R and J

R#J
R#J
Directed by	Carey Williams
Screenplay by	Rickie Castaneda; Oleksii Sobolev; Carey Williams;
Based on	Romeo and Juliet; by William Shakespeare
Produced by	Timur Bekmambetov; Oleksii Sobolev; Igor Tsay;
Starring	David Zayas; María Gabriela de Faría; Diego Tinoco; RJ Cyler;
Cinematography	Diego Madrigal
Edited by	Lam Nguyen
Music by	Rene G. Boscio
Production; company	Interface Films
Release date	January 30, 2021 (Sundance);
Running time	91 min.
Country	United States
Language	English

R#J is a 2021 American experimental romantic drama film written by Rickie Castaneda, Oleksii Sobolev and Carey Williams, who is also the director. The film stars David Zayas, María Gabriela de Faría, Diego Tinoco and RJ Cyler. The film is a modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare's romantic tragedy Romeo and Juliet, told through text messages, photos and videos on mobile phones and social media posts.

The film had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021.^[2]

Cast

David Zayas as Fernando
María Gabriela de Faría as Nancy
Diego Tinoco as Tybalt^[3]
RJ Cyler as Benvo
Moe Irvin as Alcide Montague
Jacob Ming-Trent as Friar Lawrence
Emilio Garcia-Sanchez as Sampson
Camaron Engels as Romeo^[1]
Siddiq Saunderson as Mercutio^[3]
Ricky Russert as Gregory
Francesca Noel as Juliet^[1]
DeShawn Cavanaugh as Abram
Matias Ponce as Young Fernando

Release

The film had its premiere in the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021 in the Next section.^[4] It also screened at South by Southwest in March 2021, where it won the Adobe Editing Award.^[5]

Reception

R#J received mixed reviews from critics. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes surveyed 27 critics and, categorizing the reviews as positive or negative, assessed 14 as positive and 13 as negative for a 52% rating. Among the reviews, it determined an average rating of 6.4 out of 10. The critics consensus reads: "R#J represents an admirable attempt to update Romeo and Juliet, but alas, its bounty is not quite as boundless as the sea."^[6]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Barraclough, Leo (April 7, 2020). "Camaron Engels and Francesca Noel to Star in 'Romeo and Juliet,' Produced by Timur Bekmambetov (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Sundance - FPG". Sundance. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
^ ^a ^b N'Duka, Amanda (April 20, 2020). "'On My Block's Diego Tinoco, Siddiq Saunderson Set For 'Romeo and Juliet' Screenlife Adaptation From Producer Timur Bekmambetov". Deadline. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
^ Debruge, Peter (December 15, 2020). "Sundance Film Festival Lineup Features 38 First-Time Directors, Including Rebecca Hall and Robin Wright". Variety. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
^ "SXSW Film Festival: 'The Fallout' and Docu 'Lily Topples the World' Among Jury Award Winners". March 19, 2021.
^ "R#J (2021) Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 5, 2021.

External links

R#J at IMDb
R#J at Rotten Tomatoes

[Variety-1] Barraclough, Leo (April 7, 2020). "Camaron Engels and Francesca Noel to Star in 'Romeo and Juliet,' Produced by Timur Bekmambetov (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved January 18, 2021.

[Sundance-2] "Sundance - FPG". Sundance. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.

[Deadline-3] N'Duka, Amanda (April 20, 2020). "'On My Block's Diego Tinoco, Siddiq Saunderson Set For 'Romeo and Juliet' Screenlife Adaptation From Producer Timur Bekmambetov". Deadline. Retrieved January 18, 2021.

[4] Debruge, Peter (December 15, 2020). "Sundance Film Festival Lineup Features 38 First-Time Directors, Including Rebecca Hall and Robin Wright". Variety. Retrieved January 18, 2021.

[5] "SXSW Film Festival: 'The Fallout' and Docu 'Lily Topples the World' Among Jury Award Winners". March 19, 2021.

[6] "R#J (2021) Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 5, 2021.

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