I have watched this movie many times as a teenager and now an adult. At this point in my life I find it easier to understand than the older version of Romeo and Juliet. The violence in the movie is over done, but that is the point. It is supposed to be ridiculous. I also would not watch this movie without discussing many of the poor choices that the characters choose. Most young people seem to understand that these poor choices led to very real consequences.

There are two movie versions of ROMEO & JULIET. One is a banal '68 adaptation with boring schmaltz and graphic nudity. Another is this '96 interpretation that preserves Shakespeare's dialogue in a gangland LA setting, complete with drugs, whores, gang warfare, and teen sex. It's not the most kid-friendly movie around, but the behavior is so sensationalized and unrealistic that I would be surprised if any teen would try to emulate it. Violence consists of a few gang fights with guns. Over-the-top gang characters threaten people with weapons (including, in one scene, a child) but no one is shot until a climactic, somewhat disturbing scene in which a man is stabbed (with blood) and another is graphically shot after being bloodied in an intentional car wreck. Sexual content in the main issue in the film. A major male character in the film is a transvestite, complete with wig, make-up, and bra. He acts flamboyantly towards other man even when out of drag. A man watches a hooker dance seductively on the street. Romeo and Juliet disrobe each other onscreen (we see him naked from the waste-up and we see her bare back and shoulders), and then we see them in bed together the next morning (He is seen putting on some boxer shorts, and his bare upper half and bare thigh are briefly seen, her bare back is seen again.) They are both underage. Several characters get drunk, and a kid takes ecstasy at a party. In the end, both kids kill themselves (he drinks poison and she shoots herself in the head, complete with blood.) The content sounds terrible, but the movie portrays itself as comic and over-the-top that you can't take any of it seriously.

Too violent, although a great film. It should've had more sex than violence, really. Some parts were too bloody for its rating.

This film is brilliant at the same time as being disappointing. Luhrmann dares to clash the original Shakespearean language with the commercial backdrop of 'Verona Beach'... and it fits. Clever techniques are used to connect with Shakespeare's extended metaphors, and new ones are created, such as the imagery of the water. I also love the idea of naming the guns after swords. Watch this DVD if you want to see another side to the classic play, not if you are mad about DiCaprio! You won't, however, be disapointed by actors such as Claire Danes, John Leguizamo and Miriam Margoyles (PROF SPROUT to Potter fans). I find the drug scene (before the party) spoils the film a little. Romeo and Juliet should be fairly innocent and pure, driven into wrong doing by their emotions and a heart - breaking mistake. I can imagine Mercutio as a junkie though. Te he.

The movie is great, i like the way Romeo and Juliet handled their emotions. However, for those of you who want to know if this movie can be watched by kids, read this warning: There is a whole lot of gun fighting, Romeo and Juliet don't do just kissing, they get in the bed and you know the rest of that one(I really do not like to explain sex in detail). There is also a drug Juliet takes near the end so she ca look dead for 48 hours but not really die, also a poison is taken by Romeo in Juliet's resting place and dies. After that, Juliet commits suicide. But just because the drugs in the movie look like they do their job, does not mean they will work in real life, infact, they can hurt you badly and a lot of drugs are illegal. I do not recommend this movie to anyone under 18.

This contemporary version of William Shakespeare's classic tragedy of "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 hhands unclean. From forth the fatal lions of these two foes, a pair of star-crost lovers take their life...and do with their death bury their parents' strife". I recommend the 1968 film version of this play, along with Sir Laurence Olivier & Kenneth Branagh's film versions of Shakespeare's plays. This movie is PLAIN UNVIEWABLE!! NOT SHAKESPEARE!! JUST TRASH!!!