Some people say that Romeo and Juliet is one of the greatest tragedies ever. It has certainly gone down in history as one of Shakespeare's most famous plays. The fame of this play has brought it to the attention of two movie directors, one many years before the other. The resulting motion pictures, Zephirelli's version (which will be referred to as "the old one") and Baz Luhrman's updated version (otherwise known as "the new one"). Throughout these movies, there are discrepancies between the original play and Hollywood's take on it. A great many of these differences are in the basic plot and script of these stories, but a more interesting source of difference can also be found. When Shakespeare wrote the play, he meant it to be a visual affair and to be performed. So in reading the paper version, the reader misses out on some important aspects of the play, such as props, scenery, costumes, music, lighting, stage directions, and even the correct pronunciation of some of !

the lines. Some of these had little or no affect on people's reaction to the play, but some drastically impacted a viewer/reader's response. In addition to changing the viewer response, the visual and auditory add

Capulets in black leather (Luhrman). The clashing between these colors indicates the clashing between the two families that goes on during the story and the hatred that is born of the ancient grudge. Also, the love will triumph over hate theme is illustrated here in that the final scene brings both families to the stage in the same colors of mourning, perhaps showing that there may finally be reconciling. Lastly, the written version has no actors and actresses moving onstage and using body language and gestures to help get their point across. The most subtle movements, expressions, and gestures can show emotion much more deeply and add to the atmosphere. The body language during Romeo and Juliet's first meeting can make or break the believability of their true love for each other; the hate between Romeo and Tybalt is many times more convincing if the reader can see them glare at each other and watch the malice in their eyes when they face each other. This body language s!

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hows the love or the hate between two people even more clearly, and so escalates the theme.

The next group of differences between seeing the play and reading the play is auditory. Voice expression, music, and sound effects also help to escalate and realize the theme for this play. When a play is read, there are no actors in front of you to read the lines and act them out. As a result, the reader often misses vital pa

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Approximate Word count = 997
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)