The Bard’s most romantic tale gets another treatment in Romeo and Juliet… Get Married, the latest from Brazilian director Bruno Barreto (View From the Top). The movie is a curious blend of My Big Fat Greek Wedding and the insipid baseball rom-com Drew Barrymore starred in, the Fever Pitch remake. Boy and girl fall (a little too easily) in love, sports fanaticism and overbearing father break them apart… and I wouldn’t want to give the ending away. But it’s exactly what you think.
The film is heartwarming but predictable. Set in Sao Paolo, Brazil, the quirks of a new setting and trading flying jerseys for swords does give Romeo and Juliet a somewhat refreshing twist. But the plot itself is nothing new, and viewers looking for inventive Shakespearean homages have a great wealth to choose from outside of this film. The plot runs thus: Romeo (Marco Ricca) and Juliet (Luana Piovani) have both been watching and playing soccer since they were in diapers, due to their families being at the helm of two big soccer teams’ fan clubs: the Corinthians for the former, the Palmeiras for the latter. Problem is, the two teams’ fanbases seem deemed to be mortal enemies (Red Sox vs. Yankees fans times ten). When ophthalmologist Romeo locks eyes with Juliet at his office, the reason for doing so quickly shifts from the medical to the romantic. All goes well, as long as Romeo pretends to be a Palmeiras fan to impress Juliet’s soccer-obsessed father. Of course, the illusion doesn’t last very long, and havoc ensues, leading to a free-for-all that becomes the stage for sport itself: the families finally butt heads on a basketball court with the surrounding apartment buildings filled with ‘fans’ watching as if the family were a sports game.
Farce saves the film, but barely. It’s the very fact that the film doesn’t take its hefty source material very seriously that redeems it. Romeo is a middle-aged, nervous man who suffers from erectile dysfunction until he can use a Corinthians-branded condom; his feisty fireworks-setting mother and 21-year old son both provide plenty of zany comic relief. The camerawork is snippy, moving very fast with quick jumps, keeping the high-speed comedy from lagging. Be warned: the film must be approached as an over-the-top physical comedy; the humour in the plot and dialogue is a little stale for American audiences, and there are quite a few highly unbelievable deus-ex machina moments. All in all, the film succeeds when it attempts farce, but fails when it attempts social commentary. The subplot of Juliet, a soccer player, attempting to achieve a professional women’s team, is completely lost within the rest of the film.
The movie was extremely popular in Brazil when it came out in 2005.
As if to make up for the actual movie, the DVD features a ton of bonuses: a commentary with the cast and director, interviews with the cast and crew, composers and musicians behind the soundtrack, other features on behind-the-scenes movie-making, and a music video. The problem is, this movie is not one that needs that much outside enlightenment, and there was little to be offered from the numerous commentaries and interviews. Watching them almost detracted from the zippy, spur-of-the-moment feel of the actual movie, and was boring at best. In an interview, with soundtrack composer Guto Graca Mello, he explained his wife saw the film and was bowed over, exclaiming that “the film really explores the female universe” and that such a film about soccer that was still appealing to women was a godsend. Hmmm. Maybe there is a cultural divide here; as already mentioned, I found the treatment of female soccer trite and almost disingenuous, and the romance quite stale. I’m pretty sure the audience member that would be most pleased with the film would be the 10-20 year old male demographic.
Rome and Juliet… Get Married is farce that both revels in and pokes fun at melodramatic love, sports obsession and dysfunctional families. If you’re looking for a thoughtful Shakespearean tragedy, skip it; if you’re looking for a laugh that isn’t weighed down by American film conventions, it’s worth a look. Amusing is the best way to describe this.