I'm a fan of the story of Romeo and Juliet in all kinds of adaptions and think there were some clever ways of feeding in original lines and keeping with the traditional mix up alive without disturbing young children.With an all star cast, it was amusing and fun for the young, but perhaps not quite up there with some of the great animated tales.

What else is there to say about this marvellous film? It appeals to children and adults alike, it has a great story line (if somewhat borrowed) and a wonderful music soundtrack. We need more quality like this.

This is one of the more recent Shakespeare adaptations and it's more or less the story with gnomes. In fact, that's all it is, really. I actually thought the animation was pretty nice. The main problem is that it's too short and it tries to put in too much with all this big conflict at the end that wasn't in the play. It just seems silly for a something with garden gnomes to have battle scenes. Still, I actually would recommend this to little kids because the film is completely harmless. There's absolutely nothing offensive in it.It's at least much better than "Romeo And Juliet: Sealed With A Kiss" because this film was at least animated well and it didn't have the annoying characters. Of course, it's hard to make a kid's version of a Shakespeare play. I really do like the bit where the William Shakespeare statue comes to life and comments on the story. It does make you wonder how their world works. It seems to work on "Toy Story" where they're not allowed to show themselves to humans. The Elton John music is good too. **1/2

'Gnomeo and Juliet' (2011) is a charming, animated film that tells the almost hackneyed tale of Shakespeare's most famous tragedy; a fact the creators are very aware of. Directed by Kelly Asbury we dive straight into these garden gnomes' rivalry as the Reds and Blues compete and sabotage one another's gardens, mirrored in their human counterparts. Our focus shifts to the two 'star crossed lovers' of Verona Drive, Gnomeo (James McAvoy) who's duty to his mother Lady Blueberry (Maggie Smith) compels him to be a saboteur of their rivals and best the obnoxious Tybalt (Jason Statham), and Juliet (Emily Blunt) the capable but smothered treasure of the Red Garden who wishes to desert her pedestal and seek adventure. With thrilling lawnmower races, true love, a deer voiced by Ozzy Osbourne, pink flamingos, the damned fate of a plastic fish and a mechanical monster gone awry, its colourful cast and ridiculous gags will make any child giggle while its soundtrack and hidden references and puns won't fail in coaxing a smile out of even the most mature Shakespearean scholar. 'Gnomeo and Juliet' is self mocking and doesn't hesitate to subvert or poke fun at this tale of the Petrarchan lover Romeo. Even the beginning where a gnome threatened by the stage hook offers us the prologue of the two households 'both alike in dignity' admitting the story had been told 'a lot.' Gnomeo falls hopelessly in love with the Juliet before even discovering her family heritage, later presenting her eventually with the orchid symbolic of love and purity. And of course his love quells all ideas of revenge and sabotage from his mind, underestimating his control over his household and spurring Benny into tactless action. Tybalt plays the role of the main antagonist, constantly taunting members of the neighbouring family, 'dueling' with Blues in lawnmower races and destroying the beloved plant of Gnomeo's deceased father. However Juliet is not presented traditionally but as a stealthy and physically able character that evades surveillance to attain the orchid for her garden, and skillfully controls a vintage lawnmower on her first try. Furthermore Paris is represented as a comic character that poses no threat to Juliet's affection, instead winning the heart of Juliet's confidante Nanette, subverting the relationship of the princess and the frog. Even a memorial of William Shakespeare himself comes alive to give Gnomeo advice on his tragic situation, Shakespeare acknowledging the story and predicting the inevitable outcome. The movie presents us the classic tale of 'Romeo and Juliet' but often surprises the audience with different interpretations of characters and the storyline. This movie is ripe with references and quotations from Shakespearian works, removing itself from the simple 'crazy,animated film' description, but has a tendency to go overboard to appeal to a broader audience. Most gnomes are named after leading characters from 'Romeo and Juliet', even their human counterparts named after the houses of Montague and Capulet, Nanette and Featherstone unmistakably playing the roles of Nurse and Friar Lawrence, and Benny presumably named after the character of Benvolio. Quotations, references and themes of Shakespearian works are interspersed throughout the movie, creating a lot of the humour in the movie itself. Both houses are addressed as '2B' and '(Not) 2B' in Verona Drive, and perhaps the focus on the perfection of the gardens are again in reference to the 'unweeded garden' of Elsinore in 'Hamlet'. The 'rose by any other name' lines are also emulated in the 'Balcony' scene, used to compare the colour of the garden gnomes and how something so futile separates the lovers throughout the tale. Even the 'death' of Gnomeo mirrors the famous play, Juliet forced to mourn her lover glued to her pedestal. Furthermore little references such as an 'As You Like It' ticket in the old woodshed and 'R & G' moving truck continue the little dedications to Shakespeare. However the movie threatens to be too denotative to the great writer; constant references are used perhaps to justify the piece as an adaptation and satisfy older audiences but can be overbearing in some cases. 'Gnomeo and Juliet' is a quirky little ode to the famous play that challenges our expectations; Asbury is successful in creating an animated film to cater for both the young and old. Though somewhat spoiled by its obsession with minute Shakespearean references to justify itself as a legitimate adaptation, the movie recounts the tragic tale that the younger audience can re-visit and discover more and more.​