Gnomeo and Juliet
Encyclopedia
Gnomeo & Juliet is a 2011 computer-animated
family
comedy
film based on William Shakespeare
's play Romeo and Juliet
. The film is directed by Kelly Asbury
, and the two main characters are voiced by James McAvoy
and Emily Blunt
. The film was released on , 2011.
and Richard Wilson) are two elderly people who despise each other. When they leave the garden, objects come alive in both their gardens. The Montague garden is filled with blue garden gnome
s, and the Capulet garden houses red garden gnomes. Later, both blue and red gnomes attend a lawnmower race. Representing the blues is Gnomeo (James McAvoy
) and representing the reds is Tybalt (Jason Statham
). During the race, it looks like Gnomeo is winning; however, Tybalt cheats and wins the race, destroying Gnomeo's lawnmower. Gnomeo and his best friend, Benny (Matt Lucas
), insult Tybalt for cheating, but Tybalt ignores them. Benny watches Mrs. Montague ordering a new cheap lawnmower, disappointed.
Later that night, Gnomeo and Benny, infiltrate the red garden in disguise, with blue spray cans. Benny sprays Tybalt's well and accidentally triggers a security light in the process, alerting the red gnomes to attack. During the escape Gnomeo ends up in a nearby neglected garden. He bumps into a disguised Juliet (Emily Blunt
), the daughter of the red gnomes leader Lord Redbrick (Michael Caine
). Juliet is attempting to retrieve a unique orchid, and the two romantically fight over it. They each discover the other's colour before fleeing the garden. When they both go back to their gardens, Juliet tells her frog friend Nanette (Ashley Jensen
) about her newfound love. Nanette states that the relationship is romantically tragic.
Gnomeo and Juliet then have secret meetings in a secret garden, where they meet a pink plastic flamingo
named Featherstone (Jim Cummings
). He supports and encourages their love, and the two begin to meet regularly. Though when the two of them are getting ready for a date, Lord Redbrick introduces Juliet to Paris (Stephen Merchant
), a red gnome that Nanette has fallen for, though Juliet manages to get away. Later, when the two return back to their gardens, Gnomeo finds his mother Lady Bluebury (Maggie Smith
), who is distraught after the reds infiltrated the garden and destroyed the plant Gnomeo's deceased father planted. The blues want Gnomeo to take revenge on the reds, and he realizes that he cannot refuse unless he tells his secret. He tunnels underneath to reach the red garden, but just as he is about to spray the prized flowers of the reds, Juliet sees him. He backs out suddenly, telling Benny that the nozzle on the spraying bottle was jammed.
When he and Juliet meet up again, they briefly argue until Featherstone stops them, telling them that other peoples' hate destroyed his love. He and his girlfriend were separated when the two people living in the house, where their garden was, got divorced. After he has explained this, Gnomeo and Juliet apologize, but when they are about to kiss, Benny sees them, distracts them, then runs into the alleyway, where Tybalt is waiting with his lawnmower. Tybalt drives at Benny and chops his hat clean off with a trowel
. Tybalt fights Gnomeo on his lawnmower, but he is destroyed when crashing into a wall, killing him. The reds attempt to attack Gnomeo, but Juliet, to the surprise of her father and clan, defends Gnomeo, saying that she loves him. A woman suddenly jogs along, so all gnomes become still and inconspicuous. Gnomeo ends up on a road, and everyone believes he was run over by a truck. Lord Redbrick has Juliet glued to her fountain because he does not want to lose her like her mother. Gnomeo's pet, a mushroom
named Shroom, is left alone and goes on the road, where he realizes that what appeared to be Gnomeo is actually a broken blue teapot, and that Gnomeo is still alive. Gnomeo eventually ends up in a park, and climbs onto a statue of William Shakespeare
(Patrick Stewart
) and tells him his story. Shakespeare tells Gnomeo that his story is very similar to Romeo and Juliet
and that it is likely Gnomeo's will have a sad ending as well. Shroom and Featherstone come to find him.
Benny, meanwhile, buys the Terrafirminator lawnmower using the computer and cancels the order of the Kitten Clipper, to get revenge on the Red Gnomes, despite Shroom trying to convince him that Gnomeo is still alive. The Terrafirminator goes out of control and destroys most of the two gardens. Gnomeo makes it back to Juliet to try to un-glue her, but he is unable to. She tells him to go, but he refuses, and the two share a kiss just as the lawnmower crashes into the fountain, self-destructing in the process and the William Shakespeare statue in an "I told you so" moment of confidence. Everyone believes that both Gnomeo and Juliet are dead. Lord Redbrick and Lady Bluebury, both realizing that their feud was responsible for this, decide to call a truce. Suddenly, both Gnomeo and Juliet climb out of the rubble and are both fine just as Mrs. Montague comes back to see if the Kitten Clipper lawnmower has arrived and so was Mr. Capulet who are soon horrified to see the destruction. The film ends happily with Gnomeo and Juliet getting married on a purple lawnmower, which symbolizes the truce.
There is no counterpart for Mercutio, as stated by James MacAvoy in an interview with NBC, ”Gnomeo in this is a little bit of amalgamation between Romeo and Mercutio. We don’t have that Mercutio character in this. We don’t have that leader of the pack, which Romeo isn’t but Gnomeo is a little bit."
. The original screenplay, inspired by William Shakespeare
's Romeo and Juliet
, was written by John R. Smith and Rob Sprackling. Asbury, Mark Burton
, Kevin Cecil, Emily Cook, Kathy Greenberg, Andy Riley, and Steve Hamilton Shaw worked on the final screenplay. Prior to the casting of James McAvoy
and Emily Blunt
, the roles of Gnomeo and Juliet were to be voiced by Ewan McGregor
and Kate Winslet
, respectively.
The film was the original idea of Sprackling and Smith, who sold the spec script to Disney through Rocket Pictures. Initially, the film was going to be produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, but was shut down by its new chief, John Lasseter
, after the Pixar acquisition. Miramax Films
picked up the project and guided its production until the division closed down. Australian director Adam Elliot
was approached and asked to direct the film, but he rejected the offer due the film's incompatibility with his style, as well as his lack of experience with CGI. The film later was picked up and produced by Starz Animation
in Toronto. It was released under the Touchstone Pictures
banner on February 11, 2011, becoming Touchstone's first animated film since 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas
and also Touchstone's first film to receive a G rating from the MPAA
. The film's worldwide premiere was at Disney's El Capitan Theatre
in Hollywood on January 23, 2011.
The film was distributed in the United Kingdom and Canada by E1 Entertainment, and the film was released in 3D. Elton John
and director Asbury presented 10 minutes of the film at the Cannes Film Festival
.
Starz Animation Toronto
(which also made 9) produced all of the animation for the film, including the stereoscopic version.
In addition, this film reunites veteran British actors Maggie Smith
and Michael Caine
, from the 1978 Neil Simon
comedy California Suite
, in the roles of Lady Blueberry and Lord Redbrick, respectively.
, Nelly Furtado
, Kiki Dee
, and selections from the score composed by Chris P. Bacon
and James Newton Howard
. The soundtrack was supposed to feature a much anticipated duet between John and Lady Gaga
titled "Hello, Hello"; however, the version of the song featuring Lady Gaga only appears in the film, and on the soundtrack, the song features only John.
reported that 56% of professional critics gave positive reviews based on 117 reviews with an average rating of 5.6/10. Its consensus states "While it has moments of inspiration, Gnomeo & Juliet is often too self-referential
for its own good". Another review aggregator, Metacritic
, gave the film a 53% rating based on 28 reviews on its review scale.
for Disney, outperforming the much higher-budgeted (and eventual box office bomb
) Mars Needs Moms the studio released a month following Gnomeo & Juliet. On its first weekend, the film had a worldwide opening of $30,680,933, finishing in second place behind Just Go with It
($35.8 million). However, on its second weekend —Presidents' Day weekend— it topped the worldwide box office (although not being in first place either in North America or overseas) with $29,832,466, ahead of Unknown which ranked second ($26.4 million).
It opened in 2,994 theaters in North America on Friday, February 11, 2011, grossing $6.2 million on its first day and ranking third behind Justin Bieber: Never Say Never
and Just Go with It. It then finished the weekend with $25.4 million in third place. However, it scored the largest opening weekend ever for an animated feature released during the winter period (both January and February). It also made the largest debut on record for a minor animated movie (i.e., one with little status, expectations and/or built-in audience), according to Box Office Mojo
. With a $99.97 million total it stands as the highest-grossing animated feature among those released in winter.
In the United Kingdom
, Ireland
, and Malta
, it topped the weekend box office by earning £2,945,627 ($4,716,248) on its opening. In total it has grossed $25,283,924, making the UK the only market, except the USA, where it grossed more than $10 million.
, and DVD
on May 24, 2011. The film was produced as three different packages: a 1-disc DVD, a 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, and a 3-disc Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, and DVD combo pack. The 3-disc package will also include access to a digital download of the film. Both the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the release will include the music video
for Elton John
and Nelly Furtado
's version of John's "Crocodile Rock
", as well as the extras "Elton Builds a Garden" and "Frog Talk" with Ashley Jenson. In addition, the Blu-ray version also has several deleted and alternate scenes
, as well as a feature with Ozzy Osbourne
called "The Fawn of Darkness".
Computer animation
Computer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
family
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
comedy
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
film based on William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's play Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
. The film is directed by Kelly Asbury
Kelly Asbury
Kelly Adam Asbury is an American director, writer, voice actor, author and illustrator.He attended Lamar University for two years before, in 1980, transferring to California Institute of the Arts, where he studied animation and filmmaking...
, and the two main characters are voiced by James McAvoy
James McAvoy
James McAvoy is a Scottish stage and screen actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in 1995's The Near Room and continued to make mostly television appearances until the early 2000s. His notable television work includes State of Play, Shameless, and Frank Herbert's Children of Dune...
and Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...
. The film was released on , 2011.
Plot
Mrs. Montague and Mr. Capulet (Julie WaltersJulie Walters
Julie Walters, CBE is an English actress and novelist. She came to international prominence in 1983 for Educating Rita, performing in the title role opposite Michael Caine. It was a role she had created on the West End stage and it won her BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for Best Actress...
and Richard Wilson) are two elderly people who despise each other. When they leave the garden, objects come alive in both their gardens. The Montague garden is filled with blue garden gnome
Garden gnome
A garden gnome or lawn gnome is a figurine of a small humanoid creature, usually wearing a pointy hat, produced for the purpose of ornamentation and protection from evil sorcery, typically of gardens or on lawns....
s, and the Capulet garden houses red garden gnomes. Later, both blue and red gnomes attend a lawnmower race. Representing the blues is Gnomeo (James McAvoy
James McAvoy
James McAvoy is a Scottish stage and screen actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in 1995's The Near Room and continued to make mostly television appearances until the early 2000s. His notable television work includes State of Play, Shameless, and Frank Herbert's Children of Dune...
) and representing the reds is Tybalt (Jason Statham
Jason Statham
Jason Statham born 12 September1967) is an English actor and former diver, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Revolver, Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels...
). During the race, it looks like Gnomeo is winning; however, Tybalt cheats and wins the race, destroying Gnomeo's lawnmower. Gnomeo and his best friend, Benny (Matt Lucas
Matt Lucas
Matthew Richard "Matt" Lucas is an English comedian, screenwriter and actor best known for his acclaimed work with David Walliams in the television show Little Britain; as well as for his portrayals of the scorekeeping baby George Dawes in the comedy panel game Shooting Stars, Tweedledee and...
), insult Tybalt for cheating, but Tybalt ignores them. Benny watches Mrs. Montague ordering a new cheap lawnmower, disappointed.
Later that night, Gnomeo and Benny, infiltrate the red garden in disguise, with blue spray cans. Benny sprays Tybalt's well and accidentally triggers a security light in the process, alerting the red gnomes to attack. During the escape Gnomeo ends up in a nearby neglected garden. He bumps into a disguised Juliet (Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...
), the daughter of the red gnomes leader Lord Redbrick (Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
). Juliet is attempting to retrieve a unique orchid, and the two romantically fight over it. They each discover the other's colour before fleeing the garden. When they both go back to their gardens, Juliet tells her frog friend Nanette (Ashley Jensen
Ashley Jensen
Ashley Jensen is a Scottish actress who is best known for her roles in the television series Extras for which she was nominated for an Emmy, and ABC's Ugly Betty...
) about her newfound love. Nanette states that the relationship is romantically tragic.
Gnomeo and Juliet then have secret meetings in a secret garden, where they meet a pink plastic flamingo
Plastic flamingo
Pink plastic flamingos are one of the most famous of lawn ornaments in the United States, along with the garden gnome and other such ornamentation....
named Featherstone (Jim Cummings
Jim Cummings
James Jonah "Jim" Cummings is an American voice actor who has appeared in almost 100 roles. He has appeared in classic animated movies such as Aladdin and The Lion King, as well as taking on roles in more current films, such as Bee Movie, Princess and the Frog, and Winnie the Pooh.-Personal...
). He supports and encourages their love, and the two begin to meet regularly. Though when the two of them are getting ready for a date, Lord Redbrick introduces Juliet to Paris (Stephen Merchant
Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as the...
), a red gnome that Nanette has fallen for, though Juliet manages to get away. Later, when the two return back to their gardens, Gnomeo finds his mother Lady Bluebury (Maggie Smith
Maggie Smith
Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, DBE , better known as Maggie Smith, is an English film, stage, and television actress who made her stage debut in 1952 and is still performing after 59 years...
), who is distraught after the reds infiltrated the garden and destroyed the plant Gnomeo's deceased father planted. The blues want Gnomeo to take revenge on the reds, and he realizes that he cannot refuse unless he tells his secret. He tunnels underneath to reach the red garden, but just as he is about to spray the prized flowers of the reds, Juliet sees him. He backs out suddenly, telling Benny that the nozzle on the spraying bottle was jammed.
When he and Juliet meet up again, they briefly argue until Featherstone stops them, telling them that other peoples' hate destroyed his love. He and his girlfriend were separated when the two people living in the house, where their garden was, got divorced. After he has explained this, Gnomeo and Juliet apologize, but when they are about to kiss, Benny sees them, distracts them, then runs into the alleyway, where Tybalt is waiting with his lawnmower. Tybalt drives at Benny and chops his hat clean off with a trowel
Trowel
A trowel is one of several similar hand tools used for digging, smoothing, or otherwise moving around small amounts of viscous or particulate material.-Hand tools:...
. Tybalt fights Gnomeo on his lawnmower, but he is destroyed when crashing into a wall, killing him. The reds attempt to attack Gnomeo, but Juliet, to the surprise of her father and clan, defends Gnomeo, saying that she loves him. A woman suddenly jogs along, so all gnomes become still and inconspicuous. Gnomeo ends up on a road, and everyone believes he was run over by a truck. Lord Redbrick has Juliet glued to her fountain because he does not want to lose her like her mother. Gnomeo's pet, a mushroom
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
named Shroom, is left alone and goes on the road, where he realizes that what appeared to be Gnomeo is actually a broken blue teapot, and that Gnomeo is still alive. Gnomeo eventually ends up in a park, and climbs onto a statue of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
(Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
) and tells him his story. Shakespeare tells Gnomeo that his story is very similar to Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
and that it is likely Gnomeo's will have a sad ending as well. Shroom and Featherstone come to find him.
Benny, meanwhile, buys the Terrafirminator lawnmower using the computer and cancels the order of the Kitten Clipper, to get revenge on the Red Gnomes, despite Shroom trying to convince him that Gnomeo is still alive. The Terrafirminator goes out of control and destroys most of the two gardens. Gnomeo makes it back to Juliet to try to un-glue her, but he is unable to. She tells him to go, but he refuses, and the two share a kiss just as the lawnmower crashes into the fountain, self-destructing in the process and the William Shakespeare statue in an "I told you so" moment of confidence. Everyone believes that both Gnomeo and Juliet are dead. Lord Redbrick and Lady Bluebury, both realizing that their feud was responsible for this, decide to call a truce. Suddenly, both Gnomeo and Juliet climb out of the rubble and are both fine just as Mrs. Montague comes back to see if the Kitten Clipper lawnmower has arrived and so was Mr. Capulet who are soon horrified to see the destruction. The film ends happily with Gnomeo and Juliet getting married on a purple lawnmower, which symbolizes the truce.
Cast
- James McAvoyJames McAvoyJames McAvoy is a Scottish stage and screen actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in 1995's The Near Room and continued to make mostly television appearances until the early 2000s. His notable television work includes State of Play, Shameless, and Frank Herbert's Children of Dune...
as Gnomeo, the main protagonistProtagonistA protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
; counterpart to Romeo MontagueRomeo MontagueRomeo is one of the fictional protagonists in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Romeo is the son of old Montague and his wife, who secretly loves and marries Juliet, a member of the rival House of Capulet...
. - Emily BluntEmily BluntEmily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...
as Juliet, the deuteragonistDeuteragonistIn literature, the deuteragonist is the second most important character, after the protagonist and before the tritagonist. The deuteragonist may switch from being with or against the protagonist depending on the deuteragonist's own conflict/plot.-History:Greek drama began with simply one actor,...
; counterpart to Juliet CapuletJuliet CapuletJuliet is one of the title characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, the other being Romeo. She is the daughter of old Capulet, head of the house of Capulet. The story has a long history that precedes Shakespeare himself....
. - Michael CaineMichael CaineSir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
as Lord Redbrick, the leader of the red gnomes and Juliet's overprotective widower father; counterpart to Lord Capulet. - Jason StathamJason StathamJason Statham born 12 September1967) is an English actor and former diver, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Revolver, Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels...
as TybaltTybaltTybalt is a fictional character and the main antagonist in William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. He is Lady Capulet's nephew, Juliet's hot-tempered cousin and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert/Tybalt the "Prince of Cats" in Reynard the Fox, a point of...
, the main antagonistAntagonistAn antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
and counterpart to TybaltTybaltTybalt is a fictional character and the main antagonist in William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. He is Lady Capulet's nephew, Juliet's hot-tempered cousin and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert/Tybalt the "Prince of Cats" in Reynard the Fox, a point of...
. - Maggie SmithMaggie SmithDame Margaret Natalie Smith, DBE , better known as Maggie Smith, is an English film, stage, and television actress who made her stage debut in 1952 and is still performing after 59 years...
as Lady Bluebury, the leader of the blue gnomes and Gnomeo's widowed mother; counterpart to Lady Montague - Patrick StewartPatrick StewartSir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
as William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, a statueStatueA statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
of Shakespeare. - Ashley JensenAshley JensenAshley Jensen is a Scottish actress who is best known for her roles in the television series Extras for which she was nominated for an Emmy, and ABC's Ugly Betty...
as Nanette, a plastic garden frogFrogFrogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
and Juliet's best friend; a flamboyant water squirter who is loyal to Juliet; counterpart to NurseNurse (Romeo and Juliet)The Nurse is a major character in William Shakespeare's classic drama Romeo and Juliet. It is revealed later in the play by Lord Capulet that the Nurse's real name might be Angelica . She is the personal servant, guardian of Juliet Capulet, and has been since Juliet was born... - Matt LucasMatt LucasMatthew Richard "Matt" Lucas is an English comedian, screenwriter and actor best known for his acclaimed work with David Walliams in the television show Little Britain; as well as for his portrayals of the scorekeeping baby George Dawes in the comedy panel game Shooting Stars, Tweedledee and...
as Benny, Gnomeo's impulsive and tall-hatted best friend; counterpart to BenvolioBenvolioBenvolio Montague is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's drama Romeo and Juliet.-Sources:In 1554, Matteo Bandello published the second volume of his Novelle which included his version of Giuletta e Romeo. Bandello emphasises Romeo's initial depression and the feud between the families,...
. - Stephen MerchantStephen MerchantStephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as the...
as Paris, a nerdy red gnome who was arranged to marry Juliet; counterpart to Count ParisCount ParisIn William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Count Paris is a suitor of Juliet Capulet. He is handsome, somewhat self-absorbed, very wealthy, and is a kinsman of Prince Escalus...
. - Ozzy OsbourneOzzy OsbourneJohn Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
as Fawn, a garden deerDeerDeer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
. The secondary antagonist and Tybalt's best friend; counterpart to Peter. - Jim CummingsJim CummingsJames Jonah "Jim" Cummings is an American voice actor who has appeared in almost 100 roles. He has appeared in classic animated movies such as Aladdin and The Lion King, as well as taking on roles in more current films, such as Bee Movie, Princess and the Frog, and Winnie the Pooh.-Personal...
as Featherstone, a lonely plastic flamingo with a thick Spanish accent; vaguely resembles Friar Laurence. His name is a reference to Donald FeatherstoneDonald Featherstone (artist)Donald "Don" Featherstone is an American artist who is most widely known for his 1957 creation of the Plastic Pink Flamingo while working for Union Products. Currently Featherstone resides in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, where he keeps 57 plastic flamingos on his front lawn...
, the creator of the pink flamingo lawn ornament. - Hulk HoganHulk HoganTerrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
as Terrafirminator V.O., an announcer who tells people to buy the Terrafirminator. - Julie WaltersJulie WaltersJulie Walters, CBE is an English actress and novelist. She came to international prominence in 1983 for Educating Rita, performing in the title role opposite Michael Caine. It was a role she had created on the West End stage and it won her BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for Best Actress...
as Ms. Montague, the elderly owner of the Blue garden. Her face is never shown. - Richard Wilson as Mr. Capulet, the owner of the Red garden, whose face is also never shown.
- Kelly AsburyKelly AsburyKelly Adam Asbury is an American director, writer, voice actor, author and illustrator.He attended Lamar University for two years before, in 1980, transferring to California Institute of the Arts, where he studied animation and filmmaking...
as Red Gnomes; counterparts to Gregory, Sampson, Anthony, and Potpan. - Shroom, a silent mushroom and Gnomeo’s friend; counterpart to Romeo's servant, Balthasar
- The Bunnies, a group of small, cement bunnies that act as servants for Lady Bluebury and others in the Blue Garden
- Dolly PartonDolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
as Dolly Gnome the lawnmower race announcer
There is no counterpart for Mercutio, as stated by James MacAvoy in an interview with NBC, ”Gnomeo in this is a little bit of amalgamation between Romeo and Mercutio. We don’t have that Mercutio character in this. We don’t have that leader of the pack, which Romeo isn’t but Gnomeo is a little bit."
Production
Gnomeo & Juliet is directed by Kelly AsburyKelly Asbury
Kelly Adam Asbury is an American director, writer, voice actor, author and illustrator.He attended Lamar University for two years before, in 1980, transferring to California Institute of the Arts, where he studied animation and filmmaking...
. The original screenplay, inspired by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
, was written by John R. Smith and Rob Sprackling. Asbury, Mark Burton
Mark Burton (writer)
Mark Burton is a British screenwriter specialising in comedy.- Early life :Burton grew up in Whitchurch-on-Thames, Oxfordshire and after attending Langtree School, Woodcote, and The Henley College, Henley-on-Thames, went on to study History at York University, where he was a contemporary of Harry...
, Kevin Cecil, Emily Cook, Kathy Greenberg, Andy Riley, and Steve Hamilton Shaw worked on the final screenplay. Prior to the casting of James McAvoy
James McAvoy
James McAvoy is a Scottish stage and screen actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in 1995's The Near Room and continued to make mostly television appearances until the early 2000s. His notable television work includes State of Play, Shameless, and Frank Herbert's Children of Dune...
and Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...
, the roles of Gnomeo and Juliet were to be voiced by Ewan McGregor
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...
and Kate Winslet
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet is an English actress and occasional singer. She has received multiple awards and nominations. She was the youngest person to accrue six Academy Award nominations, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Reader...
, respectively.
The film was the original idea of Sprackling and Smith, who sold the spec script to Disney through Rocket Pictures. Initially, the film was going to be produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, but was shut down by its new chief, John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
, after the Pixar acquisition. Miramax Films
Miramax Films
Miramax Films is an American entertainment company known for distributing independent and foreign films. For its first 14 years the company was privately owned by its founders, Bob and Harvey Weinstein...
picked up the project and guided its production until the division closed down. Australian director Adam Elliot
Adam Elliot
Adam Elliot is an independent stop-motion animation writer and director based in Melbourne, Australia. His five films have collectively participated in over six-hundred film festivals and have received over one hundred awards, including an Oscar for Harvie Krumpet and the Annecy Cristal for Mary...
was approached and asked to direct the film, but he rejected the offer due the film's incompatibility with his style, as well as his lack of experience with CGI. The film later was picked up and produced by Starz Animation
Starz Animation
Arc Productions, formerly known as Starz Animation Toronto, is a Canadian animation and visual effects studio based in Toronto, Ontario. It is majority owned by a Canadian investor group, with former owner Starz Media as a minority stakeholder...
in Toronto. It was released under the Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures is an American film production label and is one of several film labels of the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group. Established in 1984, its releases typically feature more mature themes and darker tones than those that are released under the Walt Disney Pictures banner.Touchstone...
banner on February 11, 2011, becoming Touchstone's first animated film since 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
and also Touchstone's first film to receive a G rating from the MPAA
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
. The film's worldwide premiere was at Disney's El Capitan Theatre
El Capitan Theatre
El Capitan Theatre is a fully restored movie palace at 6838 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood. It is owned by Pacific Theatres and operated by the Walt Disney Company. It serves as the venue for many of Walt Disney Pictures' movie premieres...
in Hollywood on January 23, 2011.
The film was distributed in the United Kingdom and Canada by E1 Entertainment, and the film was released in 3D. Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
and director Asbury presented 10 minutes of the film at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
.
Starz Animation Toronto
Starz Animation
Arc Productions, formerly known as Starz Animation Toronto, is a Canadian animation and visual effects studio based in Toronto, Ontario. It is majority owned by a Canadian investor group, with former owner Starz Media as a minority stakeholder...
(which also made 9) produced all of the animation for the film, including the stereoscopic version.
In addition, this film reunites veteran British actors Maggie Smith
Maggie Smith
Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, DBE , better known as Maggie Smith, is an English film, stage, and television actress who made her stage debut in 1952 and is still performing after 59 years...
and Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
, from the 1978 Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
comedy California Suite
California Suite (film)
California Suite is a 1978 American comedy film directed by Herbert Ross. The screenplay by Neil Simon is based on his play of the same title...
, in the roles of Lady Blueberry and Lord Redbrick, respectively.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was released on February 8, 2011, three days before the film's initial release. It features music by Elton JohnElton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Nelly Furtado
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm Like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy...
, Kiki Dee
Kiki Dee
Kiki Dee is an English singer with a career spanning more than 40 years....
, and selections from the score composed by Chris P. Bacon
Chris P. Bacon
Chris P. Bacon is a film and television composer living in Los Angeles, California.He scored the films Angels Fall and Blue Smoke, with fellow composer Stuart Michael Thomas.-Filmography:2005...
and James Newton Howard
James Newton Howard
James Newton Howard is an American composer best known for his scores to motion pictures. He is one of the most popular and respected composers for cinema, and has scored over 100 films...
. The soundtrack was supposed to feature a much anticipated duet between John and Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
titled "Hello, Hello"; however, the version of the song featuring Lady Gaga only appears in the film, and on the soundtrack, the song features only John.
Critical reaction
Gnomeo & Juliet received mixed reviews; review aggregate website Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 56% of professional critics gave positive reviews based on 117 reviews with an average rating of 5.6/10. Its consensus states "While it has moments of inspiration, Gnomeo & Juliet is often too self-referential
Self-reference
Self-reference occurs in natural or formal languages when a sentence or formula refers to itself. The reference may be expressed either directly—through some intermediate sentence or formula—or by means of some encoding...
for its own good". Another review aggregator, Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, gave the film a 53% rating based on 28 reviews on its review scale.
Box-office
Gnomeo and Juliet has earned $99,967,670 in the North America and an $94,000,000 in other countries, as of October 23, 2011, for a worldwide total of $193,967,670. Gnomeo & Juliet was ultimately a sleeper hitSleeper hit
A sleeper hit, a.k.a. surprise hit , refers to a film, book, single, album, TV show, or video game that gains unexpected success or recognition...
for Disney, outperforming the much higher-budgeted (and eventual box office bomb
Box office bomb
The phrase box office bomb refers to a film for which the production and marketing costs greatly exceeded the revenue regained by the movie studio. This should not be confused with Hollywood accounting when official figures show large losses, yet the movie is a financial success.A film's financial...
) Mars Needs Moms the studio released a month following Gnomeo & Juliet. On its first weekend, the film had a worldwide opening of $30,680,933, finishing in second place behind Just Go with It
Just Go With It
Just Go with It is a 2011 romantic comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. The film was released on , 2011...
($35.8 million). However, on its second weekend —Presidents' Day weekend— it topped the worldwide box office (although not being in first place either in North America or overseas) with $29,832,466, ahead of Unknown which ranked second ($26.4 million).
It opened in 2,994 theaters in North America on Friday, February 11, 2011, grossing $6.2 million on its first day and ranking third behind Justin Bieber: Never Say Never
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never is a 2011 3-D documentary/concert film centering on singer Justin Bieber. It was released in the United States and Canada on February 11, 2011.-Plot:...
and Just Go with It. It then finished the weekend with $25.4 million in third place. However, it scored the largest opening weekend ever for an animated feature released during the winter period (both January and February). It also made the largest debut on record for a minor animated movie (i.e., one with little status, expectations and/or built-in audience), according to Box Office Mojo
Box Office Mojo
Box Office Mojo is a website that tracks box office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. Brandon Gray started the site in 1999. In 2002, Gray partnered with Sean Saulsbury and they grew the site to nearly two million readers when, in July 2008, the company was purchased by Amazon.com through...
. With a $99.97 million total it stands as the highest-grossing animated feature among those released in winter.
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, it topped the weekend box office by earning £2,945,627 ($4,716,248) on its opening. In total it has grossed $25,283,924, making the UK the only market, except the USA, where it grossed more than $10 million.
Home media
Gnomeo & Juliet was released on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-rayBlu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
, and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on May 24, 2011. The film was produced as three different packages: a 1-disc DVD, a 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, and a 3-disc Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, and DVD combo pack. The 3-disc package will also include access to a digital download of the film. Both the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the release will include the music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
and Nelly Furtado
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm Like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy...
's version of John's "Crocodile Rock
Crocodile Rock
"Crocodile Rock" is a song written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, and recorded in June 1972 at the Strawberry Studios, Château d'Hérouville in France. It was released on 27 October 1972 in the UK and 20 November 1972 in the US, as a pre-release single from his forthcoming 1973 album Don't Shoot...
", as well as the extras "Elton Builds a Garden" and "Frog Talk" with Ashley Jenson. In addition, the Blu-ray version also has several deleted and alternate scenes
Deleted scene
In Entertainment, especially the film and television industry, Deleted scenes are parts of a film removed or censored from or replaced by another scene in the final "cut", or version, of a film...
, as well as a feature with Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
called "The Fawn of Darkness".