2021 Sundance Film Festival Review – R#J
Starring Camaron Engels, Francesca Noel, David Zayas, Diego Tinoco, Siddiq Saunderson, and Russell Hornsby.
SYNOPSIS:
A modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy “Romeo and Juliet.”
A movie adaptation of The Bard’s most popular play for the Instagram set has the obvious potential to be completely insufferable, and yet, Carey Williams’ daring debut harnesses just enough beguiling skill and slipperiness to prove itself worthwhile.
Perhaps every generation gets the
Romeo and Juliet movie they deserve; Baz Luhrman’s 1996 take perfectly captured the edgy gloss of the MTV generation with its staccato editing and marrow-rich colours, while if nothing else, this new take for the social media generation captures modern youth in all of its openness, sensitivity, and yes, narcissism.
Camaron Engels and Francesca Noel appear in “R#J” by Carey Williams, an official selection of the NEXT section at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute)
This review contains spoilers.
Reimagined in Carey Williams’ Gen Z inspired “R#J” is the infamous age-old story of star-crossed lovers, Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” Set in the modern day, this rendition follows Romeo and Juliet as they fall in love entirely through social media and their smartphone screens.
Straying from the original script, the characters use modern-day slang through text and social media but Shakespearean English in video calls/livestreams. Though a unique selling point at first, after about 15 minutes when social media’s gimmick wears off, the film is left constrained by these tropes.
All the best movies we saw at Sundance Film Festival, ranked (including Judas and the Black Messiah ) Brian Truitt, USA TODAY
Replay Video UP NEXT
Instead of roughing it in the cold and snow of Park City, Utah, to get to various screenings at the annual Sundance Film Festival, we ventured toward the couch to watch the best of what independent cinema has to offer in 2021.
Like the other big-time fests in Toronto, New York and elsewhere did in 2020, Sundance went virtual this year because of COVID, but didn t skimp on the cinematic goodness. This year s event included the world premiere of high-profile awards-season contender Judas and the Black Messiah ; projects with stars like Tiffany Haddish, Tessa Thompson and Nicolas Cage; a ton of documentaries featuring the glam-rock duo Sparks; Hollywood legend Rita Moreno; Black Woodstock and a beloved children s show; plus a social media-driven update of Shakespeare s Romeo & Juliet.
Premiere: Jan. 30th 7:00 p.m.
There are a lot things that make me old, but a version of William Shakespeare’s
Romeo and Juliet that makes
Baz Luhrmann
‘s psychedelic and visionary
Romeo + Juliet feel like an old-school, traditionalist take on the material may take the proverbial cake, and while it’s not entirely successful as a film, director Carey Williams’ feature debut,
R#J, does do that much.
R#J tells the tale of a war brewing between rival houses, but captures it in a new and genuinely unique way. Montague and Capulet Gen-Zers are using their cell phones to document the eruptions of violence plaguing their communities. In the middle of it all, Romeo (
All the best movies we saw at Sundance Film Festival, ranked (including Judas and the Black Messiah ) Brian Truitt, USA TODAY
Replay Video UP NEXT
Instead of roughing it in the cold and snow of Park City, Utah, to get to various screenings at the annual Sundance Film Festival, we ventured toward the couch to watch the best of what independent cinema has to offer in 2021.
Like the other big-time fests in Toronto, New York and elsewhere did in 2020, Sundance went virtual this year because of COVID, but didn t skimp on the cinematic goodness. This year s event included the world premiere of high-profile awards-season contender Judas and the Black Messiah ; projects with stars like Tiffany Haddish, Tessa Thompson and Nicolas Cage; a ton of documentaries featuring the glam-rock duo Sparks; Hollywood legend Rita Moreno; Black Woodstock and a beloved children s show; plus a social media-driven update of Shakespeare s Romeo & Juliet.