Press Release Criterion Press Release: Romeo and Juliet (1968) (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

[Ronald Epstein]

​

One of the great Shakespeare adaptations, this sublime take on the Bard’s immortal romantic tragedy by Franco Zeffirelli breathed new life into the oft-told tale by casting actual teenagers in the title roles. As the young lovers whose affair threatens to inflame the tensions between their feuding families in Renaissance Verona, Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting vividly capture the mix of adolescent ardor and turmoil that fuels their destiny-driven liaison. A sensory banquet thanks to Nino Rota’s delicate score and the exquisite, Oscar-winning costumes and cinematography, Romeo and Juliet is Shakespeare at its most deeply felt and passionately alive.

FILM INFO​

• Italy, United Kingdom
• 1968
• 138 minutes
• Color
• 1.85:1
• English
• Spine #1171
  
  

  SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES​

  • New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
  • Excerpt from the 2018 documentary Franco Zeffirelli: Directing from Life
  • Interviews with actors Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting from 1967 and 2016
  • Trailer
  • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • PLUS: An essay by scholar Ramona Wray
    
    New cover based on an original poster design by Maciej Zbikowski
    
    February 14, 2023

 

[Ronald Epstein]

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See on Amazon

 

[Lord Dalek]

Can't say I care for the cover on this. That poster art was a classic.

 

[Konstantinos]

Can't say I care for the cover on this.

Yeah, too red.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

I'm just thrilled the 4K remaster is finally being released on Blu-ray, and happy I can retire my old European disc!

 

[Justin Ray]

I didn’t expect this to come from Criterion, especially with the number of Paramount/Criterion titles that have gone out of print. Regardless, Day 1 purchase!

 

[lark144]

I was the same age as the characters when this film came out, and I saw it repeatedly at the Paris theatre. I don't know whether it will hold up after 50+ years, but it should be a gorgeous looking disc.

 

[lark144]

Can't say I care for the cover on this. That poster art was a classic.

View attachment 162446

Considering what Criterion's art director did to TOM JONES among other recent abominations, this could have been much worse. Once upon a time, Criterion's covers used to be so definitive, not to mention attractive. They created a sense of anticipation, so you couldn't wait to watch the film. What happened?

 

[battlebeast]

I’m very happy about this. The euro Blu ray was waaaay too grainy.

I’m just wondering where Criterion’s other Shakespeare titles are… HAMLET, HENRY V, HENRY VIII*…

 

[jayembee]

I didn’t expect this to come from Criterion, especially with the number of Paramount/Criterion titles that have gone out of print. Regardless, Day 1 purchase!

Paramount probably didn't want to have to deal with the controversy of the bedroom scene with an underage Olivia Hussey. Passing it on to Criterion seems like an obvious choice to me.

And while six of their Paramount titles went OOP a year and a half ago, Criterion still has three times that many that are still in print.

 

[Panavision70]

That poster was a classic bait-and-switch to convince teenagers in 1968 the film was full of naked sex. That said, an excellent film in all ways.

 

[cinemel1]

That poster was a classic bait-and-switch to convince teenagers in 1968 the film was full of naked sex. That said, an excellent film in all ways.

The film has a wonderful score by Nino Rota. It was only recently released complete on CD.

 

[richardburton84]

The film has a wonderful score by Nino Rota. It was only recently released complete on CD.

Not quite complete, as Quartet’s press release indicated that about 12 minutes of score were lost, but that it was mostly repetitions of the Love Theme and Romeo’s Theme (the only notable cues I noticed were Romeo first seeing Juliet and the Moresca dance at the Capulets’ feast). But yes, the Rota score is wonderful and deserves to be widely available.

 

[Robert Harris]

Hopefully with the Intermission

 

[richardburton84]

I should hope this new edition has the intermission, especially since the DVD had it (there it occurred after the marriage, which ended the second act of the play).

 

[RMajidi]

New 4K digital restoration

My initial reaction was somewhat tempered by the above statement. Does anyone know the source for this ‘4K digital restoration’?

Does this mean a recent digital cleanup of the existing master, or touchup after a new 4K scan of film elements?

If the latter, then does anyone know which elements were used and in what shape?

Or, maybe it means something else altogether.

Can anyone here please shed further light?

 

[LCD22]

I was supposed to see this film in high school, but later saw it (only once) on TCM. I did like the '68 version and have been wanting to see it again due to all the interest surrounding this getting a Blu-ray release - especially from Andrew Budgell. (Thanks Andy!) Rick Steves shot an episode in Verona years ago that also contributed to it.

The fact it is Criterion is great news!

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Ha! Just after I finally stopped waiting and bought the iTunes digital a short while ago when it dropped to $5 again. Wonder if they might offer (free) upgrade to 4K for the iTunes digital since there might be an otherwise unused 4K master -- Paramount does sometimes do that despite no 4K disc release...

Regardless, very nice to see a Criterion release, hopefully saving us from Paramount's very inconsistent (or perhaps, too consistently mediocre-to-awful), much-too-often controversy-filled attempts wrt pre-Y2K catalog titles...

_Man_

 

[KMR]

What's with that cover design?!? I do NOT like it, so this is a hard pass.

NOT!!!

I've been waiting forever for this to come out on Blu, and that it's coming from Criterion is a bonus. It could have an all-white cover with black stencil lettering and I'd still buy it--the movie is what counts.

Was hoping for more supplements, including a commentary track, but this is still a DEFINITE purchase for me!

Coming out on Valentine's Day. Not exactly the feel-good love story for such an occasion...

 

[mskaye]

Considering what Criterion's art director did to TOM JONES among other recent abominations, this could have been much worse. Once upon a time, Criterion's covers used to be so definitive, not to mention attractive. They created a sense of anticipation, so you couldn't wait to watch the film. What happened?

"Abominations" is kind of harsh. They may not be your cup o' tea but some people like them. I like the new R/J. If Paramout released it, you'd get the poster art. A Criterion cover is singular and stands apart from the crowd. Most blu ray covers are just repurposed key art (like is the new "statement" cover of the new definitive Casablanca inspired?) It's bland, graphically uinteresting, lowest common denominator crap. Occasionally you get some witty, steel book or minimal movie poster designs from the major labels. I think you are in the minority opinion here.