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.
Colour
Colour 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.
Costume
They 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.