BY LEE PFEIFFER
Franco Zeffirelli, the acclaimed Italian director of opulent films and operas, has died at age 96. Zeffirelli's passion for cinema and opera led him to often find ways to combine the two into his works. As the Hollywood Reporter points out, his operas were often cinematic in staging and his films were sometimes presented in an operatic manner. Zeffirelli's most notable cinematic work was his dynamic presentation of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" in 1968. Previous versions were scoffed at for casting actors who were too old in the titular roles but Zeffirelli cast real-life teenagers Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting and his screenplay presented their love affair in a manner that took advantage of the screen industry's new sexual freedoms. Zeffirelli received an Oscar nomination for Best Director. The previous year, Zeffirelli had directed Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in a lively screen version of Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew". He returned to the Bard's classics in 1990 with his screen version of "Hamlet" that raised eyebrows with his casting of Mel Gibson in the title role. However, the film and Gibson received favorable reviews. Not all of Zeffirelli's mainstream films were successful, however, with his 1979 remake of "The Champ" and the movie "First Love" among his boxoffice disappointments.
For more about Zeffirelli's remarkable career in film and opera, click here.