Romeo and Juliet (1968)
★★★ — Romeo and Juliet (1968)
Franco Zeffirelli had already proven himself a capable adapter of classic theatre with his 1967 Shakespeare film The Taming of the Shrew (starring Burton and Taylor), but this follow-up was the one that made his international reputation. Produced by Paramount in partnership with Italian company DDL Cinematografica, the film was a deliberate departure from the more stagey Hollywood adaptations that had come before, most notably the 1936 MGM version. Zeffirelli cast genuine teenagers in the leads, Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey, both largely unknown, and shot extensively on location in Italy, leaning into a sun-baked visual naturalism that felt very much of its late-1960s moment. The gamble paid off commercially, taking nearly $39 million at the box office and winning two Academy Awards.
I first saw Franco Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet as a GCSE student, part of the whole Shakespeare grind that came with studying the play, writing essays, memorising quotes. But unlike most set texts forced upon us, this film actually made the words come alive. Zeffirelli’s version is lush, passionate, and beautifully mounted, filmed on location in Italy, with sun-drenched courtyards, authentic costumes, and a sense of period that feels far more grounded than most Shakespeare adaptations. It doesn’t feel like actors reciting lines on a stage; it feels like real young lovers caught in a world too violent for their dreams. Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey were teenagers when they played the roles, which helps. Their performances aren’t the most technically refined, but they’ve got a raw, wide-eyed sincerity that makes the romance believable. You feel the giddy excitement of first love, the desperation of being torn apart by family hate. The balcony scene, in particular, is tender and iconic. And Nino Rota’s score is haunting, swelling with a kind of tragic beauty that lingers long after. It’s not perfect (some of the supporting performances veer into theatrical excess, and the pacing drags slightly in the middle) but as a faithful, emotionally sincere adaptation, it works. It helped me understand the play in a way reading alone never could, and clearly made an impression, I did get that A*. It’s not flashy or radical, but it’s honest, heartfelt, and respectful of the material.
Rating: ★★★ | Year: 1968 | Watched: 2025-08-21
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More from the 1960s: Viy (1967) · Persona (1966) · Carnival of Souls (1962) · Daisies (1966)
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