hammondjh-00479 What else is there to say about this marvellous film? It appeals to children and adults alike, it has a great story line (if somewhat borrowed) and a wonderful music soundtrack. We need more quality like this.

Eric Stevenson This is one of the more recent Shakespeare adaptations and it's more or less the story with gnomes. In fact, that's all it is, really. I actually thought the animation was pretty nice. The main problem is that it's too short and it tries to put in too much with all this big conflict at the end that wasn't in the play. It just seems silly for a something with garden gnomes to have battle scenes. Still, I actually would recommend this to little kids because the film is completely harmless. There's absolutely nothing offensive in it.It's at least much better than "Romeo And Juliet: Sealed With A Kiss" because this film was at least animated well and it didn't have the annoying characters. Of course, it's hard to make a kid's version of a Shakespeare play. I really do like the bit where the William Shakespeare statue comes to life and comments on the story. It does make you wonder how their world works. It seems to work on "Toy Story" where they're not allowed to show themselves to humans. The Elton John music is good too. **1/2

d-leonard16 'Gnomeo and Juliet' is Kelly Asbury's 2011 foray into the much explored world of Shakespearean adaptations. An animated take on the classic tale of Romeo and Juliet, this children's tale tells the story of two feuding gardens – the red gnomes of the Capulet house versus the blue gnomes of the Montague house – as they battle with each other and the film itself battles with adapting one of the best known stories in history. We meet Juliet (Emily Blunt), doomed to live life on a pedestal under the eye of her over-protective father Lord Rebrick (Michael Caine) and the sweetly named Gnomeo (James McEvoy) - a high spirited, confident gnome from the Bluebury family. The two meet and chaos ensues in what is perhaps the most told love- story of all time. But just how well did this adaption hold up against its predecessors? This movie is aimed towards children, a fact which separates it hugely from most other adaptations of the source text. It allowed the director and screenwriters plenty of scope to adjust and modernise the movie, giving the tired characters a fresh new perspective. We see Juliet as a spirited and independent young woman, one who is graceful and strong in her own right. We see her climb and run across walls dressed as a ninja and hold her own against Gnomeo both in physicality and wit throughout the movie. This adaptation plays up the strengths of both genders and leaves the two leads in a balanced and seemingly healthy relationship. It downplays the heavily criticised and deeply unhealthy co- dependency of Romeo and Juliet, instead leaving us with a sense that after time, both would be fine without the other if they had to be. Being a children's animation, it aims to be comedy and not a tragedy so there are some obvious differences in this movie to the source text, particularly in the ending. A number of characters from the play itself were not featured in the movie, such as Mercutio, the only real noticeable absence from the line up. However, these cuts are understandable, as someone like Mercutio is too violent in nature and complex of mind to establish as a friend for this carefree and spirited version of Romeo. Gnomeo has a side-kick in the form of the Benny (Matt Lucas), a character who causes more than a little trouble throughout and incorporates the bold spirit of Mercutio that the movie lacks. Juliet's nurse, often depicted as crude and bumbling in the more mature adaptations of this tale, is portrayed as Nanette (Ashley Jensen), a frog who serves as an answer to the plot problem Paris (Stephen Merchant) presents for Juliet. The two loves meet in the abandoned Laurence lot, a place that provides balanced and happy times for the two. Some characters, such as Gnomeo's pet Shroom, which acts like a dog and has no lines in the movie, feel unnecessary but over-all the characters are well- developed and very likable. Although aimed at children, the movie features a number of jokes aimed towards the older viewers in the audience, particularly those who might be fans of Shakespeare. The Montague and Capulet households are red and blue, a nod to the 1968 Zeffirelli adaptation which split the households into the same colours. The house numbers are 2B and Not 2B, one of many Shakespearean jokes throughout. There is an As you Like it ticket stub in the shed on the Laurence lot and a glimpse at a local bus lets us know that the movie itself is based in Stratford-Upon-Avon. All these nods to the Bard are accumulated in a cameo from Shakespeare (Patrick Stewart) when his statue comes alive in a park to warn Gnomeo of the tragic end of his own Romeo and Juliet. The moment is the movie's tongue in cheek defiance of the traditional depiction of this play and allows any adult members of the audience to relax about what their children will be seeing as an ending. Overall the movie is clever in its simplicity. It set out to be a children's adaptation of Romeo and Juliet and that is what it achieved. There is minimal violence, plenty of laughs and a sweet set of lessons to be learned by the feuding households at the end. It's not so much a love-story as it is a warm family film with a mild focus on love. If you can deal with the over-playing of Elton John songs (a producer on the movie) and the random nods to him throughout, you'll enjoy this. It's an interestingly and beautifully animated take on Romeo and Juliet, that knows it's for children. If you go in expecting any more than that you'll be disappointed but as an adaptation, it does what it says on the tin. If you want a light, fun and fresh take on a tired classic, it's a definite must-see, there's gnome way you'll regret it!

Jonathan Carton This delightful film is the perfect adaptation of Romeo and Juliet for children. Actually, it's probably the only appropriate one for children; nevertheless it does the job well. Set in the back gardens akin to those in Coronation Street with all the right amount of craftiness of Toy Story. We see the forbidden love story between two garden gnomes from rival gardens. It seems silly but believe me when I say that this is an overlooked gem. Gnomeo and Juliet has a lot more to give than meets the eye. Set in the present day, we follow Gnomeo, a 'blue', and Juliet, a 'red'; which is denoted by the colour of their pointed gnome hats. Bear with me. They reside in the gardens of the two semi-detached houses and for some reason, the residents of these houses hate each other.As I mentioned earlier, it borrows all the successful plot devices from Toy Story that made that such a pioneering piece of storytelling. For example, the gnomes cannot be seen moving by humans for fear of getting caught. Somehow it works and does not at all feel like it's ripping off what made Toy Story so great; it feels fresh. The distinct style of animation is gorgeous. It is a pleasant film to sit back and observe. The detailing in the design of the characters must be noted. Its full beauty can is shown to its full potential in scenes such as the one where we see Gnomeo and Juliet getting ready for their first date together.The films own brand of self-reflexive comedy is telling for the age of its creation. As shown through many an awkward situation and perfectly timed cutaway gags. The 'chorus' gnome reads aloud to the audience about the forthcoming events in the film; all the while poking fun about the amount of times the story has been told before on film. There are a number of innuendoes that younger viewers might miss out on, but might get a laugh or two out of a more mature, albeit immature, audience. Such is seen when Nanette presses Juliet about the size of Gnomeo hat. I strongly believe that the casting choices of the film would translate well to a live-action version of the film. James McAvoy lends his voice to a passionate and poetic version of Romeo, while Emily Blunt sees that Juliet is given sweetness with a brazenness that can only be a product of her British charm. Both actors have enough experience in dramatic acting to pull off the brooding yet optimistic couple. Jason Statham plays hot-headed Tybalt which perfectly mimics Statham's on-screen reputation in his high-octane action films. We see a stellar cast of standout comedic performances from characters such as Nanette the frog and Fawn the deer, voiced by Ashley Jensen and Ozzy Osbourne respectively. Characters such as Featherstone are fully realised; there is no loose end in any minor characters story. In short, the casting of characters and storytelling just works superbly.The film strives to be a separate work from the text of the source material and I believe it succeeded in doing so. All the corresponding elements are there such as the characters, the plot and the story; but they still manage to make it its own show. On first viewing, I found the storytelling more evocative than that of its source material. After Tybalts death, I felt genuine feelings of sadness instead of the little to no sympathy I am used to giving the situation in every other film adaptation of the play. The characters deliver compressed versions of the source materials text throughout the film, but it never takes away from the films intelligence. The film is masterful in its delivery of recognisable quotes from the original play through the context of the dialogue.What I found particularly enjoyable were the Easter Eggs found throughout to keep adult viewers on their toes. For example, in Featherstones flashback there are 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern' moving trucks as a nod to the Hamlet characters of the same name and in Gnomeos break through the city, there is a bus which has Stratford Upon Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace, as its destination. However, this is a lengthy list for another day. I commend the finer details in some of the choices that were made in the production of this film. As a pop culture fanatic, perhaps one of my favourite moments in the film was Patrick Stewarts cameo as the statue of William Shakespeare as a nod to his work with Royal Shakespeare Company. A similar moment of cultural recognition is made when Nanette is being serenaded by Paris, voiced by Stephen Merchant. We see a shot of Nanette covered in rose petals that visually resembles the infamous shot from American Beauty. Moments like these go over the heads of the target audience, but that's just the beauty of this film. Yes, it is a film aimed at children but it is more than that. It's not just family friendly but it can actually be enjoyed by all.Initially, I was apprehensive about watching this film. Thankfully, I was pleasantly surprised with a warm and well-natured adaptation of one of my favourite stories of all time. Admittedly, it had a lot to live up to what with being an adaptation of not only one of the most famous plays from the world's greatest writer. It had its work cut out for itself, to say the least. Perhaps it was because it was a children's film that naturally gave it the allure of being low-brow and below any critical success. However, my assumptions were proved wrong upon first watch and I undoubtedly will watch it again.