Parents' Guide to

Romeo and Juliet

By Scott G. Mignola, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Wonderful, but a little too mature for some kids.

Movie PG 1968 138 minutes
Romeo and Juliet Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 13+

Based on 10 parent reviews

Edica123
Edica123 Adult
November 16, 2020
age 12+

beautiful and heartfelt!

a beautiful classic! I watched it with my 12yr daughter and she loved it! now. I know some parents may be like; why would you let your 12 yr daughter watch this!? well, my daughter is mature and can handle it. and I covered her eyes in only one scene. this movie is good for 12yrs and up if they are mature, of course. the movie does have a sex scene in a bed where Romeo is fully naked, and you can see a glimpse of Juliet's breasts. other than that has passionate kisses and that's really it. This movie is really moving and is a beautiful classic for mature tweens and or teens.
Annoyedteenguy
Annoyedteenguy Adult
May 16, 2010
age 17+

bland obscene version

all right, im just going to say it. this is a horrible version of the movie. we watched it in my 9th grade english class, obviously because my teacher loved the older things. its just out of date. in the bed scene, where we see a naked romeo and a ful frontal juliet, a sub said "rewind it back". this is just perverted. the one with leonardo dicapprio is way better because there is almost no bad nudity.
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What's the Story?

Franco Zeffirelli's ambitious production of ROMEO AND JULIET brought Shakespeare to the masses in 1968. He did it not by dumbing the play down, but by casting two talented unknowns, Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey (ages seventeen and fifteen, respectively) as the leads. Much like Titanic would thirty years later, Romeo and Juliet struck a chord with teenagers, who found its beautiful young stars' urgency and tragic plight irresistible. Shot in Italy, Zeffirelli's faithful production of the tragedy also features a very young Michael York as Tybalt.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (10 ):
Kids say (29 ):

Zefirelli's performers breathe understanding into every ornate phrase, translating the sixteenth-century prose into something fresh and modern. This stands in stark contrast to the peculiar travesty Romeo + Juliet, in which Leonardo DiCaprio and others spew Shakespeare's lines without understanding them,

When Romeo first spies Juliet, you believe--even before he speaks--that he's irreparably in love. Their balcony scene is wonderfully passionate, and the finale all the more potent for Laurence Olivier's uncredited narration. (But a cautionary note to parents: Teens may see the story as a glamorization of suicide and the subject is well worth discussing with them.)

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the movie's depiction of suicide.

  • Why do the two families hate one another?

  • How does the ending make you feel about love?

Movie Details

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