Romeo and Juliet

FATE

Visual Techniques

Camera

The camera work in Romeo and Juliet shows fate in the ball scene when the camera changes pace. The beginning of the movie had a fast

pace, with fast cuts, but when Romeo and Juliet meet the camera becomes much slower and more lazy, showing that its love at first sight

and that they are meant to be together, which is fate. By changing the camera speed it moves

from the shallow life of the Capulets and Montagues and their arguments, moving to

something that affects everyone. It’s also slow when Romeo and Juliet die, showing how the families are linked by love and grief, and it’s through them that everything is right again.

Camera

Romeo and Juliet’s parents don’t have this sort of love in the film, so it doesn’t seem that they

are fated to fall in love. It’s strange that the younger people get all the action and romance when the creators of this world hardly seem to

care about each other. The parents are like God in a way because they create the fate by creating this world of violence. If they hadn’t Romeo and Juliet would have lived together

happily. This lack of fate is shown by the camera, as it’s always fast-paced when the

parents are together. It seems like their fate is to become peaceful, but they also do everything they can to prevent this.

Lighting

Lighting is used to show fate, especially when Romeo is walking into the chapel when all

the candles are lit. There are no other lights, which gives a spooky and dark feeling. We feel like something bad is

coming, especially when the camera is slow, like it was when they first met. The lighting on her face flickers and it’s like the light is

dying, as she is. It’s foreshadowing how she will actually die, which is fate.

Lighting

Lighting is also used on the beach, as it is a stormy day but light. The dark clouds show how doom is coming and the lighting once

Mercutio is dead drops a lot so it looks more dark and dangerous than ever. This changes

to night when Romeo is hunting down Tibault, as the end is coming. This also links to ‘star cross’d lovers’ as Romeo and Juliet are just

stars that cross in the sky. This is interesting because Romeo thinks of Juliet and kills

Tibault anyway. This links to fate because he knows his fate but he is so caught up in his

emotions that he doesn’t care, and the darkness is a metaphor for doom.

ColourColour is used for the Montagues and Capulets.

The Montagues are shown by the colour yellow, while the Capulets are shown by the colour blue. These colours turn up all over

the movie. The cars are different colours, the buildings and signs are blue and yellow, and the fish in the tank are two colours. But while throughout the whole movie the colours are separated or in a competitive scene, the fish in the tank are peaceful, as Romeo and Juliet

are. This is foreshadowing how the two houses will end up peacefully, and how when

Romeo and Juliet are together the two houses are peaceful and happy. This

foreshadows how the houses will be happy in the future, which is like fate.

CostumeThey use costume to show fate and how Romeo

and Juliet’s lives are meant to be together. At the party, Juliet’s costume was an angel and

Romeo’s was a knight, showing that he is there to protect her and that they’re meant to be together. Paris’s costume is an astronaut,

showing that he’s still quite immature. Mercutio’s costume shows he’s on the edge,

while the Capulet family’s costumes show that they’re living in luxury. All these costumes

show how they are and are fated to act. Tibault’s costume is a devil, and shows how he feels about things and shows his fate, which is

to be in hell from a life of murder and hurt, while Juliet is the opposite to her cousin and is going to end up in heaven for always believing

in love.

Verbal Techniques

Music• During the Ball scene, the song “Kissing You” playing as Romeo and Juliet first see

each other through the fish tank helps enforce the theme of ‘fate’.

• The song talks of the signs of the zodiac, which are believed to decide your fate.

• The words “I’m Kissing You” foreshadows their first kiss (of many)

• The song also has a sad quality to it, with a rich, low voice and only a piano. This seems

to give the illusion that the singer knows the pain the two lovers are going to face, but also that they’re meant to be together

Music• During the marriage scene, the song “Everybody’s free to feel good” ironically

enforces the pain that Romeo and Juliet will endure. This is by the song seeming to set them free of their pain, but knowing their fates can’t be changed. Marriage is seen as a blessing, but in Romeo and Juliet’s case their marriage brings

them a curse.• “You and me always and forever” – the line in

the background music while Romeo heads to Friar Laurence to enquire about marrying Juliet.

This line is ironic because it enforces how Romeo and Juliet truly believe they’ll be able to

conquer their fate, while deep down they’re sure to know that’s impossible.

Sound Effects

• The sound of Mercutio shooting the water in the beach scene helps to show fate.

• The shooting enforces the idea of violence in Verona, and especially shooting into the water, it helps to foreshadow the peace (represented by water) is forever being

broken by the families’ fighting• This is important to the idea of fate because Romeo and Juliet know they’re not fated to be

together but try and change their fate to achieve peace in the society. By shooting into the water Mercutio helps to imply that

fate is unchangeable, and to try and change it is asking for bad luck

Dialogue• “A pair of star-cross’d lovers”

• This dialogue helps to show fate because it shows how the lover’s stars are crossed,

meaning they’re meant to be together but not happily. This is because the stars are

crossed, which means they’re out of alignment, believed (in Shakespeare’s time)

to foreshadow bad luck.• “Is she a Capulet?”

Dialogue

• This shows the first moment that Romeo and Juliet realise they’re fated not to be together. In finding out that Juliet is a

Capulet, Romeo becomes aware that they will never be together, or in being together they’ll be trying to overcome fate, which he knows will not be an easy ride. It’s also the

moment that Romeo and Juliet make the conscious decision to try and change their

fate.

Importance

Importance of Fate• In Romeo and Juliet, fate plays a big part of

their life.• Romeo and Juliet both know when they first

fall in love that its not right and it won’t be easy, its not fate that they fall in love.

• This is important because even though it isn’t fate that the fall in love it is fate that

they both die which is shown through dialogue “My only love sprung from my only

hate. Too early seen unknown, and unknown too late. Prodigious birth of love it is to me, that I must love a loathed enemy”.

Importance of Fate

• Fate is important to Romeo and Juliet because at the time it was written fate

played a huge role in the way society was run. They believed that the stars destined your future and that your life plan was set out for you before you were put on earth. Also, you couldn’t change fate, no matter

how hard you tried or how much you wanted

it.

Fate and Today

• Fate is relevant to today because many people still believe in it. Times have

changed, resulting in some people believing in fate and others thinking it’s the most

ridiculous thing ever. Also, people now also think in fate in different ways, for example that we make our own fate, or that fate has a factor in our lives, but only an underlying

one.