Focusing on act 3, scene 5 The turning point how and why have the directors of the different versions of the play portrayed Juliet in the way they have Essay Example For Students

Focusing on act 3, scene 5 The turning point how and why have the directors of the different versions of the play portrayed Juliet in the way they have? Essay I have been looking at act 3, scene 5 The turning point in different filmed versions of the play Romeo and Juliet. I looked at three different versions, these are the Dicaprio version, Zeffirelli version and the Shakespeare shorts version. The purpose of me writing this essay is to discuss how and why different directors have portrayed Juliet in the way they have, I will also discuss how close their portrayals of her are to my own understanding of her character. The Dicaprio version shows a more modern version of the play. Juliet is portrayed as a more independent woman rather than the innocent child like Juliet we see in the other versions. When she is trying to persuade Romeo not to leave her she teases him, pulls him close but then pushes him away, this shows she does not feel the need to chase after him as she is sure he will return to her. The relationship we see between them show they have more of a partnership than relationship which again refers to the modern day setting as a marriage in Shakespeares time would not have been so much of an equal relationship as the women were usually more dominated by their husband. In this scene Juliet is wearing nothing except for a white sheet. This shows us her nakedness refers to her strong minded personality portrayed in this version, although she is wrapped in a white sheet, showing her innocence. The music used is of a piano, again quite modern music but does create a romantic atmosphere. When Lady Capulet Mistakes Juliets tears for the death of her cousin tybalt, Ever more weeping for your cousins death? and when she threatens to have Romeo poisoned Juliet acts in a different way towards lady capulet then she does in the other versions. Juliet acts quite defiant to her mother she is upset but more angrier than anything, she does not want to marry Paris and does not believe her mother will go through with the threat against Romeo. Juliet keeps quite a strong tone of voice throughout this scene even when she begins to cry, she also shouts back a lot, showing how mad and upset she is. Again Juliet acts differently to the other portrayals of Juliet when reacting to Capulets rage about the situation. Her father does appear quite dominating but Juliet does not hide away from him. She shouts back and makes it clear she wont let them make her marry Paris. She shows she is not scared by using a very challenging tone of voice towards him, which is quite pointless because in Shakespeares time she would have had no power to be able to decide on her own future. When her nurse turns her back on her and advises her to marry Paris Juliets reaction is quite shocked, she is devastated she pleads with her nurse to help her and shows lots of passion but at this point she feels hopeless. The Zeffirelli version is more of a traditional portrayal of Juliet she is more like the classical heroine or the victim in this version. She is an innocent child like young women and not very independent. The way Juliet acts towards Romeo when she is trying to persuade him not to leave her is of a child like manner. She follows him around the room and keeps touching him symbolising she doesnt want him to go. She even helps him dress showing she would serve him and she adores as she craves his attention. Is there any excuse of the behaviour of Shylock in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice EssayJuliets Reaction to her nurse turning her back on her is an act of disbelief, she shows this by shaking her head, she is so upset she becomes speechless. Juliet grabs at her nurses hand in desperation, she has no one else to turn to. The version of the play which shows Juliet as I would expect her to be portrayed is the Zeffirelli version. I chose this version as she is more how I think Juliet should be as she acts more dramatic, very powerless and innocent. The way she throws herself on the floor, screaming and sobbing is how the directors have portrayed her as powerless. She screams and sobs just like a child would and shows how she is not able to handle all the emotions. The Dicaprio version wasnt exactly how I would expect Juliet to be portrayed as it was a very modern version and you wouldnt expect her to be so confident. I also wouldnt expect Juliet to be portrayed in the way she was in the Shakespeare shorts version. My reason for this is because an afro Caribbean actress was used and this wasnt very likely as there wasnt many black people in Italy especially rich ones. You also wouldnt expect it to be set in a tropical island, apart from these points Juliet does act how I would expect her to in this situation a quiet, nervous, scared young girl. If I was a director and had to direct an actor to play Juliet in this scene then I would try to get an actress that looked similar to how you would expect Juliet to look as in Shakespeare shorts version the actress didnt seem to look the part. The costume I would like her to wear would be white as all three versions have used and long like a nightgown. I would use white to show her pureness and I would be long to show her innocence. The background music I would use would be the sound of something quite romantic like a piano or violin but as the scene goes on I would use more dramatic sound like a drum to signify capulets rage. I would direct the actor playing Juliet to be a quiet, lovesick young girl around Romeo, following his every move showing her true love for him and begging him not to leave her. Although I would direct Juliet to act very stubbornly towards her father, as I dont think she deserves to be treated the way she has been. She should use a stronger tone of voice when talking to her father and dealing with his rage but still be very scared and nervous. She would scatter about the room pleading for help from someone. The portrayal of Juliet I prefer is the Dicaprio version. I prefer this version because it is more modern. The other two versions are more traditional and refer to Shakespeares time a little more but I found the Dicaprio version was more interesting and kept my attention more. I also prefer this version because I enjoyed watching the way Juliet was directed to stand up for herself and shout back at her father as I believe it is right to have a say in your life. Although I do prefer the Dicaprio version of the play, after looking at all three versions and looking at all different aspects of Juliets character like her tone of voice, costume and the way she has been directed to act in the scene. I think the way Juliet was portrayed in the Zeffirelli version was most like my understanding of her character.