Romeo and Juliet

One of the most beloved screen adaptations of Shakespeare ever made.

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;

Whose misadventur'd piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents' strife.

The film received an overwhelming number of positive reviews from both critics and audiences. Reviewers wrote that it allows viewers to forget the outside world and surrender themselves to the luminous wave of Shakespearean tragedy.

The stars of the film were teenage actors Leonard Whiting (17) and Olivia Hussey (16), making the adaptation especially close to the original play, where Juliet is only 13 and Romeo slightly older.

“The achievement of Zeffirelli and his young actors is that they breathed life into Shakespeare’s lines. Older actors could never have portrayed first love, innocence, and passion with such authenticity — emotions one experiences only once in a lifetime.” — film critic Roger Ebert