Romeo + Juliet (1996)
77%RT Audience Score:
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 1 Oscar
15 wins & 29 nominations total
Baz Luhrmann’s visual aesthetic is as divisive as it is fresh and inventive
William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet is a wild ride that will make you feel like you’re at a party in Verona Beach. Baz Luhrmann’s take on the classic play is a visual feast that will leave you breathless. Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes are the perfect pair to bring the star-crossed lovers to life. It’s a little bit of swank-trash, a little bit of romance, and a whole lot of fun. So grab some popcorn and get ready to fall in love with Romeo & Juliet all over again.
Production Company(ies)
La Parti Productions, Les Armateurs Maybe Movies
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Chapultepec Castle, Chapultepec Park, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for scenes of contemporary violence and some sensuality
Year of Release
1996
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 0m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Nov 1, 1996 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 18, 2006
Genre(s)
Romance/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, Brian Dennehy, John Leguizamo, Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Sorvino, Paul Rudd, directed by Baz Luhrmann, written by William Shakespeare, Craig Pearce, Baz Luhrmann, Romance, Drama, PG-13, Gabriella Martinelli, $46.4M box office, reviewed by Anna Coatman, Owen Gleiberman, Todd McCarthy, Geoff Andrew, Janet Maslin, Desson Thomson, Mel Campbell, Yasmin Omar, Eve Tushnet, Rachel Wagner, PJ Nabarro, Kat Hughes, Baz Luhrmann’s visual aesthetic, post-modern city named Verona Beach, Capulets, Montagues, rival gangs, costume ball, arranged marriage, strategic investment plan, masked ball, love story
Worldwide gross: $147,554,998
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $281,644,939
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 537
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 30,713,734
US/Canada gross: $46,351,345
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $88,472,921
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 809
US/Canada opening weekend: $11,133,231
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $21,250,505
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 626
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $14,500,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $27,676,810
Production budget ranking: 1,189
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $14,903,962
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $239,064,167
ROI to date (est.): 561%
ROI ranking: 226
Claire Danes – Juliet
Brian Dennehy – Ted Montague
John Leguizamo – Tybalt
Pete Postlethwaite – Friar Laurence
Paul Sorvino – Fulgencio Capulet
Director(s)
Baz Luhrmann
Writer(s)
William Shakespeare, Craig Pearce, Baz Luhrmann
Producer(s)
Baz Luhrmann, Gabriella Martinelli
Film Festivals
Cannes
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 1 Oscar
15 wins & 29 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (66) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (48) | Rotten (18)
Look back on your first love, without it making you wince.
February 14, 2013 | Rating: 4/5
Anna Coatman
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
A slick blast of ”decadence,” the kind of violent swank-trash music video that may make you feel like reaching for the remote control.
July 6, 2010 | Rating: C+
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
Doesn’t approach the emotional resonance of Franco Zeffirelli’s immensely popular 1968 screen version.
June 11, 2008
Todd McCarthy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
Luhrmann’s gleefully cinematic version of the play is so relentlessly inventive and innovative, it takes 20 minutes to get a grasp on how appropriate is his approach to the material.
February 9, 2006
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Where is the audience willing to watch a classic play thrown in the path of a subway train?
May 20, 2003
Janet Maslin
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
Puts Shakespeare’s greatest romance in a choke-hold and takes it slam-dancing.
August 28, 2002 | Rating: 1.5/5
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
Luhrmann’s style simply defibrillates Shakespeare’s text. … For me, it’s the overblown carnality that makes it such a perfect adaptation of the source material, and that still leaps from the screen today.
November 9, 2021 | Rating: 5/5
Mel Campbell
ScreenHub
This glitter bomb of a film explodes the play and builds it back up again… result[ing] in a truly unforgettable cinematic experience.
November 5, 2021 | Rating: 5/5
Yasmin Omar
Harper’s Bazaar
Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes are both callow and beautiful and wonderful.
August 14, 2020
Eve Tushnet
Patheos
I enjoy Baz Luhrmann’s creative take on Shakespeare.
March 7, 2019 | Rating: 8/10
Rachel Wagner
rachelsreviews.net
Huge credit to Danes, especially later in the film, when Juliet actively rebels. Her “marvellous much” and “I long to die” speeches are forceful and imbued with deep feeling.
November 4, 2018 | Rating: 3/5
PJ Nabarro
Patrick Nabarro
Romeo + Juliet is a stunningly detailed, perfectly cast, fun-fuelled immersive experience. A true love letter to one of the best movies of the nineties, this event is an absolute must for fans. Get ready for the party of the summer.
August 23, 2018 | Rating: 5/5
Kat Hughes
THN…
Plot
The classic story of Romeo and Juliet, set in a modern-day city of Verona Beach. The Montagues and Capulets are two feuding families, whose children meet and fall in love. They have to hide their love from the world because they know that their parents will not allow them to be together. There are obstacles on the way, like Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt, and Romeo’s friend Mercutio, and many fights. But although it is set in modern times, it is still the same timeless story of the “star crossed lovers”.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes star as the iconic star-crossed lovers in this modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic tragedy.
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