story. Chris expected to adore it, but was surprised to find it borderline unwatchable. None of us had seen it in many, many years and there were a few surprising revelations after this viewing.
Topics include: the pretty terrible introductory scene, the pros and cons of casting age-appropriate actors in the title roles, some of the criticisms surrounding this take on Mercutio and why the three of us are totally on board with it, how much of this tragedy can be blamed on Father Lawrence and why he really should have known better, how little screen time Romeo and Juliet actually share, the unbelievable production design, the sluggish second half, and much much more!