Everyone knows Romeo and Juliet. In fact, odds are that everyone in our class has seen at least one movie adaptation of the play if not two. Besides the word for word adaptations there are numerous adaptations of the story to be found in every form of media. West Side Story for example is a star-crossed lover story based on Shakespeare’s forbidden love story. But despite people having done the play over and over, occasionally it is done in a new way that makes you love it all over again. That’s why this week I want to present to you: Private Romeo (2011).

What makes this film interesting and slightly odd is that it is done by only eight actors with some doubling up on parts. It’s set in a Military High School and instead of a straight read of the play, each person has their own character who eventually morphs into one or more of the timeless Shakespeare characters. It also breaks from the story occasionally to set the scene and sometimes it becomes a poorly filmed rock music video but it all adds to the effect and the message.

There’s a lot to be lost in this kind of rendition of the play. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out what character the person is playing at a given time and occasionally the settings don’t exactly line up with the words. For example, the party that Romeo and his friends attend where he meets Juliet is just a bunch of the guys in a room drinking beer and playing cards. Remember that there are only eight members of the cast and only seven in this scene. Out of the context of Shakespearean grandeur, the scene shouldn’t make as much sense.

But that is where eight (relatively unknown) men make Leonardo DiCaprio and the rest of the cast of his film look like middle school children trying to read the play aloud in class. When Leo is Romeo, it’s cute because he is cute and his attractive figure embodies what we have come to think of as Romeo. But think to yourself, does he really act the part well? Does he understand the heart wrenching words Shakespeare has written from him?

But Matt Doyle and Seth Numrich get it. I mean they GET IT! It probably doesn’t hurt that after watching him in TURN, I have developed a MAJOR celebrity crush on Seth Numrich. But you can see the classical training in all of the actors because you believe what they are saying and feeling.

Now, at this point you are thinking, “Great it’s a gay Romeo and Juliet how original…” in the most sarcastic way possible. But the film isn’t really about homosexuality. Sure they are gay but you would get the same message across by just reading the play with two men and changing Juliet to something more masculine.

The film is about non-conformity. Here, against the backdrop of a majorly rigid military school, you have two people meeting in secret to express themselves in their true forms. That’s why Matt Doyle is still always referred to as “Her” and “She”. That is why the film has moments where they break from the original text for some exigence or to demonstrate the rigidity of the militarianism of the school. Even the odd rock music sequences are actually a break from the conformity for the characters to be themselves. The film is a message to the audience about loving who you are and not sticking yourself into a box you don’t want to be a part of; it is taking a major theme of the play and exploring it in more depth.

I think that’s why I like it so much. Instead of a simple reading or reenactment of the play, it’s trying to do something with it.

And just in case the idea of two men as Romeo and Juliet is still particularly off putting to you, my Mom actually pointed out to me that this is the way Romeo and Juliet was performed for years after it was written. There were no female actors in the time of Shakespeare or the time immediately following. So men playing women is not an unusual Shakespearean plays.

Maybe then, Private Romeo is a more back to the basics of Shakespeare than any movie before it. It’s pretty in such an odd way. And it’s on Netflix so I have an overabundance of ability to watch it.

Suggestions This Week: Films You HAVE GOT To Give A Chance

Private Romeo (2011)

Shining Through (1992)

The Conspirator (2010)

The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)

Into The Woods (2014)

BONUS: Hidden in the lovely words of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is my favorite line of any play, film or even song:

Romeo: I dreamt a dream tonight.

Mercutio: and so did I.

Romeo: Well, what was yours?

Mercutio: That dreamers often lie,

Romeo: in bed asleep while they do dream things true.