Romeo and Juliet

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Romeo and Juliet

PG

1968

2h 18m

Romance

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95%

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39 Reviews

74%

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50,000+ Ratings

In the Italian city of Verona, the Montague and the Capulet families are perpetually feuding. When Romeo (Leonard Whiting), a handsome young Montague, disregards convention by attending a Capulet ball, he falls in love with the beautiful Juliet (Olivia Hussey), a Capulet. After a brief courtship, the two elope, creating even greater tension between their families. Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's film is considered one of the best screen versions of Shakespeare's classic love story.

Critics Consensus

The solid leads and arresting visuals make a case for Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet as the definitive cinematic adaptation of the play.

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Derek Smith

Slant Magazine

03/07/2023

As Romeo and Juliet, Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting exhibit an innocence, naïveté, and verve that enlivens their characters, making them feel startlingly modern even as they’re reciting Shakespearean verse.

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Alex Chambers

Little White Lies

05/20/2016

3/5

The sets are tight and stagey, every corner is decorated with baroque lushness, every shot framed by a velvet curtain or silvery branch. And the dialogue isn't caged in by any attempts at naturalism.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

05/19/2016

4/5

High-minded and lively, with heartbreakingly beautiful actors on show, and all shot in a kind of honeycomb-sunglow light.

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James Kendrick

Q Network Film Desk

03/27/2023

3.5/4

Whiting and Hussey have a powerful screen chemistry, and the way they exchange glances, especially when they first spy each other across the dance floor in the film’s most captivating sequence, is electric.

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Rudie Obias

Battleship Pretension

02/16/2023

There’s elements of subversion, violence, and sex that you’d see in other envelope-pushing movies from that time, such as Barbarella, The Graduate, Bonnie and Clyde, Rosemary’s Baby, and others.

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Brian Susbielles

InSession Film

02/13/2023

Like his contemporary Luchino Visconti, Zeffirelli uses his opera-directing knowledge to get the most out of the story with gorgeous costumes, striking production design, and crisp cinematography...

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Luisa M

@Luisaa 1d

What is difficult to do with this play is convince modern audiences that the love between Romeo and Juliet is so deep that they would fight so hard for it and kill themselves for it. The meeting and balcony scenes are crucial in that respect, and not every version, in theatre or film, manages to achieve that. This version’s are sublime, particularly the meeting scene at the ball. It truly captures your heart with its delicacy and emotion. The central characters are so beautiful and perfect that they almost feel like aliens. By the time you get to the balcony scene, you’ve bought it completely. Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet is far superior to most other versions I have seen of this play.

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Ben W

@Username618 Apr 18

I can't remember this at all.

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Farah R.

@Farah Apr 16

Certainly the most beautiful adaptation of Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet is visually mesmerizing with its cinematography and set design. The leading actors are also the most well-cast of any screen rendition, for they perfectly capture the innocence and naïveté of the young star-crossed lovers. It’s easy to appreciate a good film even when it’s not particularly enjoyable.

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DMC M

@Dee1957 Nov 25

This version is the most beautiful IMO. Olivia and Leonard are totally believable as Romeo & Juliet, they have great chemistry. The music & costumes are perfect as well.

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Brayden L

@RT63110022 Sep 20

This is the worst movie of 1968 why did it ended with death

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Sebastian S

@RT40191969 05/01/2025

This expresses such true love and is very accurate to the story and has the exact same dialogue as the original story and doesn't skip out one signal detail and remains the exact as the original story.

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Franco Zeffirelli

Director

Leonard Whiting

Romeo

Olivia Hussey

Juliet

Milo O'Shea

Friar Laurence

Michael York

Tybalt

John McEnery

Mercutio

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Romeo Kills Tybalt

2:13

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Art Thou a Man?

1:04

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - I Never Saw True Beauty 'Til This Night

2:12

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Juliet Joins Romeo

1:55

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Thus With a Kiss, I Die

2:13

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Love's Faithful Vow

1:55

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo?

2:13

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - A Plague on Both Your Houses

2:06

Romeo and Juliet: Official Clip - Give Me My Sin Again

2:10

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Synopsis

In the Italian city of Verona, the Montague and the Capulet families are perpetually feuding. When Romeo (Leonard Whiting), a handsome young Montague, disregards convention by attending a Capulet ball, he falls in love with the beautiful Juliet (Olivia Hussey), a Capulet. After a brief courtship, the two elope, creating even greater tension between their families. Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's film is considered one of the best screen versions of Shakespeare's classic love story.

Director: Franco Zeffirelli
Producer: Anthony Havelock-Allan, John Brabourne
Screenwriter: Franco Brusati, Masolino D'Amico, Franco Zeffirelli
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance
Original Language: British English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 8, 1968, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 22, 2015
Runtime: 2h 18m
Sound Mix: Surround