Her father Fulgencio Capulet (Paul Sorvino) has arranged her marriage to the boorish Paris (Paul Rudd) as part of a strategic investment plan. When Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) of the Montagues attends the masked ball, he and Juliet fall in love.

The family feud erupts anew when a carload of Montagues take on the hot-blooded Tybalt Capulet (John Leguizamo) and his kinsmen at a gas station, which goes up in a spectacular conflagration. Luhrmann is at his most inventive and innovative here, lavishing us with vibrant camera work and keeping a blistering tempo throughout.