The 1996 movie Elizabeth Banks has always been jealous of: “I want to be part of a film like this”
Since she made her big screen debut in 1998, Elizabeth Banks has gone on to become a huge name in various corners of Hollywood.
In terms of franchises, she’s got her feet in two very successful camps: Pitch Perfect, in which she plays a sardonic TV commentator; and The Hunger Games, in which she plays Katniss’ extravagant chaperone, Effie Trinket. Elsewhere, you can find her in films by Steven Spielberg, Kevin Smith, and Oliver Stone.
Speaking of directors, Banks followed her creative ambitions to a place not often afforded to women in the movie industry, which was behind the camera. Her directorial debut, Pitch Perfect 2, broke the record for the highest opening weekend gross for a first-time filmmaker, which she followed up with a remake of Charlie’s Angels in 2019, though a less successful entry on every front.
As it stands, her most recent effort was 2023’s Cocaine Bear, which she referred to as a potential “career-ender,” but it remains to be seen if that premonition will come true. Regardless, Banks is clearly a major cinephile, and she got the chance to chat about it with Rotten Tomatoes, who asked her to provide five of her all-time favourites. Alongside the likes of Pulp Fiction and Flashdance, she admitted that she had a sweet spot for Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, as it represented a watershed moment in her life.
“That was the movie where I was like, ‘I want to do this for a living’,” she explained, “It was one of the few times in my life that I’ve been truly jealous of a bunch of actors… I saw the movie at a pivotal moment in my life when I was really deciding if I was going to pursue acting, and it was something that I want to be part of a film like this.”
Released in 1996, Romeo + Juliet is the maverick Luhrmann’s take on the classic Shakespearean play about the star-crossed lovers. Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes play the titular lovers, who have been updated as the children of rival gang families in the fictional American city of ‘Verona Beach’.
Full of gunfights, lavish parties, and more Hawaiian shirts than you’ve ever seen in your life, the film ticks so many of the boxes that make Luhrmann simultaneously beloved and hated: it’s stylish, it’s fast-paced, and it’s got a soundtrack jam-packed with contemporary hits.
The role of Juliet was heavily contested, with Kate Winslet, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Reese Witherspoon all considered for the doomed teenager, but they were unsuccessful for various reasons. Natalie Portman was actually cast in the role, but was forced to give it up when it was deemed that she looked too young, whereas Danes, who was just 16 at the time, was hired on DiCaprio’s recommendation.
Unfortunately, even when the two title characters were in place, things didn’t always run smoothly. DiCaprio and Danes famously didn’t get along while making the movie, with the latter finding the older DiCaprio to be immature, while her co-star thought she was too uptight, although it’s unclear if Banks is aware of this or if her fantasy of starring in the film was unaffected by the behind-the-scenes drama.
