West Side Story

Starring: Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris
Directed by: Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Drama, Musical
1961

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: Two young teenagers belonging to rival gangs in New York City fall in love- much to the chagrin of all those around them.

Review:

Tim: The first time I saw West Side Story, I was in high school. I had to write my thoughts about the movie, and I wrote, "It would have been a really good movie, if you took out all the singing and dancing and ridiculousness." I got in trouble for writing that. In hindsight, it might have been my first movie review. Well over a decade later, I know a great deal more about movies and I am able to appreciate the movie for what it is. I can say that this a great movie and one of my favorite musicals.

The film is obviously an adaptation of "Romeo & Juliet", so it comes from a good source material. It's also surprisingly deep, touching on themes of gang violence in America, as well as racism against minorities. These aspects of the film are front and center, and are integral parts of the story. It gave it a timely feel in the 1960s, and today, it still feels like it has something important to say.

The music is interesting in this film. There are some songs that felt somewhat weak to me. This was a combination of lackluster song writing, forgettable music, and some less-than-stellar singing. These songs were a bit difficult for me to get through. However, there's also some amazing musical moments. "America" is absolutely one of the highlights. I personally loved "I Feel Pretty", but Natalie Wood's performance really sells that song to me. "Tonight" is also quite good. I felt the music was up-and-down, but the ups do get pretty high.

The love story between Tony and Maria is iconic, and the portrayal of violence and racism between the white gang the Puerto Rican gang adds gravity to the situation. The movie is beautiful in a lot of ways.

However, I don't think the movie is perfect. I was pretty disappointed with how many characters had their singing dubbed, most especially Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer. That, for me, means something. The movie is quite long at 152 minutes, and feels longer due to some of the less-strong music numbers. I also thought Beymer was a little disappointing in the role. He's not bad, but I just wanted a stronger performance out of him.

Speaking of the cast, I thought Natalie Wood was tremendous as Maria. She gives such an incredible performance. It's very memorable, and I thought she made a great Maria. I just wish she could have done the singing herself. I also really liked Rita Moreno, who excelled in her role as well. The women were definitely stronger in this film, as I also liked Russ Tamblyn and George Chakiris, but Wood and Moreno were better.

West Side Story won an astounding 10 Academy Awards. George Chakiris won Best Supporting Actor, Rita Moreno won best Supporting Actress, and the film won Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Best Sound, and Best Picture. It just missed out on a complete sweep, losing Best Adapted Screenplay. That's an incredibly impressive Oscar haul. This is a fantastic movie, and one of my favorite musicals. It is truly a classic.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Gigi, The Sound of Music, Romeo & Juliet, My Fair Lady