"R#J" is inconsistent with its ideas and is ultimately a version of this oft-told story that inspires frustration rather than pathos.

| Original Score: 3/10 | Jul 8, 2022

R#J is specific in its character work and clearly tapped into contemporary youth culture in a way few other films have yet to be.

| Jun 6, 2021

an intriguing concept, but its execution ultimately fails to prove as engaging as the doomed sweethearts have on the page for more than seven centuries

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | May 31, 2021

The cast cannot break this movie’s trappings, no matter how hard they try, and even though I can feel everything is well-intentioned, little to none of it resonated. Thy movie is amiss. Thus with a review, I die.

| Mar 25, 2021

Only so much of a relationship can be told through gifs before it begins to feel trite.

| Mar 25, 2021

In this updated revision, R#J reaches modern audiences with its use of diverse actors, technology, social media, and revised storytelling.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Mar 17, 2021

Instead of mining richness from the material, Williams's use of Screen Life is nothing but cheap pandering to "the teens."

| Original Score: D+ | Mar 17, 2021

Intellectual audiences might assume in the beginning that the two are simply boning up on their British literature or practicing for a recital. Nope, buckle up, this is the entire ride.

| Feb 23, 2021

It's hard to keep track of the plot's machinations where the supporting characters are involved, and the script - and pacing - are further hampered by the film's liberal borrowing from Shakespeare's own dialogue...

| Feb 16, 2021

I was surprised at how successfully R#J wooed and charmed me with its mix of Shakespeare and modern youthful exuberance.

| Original Score: B+ | Feb 16, 2021

[In] a time of social media, it seems inevitable that we would find our two star-crossed lovers in this modern iteration.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Feb 10, 2021

It had such a talented and energized young cast [and] felt so accurate and authentic to the [...] Gen Z social media age.

| Feb 10, 2021

Mixing text messages and Shakespearean dialogue, R#J takes us into the love language of the 21st century, where GIFs, Spotify playlist exchanges, and Instagram profiles kindle romance and emphasize moments of vulnerability.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 8, 2021

It's tough to deny the talent of the artists involved, shrewdly remixing Shakespeare in some truly unexpected ways. Whether this will actually appeal to the youth of today, though, I have absolutely no idea.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Feb 5, 2021

The mix of real-world dialogue with verbose, Shakespeare soliloquies never finds a real comfort zone.

| Feb 5, 2021

Someone was going to do it, and Williams took the plunge.

| Original Score: 7.5/10 | Feb 5, 2021

The film is in no way a signposting of how the cinematic medium might evolve in the future, but it certainly proves that it's possible to create cinema through a social media lens.

| Feb 5, 2021

A propulsive, melodramatic effort that is stymied only by the technology itself which does much as it does in real life, which is make it hard to find a genuine connection.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Feb 3, 2021

The flashes of brilliance are offset by plenty of moments of annoyance.

| Original Score: 2 / 5 | Feb 3, 2021

Like Baz Luhrmann did 25 years ago, Carey Williams reinvigorated the classic star-crossed lover tale taking it to Instagram with a twisty surprise in R#J

| Feb 3, 2021