Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous plays of all time. Many people around the world have watched and studied this popular Shakespearean play. Since William Shakespeare wrote it, many directors have performed the play. Many of these new takes can be compared to the original, and the changes stand out dramatically, but the plot is the same. For example, Baz Luhrmann's vision of Romeo and Juliet has clear differences, but also has some similarities ("Romeo"). Every aspect of this folk tale stays true to the essential: love is forever, no matter what. There are some basic similarities, like the characters and the ending, but in the final act some similarities should be noted. A similarity is found at the beginning of the first scene. Romeo, banished from Verona, lingers in Mantua, a neighboring city. He sees his friend Balthasar, who has entered and is hurrying towards Romeo, bringing very unpleasant news about Romeo's newlyweds. This scene is the same in the movie and the book, only with slightly different takes, but the main point remains the same. The second scene also has a similarity, Brother Laurence. Written in the book and film, Friar checks the letter to make sure Romeo received it. Unfortunately, the message did not reach Romeo and he was unaware of the plan. Friar Laurence then knows that Romeo thinks Juliet is long gone, but does not arrive in time to alert Romeo before Romeo makes an irreversible decision. The third similarity is found in Scene III, where Romeo finds Juliet in the Capulet family tomb, believing her to be dead. There is a major difference in this scene, but there are still some similarities. This similarity is Romeo's reaction to seeing his dead body...... middle of paper ...... works cited Romeo + Juliet by William Shakespeare. Real. Baz Luhrmann. By Baz Luhrmann, Craig Pearce, Jill Bilcock, Donald M. McAlpine, Nellee Hooper, Craig Armstrong, Marius De Vries, John O'Connell, Brent Woolsey and Rob Young. Prod. Baz Luhrmann, Gabriella Martinelli, Catherine Martin, Catherine Martin, Jill Bilcock, David Rubin, Kym Barrett, Aldo Signoretti, Maurizio Silvi, Doug Hardwick and Brigitte Broch. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, Jesse Bradford, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Brian Dennehy, John Leguizamo, Miriam Margolyes, Harold Perrineau, Christina Pickles, Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Rudd, Paul Sorvino, Diane Venora and M. Emmet Walsh. Released by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., 1996. DVD. Shakespeare, William and Karin Jacobson. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Foster City, CA: IDG, 2000. “Romeo + Juliet” print. IMDb. IMDb.com, and Web. February 4. 2014.