Name: _________________________ Subject: English 9

Grade & Section: Grade 9-Edison Teacher: Mrs. Ethel S. Rancudo

Comparative Movie Analysis

Romeo and Juliet Titanic

Director
Baz Luhrmann James Cameron
Setting
The play is set in the thirteenth or The Titanic was filmed in 9 places:
fourteenth century in Italy in Verona ~Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
and Mantua. Much of the action ~Santa Clarita, California, USA.
takes place in Juliet's house. Two ~Titanic Wreck, Titanic Canyon, North Atlantic, Atlantic
cities of Venice are also mentioned in Ocean.
the play ~Belmont Olympic Pool-4000 E, Olympic Plaza, Long
Beach, California, USA.
~Rosarito, Baja California Norte, Mexico.
~Fox Baja Studios, Rosarito, Baja California Norte,
Mexico.
~S.S. Lane Victory, Pier 94, San Pedro, Los Angeles,
California, USA.
~S.S. Jeremiah, O'Brian, San Francisco, California,
USA.
~Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Characters Protagonist: Protagonist:
Romeo and Juliet Jack and Rose
Antagonist: Antagonist:
Capulet and Montague Cal Hockley
Supporting characters: Supporting characters:
Friar Lawrence, Mercutio, The Nurse, Molly Brown, Spicer Lovejoy, Lizzy Calvert,
Tybalt, Capulet, Benvolio etc.. John Jacob Astor, Bobby Buell etc..
Acting
Romeo and Juliet is a tragic story The 1997 film "Titanic" is one of the most successful and
about a pair of star-crossed lovers iconic movies ever produced. It won 11 Oscars,
whose demises were unexpected to including best picture, and is still one of the highest-
most. However, their deaths were a grossing films of all time.
result of their impulsiveness. It
caused their problematic marriage, Though you might think you know this Hollywood classic
Romeo’s preventable death, as well backward and forward, here are a few facts that even
as Juliet’s preventable death. the most die-hard fans probably don't know about the
nautical blockbuster.

Summary
An age-old vendetta between two After winning a trip on the RMS Titanic during a
powerful families erupts into dockside card game, American Jack Dawson spots the
bloodshed. A group of masked society girl Rose DeWitt Bukater who is on her way to
Montagues risk further conflict by Philadelphia to marry her rich snob fiancé Caledon
gatecrashing a Capulet party. A Hockley. Rose feels helplessly trapped by her situation
young lovesick Romeo Montague and makes her way to the aft deck and thinks of suicide
falls instantly in love with Juliet until she is rescued by Jack. Cal is therefore obliged to
Capulet, who is due to marry her invite Jack to dine at their first-class table where he
father’s choice, the County Paris. suffers through the slights of his snobbish hosts. In
With the help of Juliet’s nurse, the return, he spirits Rose off to third-class for an evening of
women arrange for the couple to dancing, giving her the time of her life. Deciding to
marry the next day, but Romeo’s forsake her intended future all together, Rose asks Jack,
attempt to halt a street fight leads to who has made his living making sketches on the streets
the death of Juliet’s own cousin, of Paris, to draw her in the nude wearing the invaluable
Tybalt, for which Romeo is banished. blue diamond Cal has given her. Cal finds out and has
In a desperate attempt to be reunited Jack locked away. Soon afterwards, the ship hits an
with Romeo, Juliet follows the Friar’s iceberg and Rose must find Jack while both must run
plot and fakes her own death. The from Cal even as the ship sinks deeper into the freezing
message fails to reach Romeo, and water.
believing Juliet dead, he takes his life
in her tomb. Juliet wakes to find
Romeo’s corpse beside her and kills
herself. The grieving family agree to
end their feud.
Critical Analysis
A very important similarity between the plot of Titanic and Romeo and Juliet are the conflicts in
the story. The conflict in both movies is that the woman is forced to marry another man while the
woman is in love with someone else, who she is supposedly forbidden to be with. Rose is
engaged to marry Cal. Rose did not love Cal, but she had to act as if she did and was going to
be forced into marriage. When Rose falls in love with Jack, this creates a conflict that is all too
familiar to Romeo and Juliet. These two conflicts go hand and hand, just as the two stories do
.
Cinematography
The Baz Luhrmann directed ‘William Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, and Billy Zane all had
Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet’ tells major parts in Titanic (1997). Leonardo DiCaprio played
the Romeo and Juliet story using Jack Dawson, a poor third class boy. Leonardo DiCaprio
Shakespearean Language set in a got his acting start in 1985 when he got a small part on
modern day environment. Not all Growing Pains, he went on to do a couple more sitcoms
viewers would be familiar with the and a horror movie. He could be classified as a
language of Shakespeare so the mise character actor “ Other actors are able to fit invisibly into
en scene as well as the actors’ a wide variety of disparate characters, adapting to the
movements are very important to needs of each script and director they work with, known
make sure that the audience knows as character actors” (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011, p.
what is going on within the dialogue. 3.4). However, after the making of Titanic in 1997, his
This is the second film of Baz actor status rose to star “stars are actors who are simply
Luhrmann’s ‘Red Curtain Trilogy’, famous on–screen and off” (Goodykoontz & Jacobs,
(the others being Strictly Ballroom 2011, p. 3.4). Kate Winslet could also be defined as a
and Moulin Rouge), a concept by character actor. She had supporting roles in movies
which the director wants the audience such as Sense and Sensibility (1995). It was not until
to feel like they are watching a play she gained a leading role as Rose Dawson in Titanic
on a stage, so they know not (1997) that she acquired star status. Billy Zane, could
everything is real. also be characterized as a character actor. He has had
roles in movies and television shows such as Matlock.
He has had many parts in many movies, but none have
made him a star.

Favourite scene
Perhaps the most iconic scene in the At the end of the movie, when an old couple decide to
movie is when Romeo opens the go down with the ship, they lay down in bed side by
doors to the church on Juliet’s “dead” side, as they must have done many times before, and
body, surrounded by a thousand hold hands waiting for their fate. While death is the
white candles and blue neon world’s greatest fear, dying alone comes close behind.
crosses. DiCaprio’s and Danes’s Peace through acceptance, resignation and a
performances in this scene are companion’s emotional strength to tide one over made
heartbreaking in a scene that some this a sad, but poignant moment.
(okay, me) might normally find
ridiculous due to the circumstances
of their insta-love. Luhrmann’s and
Pearce’s choice to have Juliet wake
up in the midst of Romeo taking the
poison makes everything even more
devastating. Juliet, at first happy to
see his face upon waking, witnesses
his quick death without being able to
do a thing to stop it before taking his
pistol and ending her own life. Seeing
Danes hold the pistol to her head and
stare into the camera before pulling
the trigger makes their deaths seem
all the more violent and senseless.
Favourite line
Example: Example:
“Good Night, Good night! Parting is “Promise me you’ll survive. That you won’t give up, no
such sweet sorrow, that I shall say matter what happens. No matter how hopeless.” —Jack
good night till it be morrow.” – Juliet