Romeo and Juliet (1954 film) Romeo and Juliet (1954 film) Romeo and Juliet is a 1954 film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play of the same name. It was directed by Renato Castellani and stars Laurence Harvey as Romeo, Susan Shentall as Juliet, Flora Robson as the Nurse, Mervyn Johns as Friar Laurence, Bill Travers as Benvolio, Sebastian Cabot as Lord Capulet, Ubaldo Zollo as Mercutio, Enzo Fiermonte as Tybalt and John Gielgud as the Chorus. The film won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and was named the best foreign film by the National Board of Review, which also named Castellani as best
Romeo and Juliet It débuted on Broadway in 1957 and in the West End in 1958 and became a popular film in 1961. This version updated the setting to mid-20th-century New York City and the warring families to ethnic gangs. Other musical adaptations include Terrence Mann's 1999 rock musical "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet", co-written with Jerome Korman, Gérard Presgurvic's 2001 "Roméo et Juliette, de la Haine à l'Amour" and Riccardo Cocciante's 2007 "Giulietta & Romeo". "Romeo and Juliet" had a profound influence on subsequent literature. Before then, romance had not even been viewed as a worthy topic for tragedy. In Harold Bloom's