THIS `ROMEO AND JULIET' A BOLD, NEW JOURNEY : THE FACTS.

Byline: Karen Hershenson Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

This ``Romeo and Juliet'' is so bold, so daring, that you're either going to love it or hate it. I loved it.

Australian director Baz Luhrmann takes Shakespeare's bittersweet tragedy and slam-dunks it into a futuristic beach town, where kinsmen of the warring Montague and Capulet clans drive souped-up cars and wield guns instead of daggers.

Luhrmann, whose first feature ``Strictly Ballroom'' was a sleeper hit, takes so many risks it's astounding. Everything from the setting to the music and camera work is unexpected. Most daring of all is having these ultra-modern characters speak from the original Shakespeare text.

To some, this concept is sacrilege. But if you can let go of the notion that Shakespeare's words are somehow holy, you will be rewarded with the most original film to hit the screen in a long, long time.

The man does the Bard no injustice. Having these classic lines come out of contemporary mouths gives them new power, and gives further testimony to Shakespeare's enduring genius. After all, a movie is only as good as its screenplay, and Luhrmann, who wrote the script with ``Strictly Ballroom'' colleague Craig Pearce, is working with the best material here.

He even blasts lines from the play across the screen, as if the words themselves were characters in the drama.

The contrast between the modern settings and the 400-year-old dialogue is jarring at first, but the acting is so strong that soon it becomes a revelation. Leonardo DiCaprio is superb as Romeo, a young man with a poet's soul living in a world riddled with violence and hate. Nominated for an Oscar at 19 for ``What's Eating Gilbert Grape,'' DiCaprio gets better with each role, and infuses his Romeo with just the right balance of tenderness and fiery passion.

Luhrmann even throws in some slapstick because, as he explains in the press notes, Shakespeare did the same. He had to appeal to a broad audience, from the aristocracy to drunken revelers. Not unlike your average movie crowd.

Claire Danes (``Little Women'' and TV's ``My So-Called Life'') as Juliet matches DiCaprio measure for measure. She is the essence of purity and light, her girlish bedroom a sanctuary of angels and candles. The match between the two is magical, and they manage to get across an undeniable attraction without so much as an R-rated scene.

Tensions between the warring Montagues and Capulets are at their peak when the lovers first meet. A standoff at a gas station introduces us to the players, with John Leguizamo (formerly the drag queen Chi Chi in ``To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar!'') making a splashy entrance as Juliet's cousin Tybalt, all in black, the silver tips on his belt and boots shining. Romeo's main man is Mercutio, played with fierce intensity by Harold Perrineau.

Paul Sorvino is patriarch of the Capulet clan, with Brian Dennehy as the head of the Montagues, their rivalry fueled by business concerns. But they are less figures in the story than the two counsels to the young lovers - Pete Postlethwaite as Romeo's confidant Father Laurence, and Miriam Margolyes as Juliet's beloved nurse. Both performers give wonderful comedic nuance to these important roles.

The entire movie has a surrealistic feel, with lots of religious imagery (even the warring gangs have the Virgin Mary imprinted on their pistols) and iridescent skies. Luhrmann is paying homage not only to Shakespeare, but Fellini. The soundtrack blasts cuts by such alternative bands as Everclear, Garbage and the Butthole Surfers. I was especially blown over by a sequence in the middle that features the Prince cut ``When Doves Cry.''

There have been lots of ``Romeo and Juliets'' over the years, and many point to Franco Zeffirelli's excellent 1968 version as the ultimate. And for a straight interpretation, that still stands. But Luhrmann gets 1,000 bonus points for boldly taking Shakespeare where he has never gone before, and giving us some thrilling new insights into the work.

The film: ``William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet'' (PG-13; violence, some sensuality).

The stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo, Pete Postlethwaite, Harold Perrineau, Paul Sorvino, Diane Venora, Brian Dennehy, Miriam Margolyes.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Baz Luhrmann, screenplay by Craig Pearce and Baz Luhrmann. Released by 20th Century Fox.

Running time: Two hours, one minute.

Playing: Citywide.

Our rating: Four Stars.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: In ``William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet,'' starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, the Bard's bittersweet tragedy is placed in a futuristic beach town, with the ultra-modern characters speaking from the original Shakespeare text.