The houses of Musical and Serious Drama are at battle in the latest (and unnecessary) retelling of Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet,” now with the uninspired title of Juliet & Romeo.
While the film notes state it’s based on the “real story” that inspired Shakespeare’s play, something seems rotten in the declaration.
Basically, the actors are aged-up, so the original tale of fourteen-year-olds having sex and falling in love in three days before killing themselves (so romantic) can feel a bit less yucky. There’s also a war in Verona between the Montagues and the Capulets for control. Things are altered and messed with in order to keep it somewhat fresh, but for the most part, this is “Romeo & Juliet” through and through.
Written and directed by Timothy Scott Bogart, this mixed bag of dueling tones has a clear identity crisis. Does it want to be a pop musical ala Broadway’s “& Juliet?” Or does it want to be a serious updated retelling of Shakespeare’s classic tale?
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These two identities clash between rather catchy bubblegum pop songs, and actors trying to seriously represent the political struggle of the day.
Rupert Graves as Prince Escalus, Rupert Everett and Lord Capulet (Juliet’s dad), Jason Isaacs as Lord Montague, and the supporting characters of Mercutio (Nicholas Podany), Paris (Dennis Andres), and Tybalt (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) are all vying for genuine costume drama, while Clara Rugaard’s Juliet, Jamie Ward’s Romero, Dan Fogler’s Apothecary, and even Derek Jacobi as Friar Lawrence are in some other “lighter” version where anachronistic tunes and high-comedy steal the spotlight.
Even Rebel Wilson, usually a comedy go-to, plays it straight as Juliet’s firm and worried mother. To be honest, this was a nice change.
This update has several problems, but let’s start with the good stuff.
To be fair, while the modern songs seem very out of place, they are all pretty catchy and sung well. The acting by all is good, even though some play it for the romantic musical crowd, and others like they’re in a straight version of “Les Misérables.”
While the whole affair looks sort of “small,” the sets are decent, and the movie is colorful.
That said, the negatives overwhelm the positive, even when you are half-enjoying the hodge-podge mess that it is.
Despite liking the music, the sound is poorly mixed, so the songs seem disembodied from the actors’ lip-syncing. This gives the musical a cheap feeling and keeps the audience a bit at a distance.
The choreography either feels like cramped crowd control or a sort of bland afterthought. (Which is shocking, seeing as how the Kuperman Brothers choreographed the Broadway musical “The Outsiders” to massive acclaim.)
As written, Bogart attempts to infuse some modern flourishes into the character of Juliet, giving her more autonomy and not just making her desperate for her newfound love. Unfortunately, that means she’s written to be a bit snarky and stand-offish, making her fairly unlikable for the first third of the film. Rugaard is a good actress, but saddled with a character we can’t warm up to.
Similarly, Ward, as her love interest, feels right out of High School Musical. Talented, for sure, but he seems a bit like a puppy-dog whose fetish is getting slapped on the nose.
Bogart’s direction lacks inventiveness, especially during the musical numbers. The balcony scene, in particular, is staged in what looks like the courtyard of the Capulet home, where several servants are preparing for a big party. It’s daytime, and everyone can see Romeo and Juliet, so the entire point of the original text is lost. When they break out into song and galivant around, they keep singing about being “high above it all.” So maybe the musical number should have been staged on the roof and not the constricting bowels of the stone castle.
The whole affair feels like an unaired CW show stitched together to make a film. I get the impulse to create a musical of material you don’t need to get the rights to, but do we really need another version of this story? And didn’t “& Juliet” already do the colorful pop version of this altered tale?
Get ready, though, because *spoiler alert* Part II is coming as, you guessed it, the kids don’t kick the bucket. I guess there are more romantic misadventures to come. But this time around? Never was a movie more fair.
Juliet & Romeo opens in theaters on May 9, 2025.
