OH N-
>The relationship is captivating. The energy flowing effortlessly between them means you instantly feel their connection, their shared affection, their give and take. It’s by far the strongest relationship in the production. The only difficulty is that it’s the one between Francesca Amewudah-Rivers’ Juliet and Freema Agyeman’s outstanding Nurse. And in Jamie Lloyd’s production of “Romeo and Juliet” starring the headline-grabbing Tom Holland (in a run that sold out in two hours), that’s quite a problem. And not the only one.
>Each actor not only has a mic taped to their face but, for the majority of the (in)action, they face front impassively, as if poleaxed, at the front of the stage at microphone stands, delivering the text. The rest of the stage is almost never used. Undeniably arresting though this initially is, it gradually hits you that they’re reciting words at, rather than to, the audience. The result, worryingly, is the absence of anything approaching connection.
>Matters are not helped by director Jamie Lloyd’s insistence on the supposed hushed intensity gained by having everyone either whisper or, occasionally, shout. Almost no one but the beautifully characterized nurse and Michael Balogun’s patient Friar actually speaks. For much of the rest of time, lines are intoned, often at a pace that is either slow or very slow. Ninety per cent of the play is written in verse but here the rhythm of the lines is completely broken by pauses in which energy and sense are drained away, and meaning is lost. Likewise, the exuberance of love and youth is entirely missing. One of the biggest victims of this is an undercast Mercutio (Joshua-Alexander Williams), whose character is entirely robbed of impulsive dynamism — meaning his famous, long speech goes for nothing.
>The exception to all this is Juliet. In the first half in particular, Amewudah-Rivers’ well-grounded calmness pays huge dividends. Her grasp of her character brings the audience to her, and her quick-witted reactions are highly legible. She, like the older, more skilled actors, is able to find nuance within the prevailing style. But Holland lacks her still stage presence. He’s perfectly plausible as lovestruck Romeo growing increasingly stressed and distressed, but he emotes rather than elicits emotions.
>The same bald, monotonous pacing dogs Holland’s hardworking approach to the final scene. There’s more sadness created in the Friar’s closing speech, proof that, filled to the brim with stylization though the production is, it’s in thrall to its effects but fails to deliver dramatic effect.
>It’s deeply ironic that in the world’s most famous play about young love and death, the characters you end up sympathizing with most are the Nurse, the Friar and even the parents. It surely cannot have been the intention to make a production in praise of the older generation.
https://variety.com/2024/legit/reviews/romeo-and-juliet-review-tom-holland-1236014743/
>Shit on play
>Still have to praise their Juliet
Of course
Captcha: MTW4TT
Black people are like their precious delicate pets. It's nauseating. They can do no wrong.
Do they enjoy being treated like moronic children by their white, leftist pet owners? Don't they have any pride? Outside of imaginary kangz and pharaohs shit, that is. Like actual pride in themselves.
Black folk are too stupid and narcissistic to feel shame or embarrassment, they think it’s all genuine.
>Do they enjoy being treated like moronic children
From what i've been able to tell it's pretty much an exact 50/50 split, but only one side is allowed to be vocal about their stance.
It’s so funny how every time something ends up being terrible all the usual suspects always say how the black woman is the best part of the show, movie, and now play.
picrel
Even RLM did this with the Ghostbusters remake, despite Leslie Jones being an obnoxious loud baboon.
Kek this, the review even contradicts itself because it later says the only good parts were the older people.
The woke director is incompetent? What a shocker
How would these two even kiss?
No lips meets huge lips?
>Her grasp of her character brings the audience to her, and her quick-witted reactions are highly legible
Please have Chat GPT write this next time.
So this was basically a vehicle to get Juliet's actress discovered by Hollywood
to be fair, there aren't a lot of casting agents embedded in the lowlands of Central Africa
>it's bad except for the black pypo in it
hmmm
This isn't a film or television
>posts and threads must pertain to an actor or actress and their roles or career
This thread is about one of film actor Tom Holland's roles.
>and her quick-witted reactions are highly legible
Legible has to do with writing. What the frick is this guy talking about?
It's mostly used in context of handwriting, but it means "possible to read or decipher." In this context it basically just means you can understand the expression on her face. It's a back-handed compliment borne from low expectations, like saying she's clean and articulate.
LMAOOO HOLLAND COULDNT PRETEND HE WAS ATTRACTED TO HER
Not even Tom Cuckland could pretend to be in love with her
Plays are fricking GAY regardless of horrible casting choices. This just makes it EXTRA GAY.
i'd like to see her feet just to get it over and done with
theater plays aren't television or film
Some of them get filmed and played on TV at a later date
that doesn’t make them television or film.
It is the role of a film actor. Nothing in the rules says it has to be a television or film role. Just that the actor has to be a television or film actor.
>Francesca Amewudah-Rivers’ Juliet and Freema Agyeman’s outstanding Nurse
Just out of curiosity, did they specifically shit on the acting of any black actors or are they all somehow spectacular and only the white actors are bad?
They don't call any of the actors bad in this review, though.
>Holland lacks her still stage presence. He’s perfectly plausible as lovestruck Romeo growing increasingly stressed and distressed, but he emotes rather than elicits emotions.
Are they CRITICAL of any black actors? Does that suit your pedantry?
>Facts are pedantic now
Sure thing, buddy. But yeah, Mercutio's actor is black and they say he's boring and doesn't sell the curse speech.
>he
And there it is. They're allowed to criticism him only because he's male and that overrides his minority status momentarily.
I've actually been seeing this A LOT lately. Black/Latino/Indian/Arab males are getting thrown to the sidelines in the same way gays/lesbians were when trans took off (asian males aren't worth mentioning as they have never been given an ounce of oppressionbux). Brown males hardly even get as many oppressionbux as white males these days. Hard to say if white women outrank them yet.
>EY YO ROMAYO! ROMAYO! WHERE YOU BE AT MUFUGGHA!? BIX NOOD N SHIET
Why do they keep doing this to Tom?
humiliation ritual
He's not a good actor at all
I hope it was worth it, Tommy
THIS SUMMER
I would actually watch a movie about a female predator wanting to mate with a human male.
>film actor is shit with no camera or repeated takes to hide behind
Many such cases
I have been to theatre more than ten times in my life and it was always crap. I consider it to be the lowest form of art and something that anyone can do.
It was crap because you went to shit performances, and for the most part only shit performances reign today. Just watch this and imagine how much more impressive your experience would have been if this was the performance you went to see:
>It's shit but that person who was getting shit on online was good though
Gee where have I seen this exact phrase before, it's embarrassing how often it happens
The one positive is that at least we've moved on from pretending the entire show/movie/whatever was actually good because people were shitting on it and now journalists are only capable of defending one or two people
>Everything about this ineptly staged play sucks- except for the clearly miscast, trudging black actress
This is one of the most defining examples of "I would have never have heard about this thing if not for Cinemaphile complaining about it". Get a life.
lel
He looks afraid
> you end up sympathizing with most are …even the parents. It surely cannot have been the intention to make a production in praise of the older generation.
B-based? The director wanted to show that the parents were right and racemixing is evil. Well done based diversity hire
>Francesca Amewudah-Rivers
>Freema Agyeman
>stage
that costumer needs to be fired ASAP
I want an attractive black woman to jerk me off with her feet while she calls me "white boi" and I'm not fricking kidding.
I mean its not even about race is it. They're are thousands of good looking black women actresses they could've chose but they chose this no name one instead? And no, i'm sorry, she is not "attractive".
>here's your Shakespeare bro