Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet is a bold, modernized adaptation of William Shakespeare’s tragedy, retaining the original Elizabethan dialogue while setting the story in a hyper-stylized contemporary world. In the sun-soaked, media-saturated city of Verona Beach, two rival crime families—the Montagues and the Capulets—wage a violent feud. Against this backdrop, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet fall instantly and passionately in love. Their secret romance spirals toward catastrophe as loyalty, impulsiveness, and escalating violence make their union impossible, culminating in one of the most famous tragic endings in literature and cinema.

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times “Baz Luhrmann has found a way to make Shakespeare live for the MTV generation—without dumbing it down.”

Janet Maslin, The New York Times “A boldly inventive adaptation that turns Shakespeare’s poetry into pop spectacle while preserving its emotional core.”