20s Movie Review - West Side Story

Director: Steven Spielberg
Genre: Musical/ Romance/ Drama/ Crime
Runtime: 156 minutes
Year: 2021
Starring: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Rita Moreno, Brian D’Arcy James, Corey Stoll, Mike Faist

Description: West Side Story explores forbidden love and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds.

Review: It is important to note that Steven Spielberg’s version of “West Side Story” is not a remake of the original film. The filmmaker deliberately took the theatrical musical as his starting point. So those who know the classic film from 1961 well may wonder if musicals numbers were thrown out. The Latin American cast is also given a much larger role. Much Spanish is spoken and it was Spielberg’s explicit instruction not to subtitle it. However, the context is sufficient to understand it, even without knowing the language.
“West Side Story” is set in the New York of the late 1950s. the neighborhood is a victim of renewal or what we would qualify as gentrification. Only the store of the elderly Valentina (a newly written role played by Rita Moreno, who won an Oscar for best female supporting actress in the original film) bravely holds out. The neighborhood is weighed down by the battle between two gangs. The Puerto Rican Sharks are fighting for a place in society and are diametrically opposed to the leather-jacketed Jets. Former Jet member Tony has just been released from prison and want to make a quiet new start. Then the inevitable happens: during a dance party, he falls madly in love with Puerto Rican Maria.
Already from the opening shot, where the wrecking ball takes us into the experiential world of New Yorkers, it is clear, in combination with Bernstein’s matchless music: this is going to be something special. So the question of whether there is any need to record a new version of “West Side Story” quickly fades. Spielberg didn’t add many big new things, but went for rather small subtle addition that made a big impact. For example, a nonbinary side character who floats between scenes and clashes only momentarily with the rest of the characters. Forced or overly woke, this addition doesn’t feel like it; in fact, Spielberg stands for diversity and inclusiveness.   
The romance that develops between Maria and Tony is one of attraction and little repulsion, but it is the rivalry of circumstances that creates difficulties. “West Side Story” is still a modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. But the romance here is rarely wry, but mostly sweet and beautiful without ever becoming overly sentimental.
The original had a store owner Doc, but he is replaced by his wife Valentina. She provies shelter for Tony but also the greatest emotional charge. Her fragile sung “Somewhere (aka “There’s a Place for Us”) provides goosebumps and poignancy. Rita Moreno’s Valentina forms the conscience, the calm and the spectator of Spielberg’s film.
Leonard Bernstein’s famed music has been rearranged and reworked but forms the rhythmic heart of this new musical adaptation. This is complemented by dazzling choreography that really splashes of the screen. The inexperienced lead actress Rachel Zegler, who was assigned the rol of Maria our of thirty thousand applicants, also deserves a special mention. Her Maria is independent and self-confident, but cannot resist the beckoning of love. When the romance does eventually turn sour, it is the circumstances that make it so.
In other hands, a new “West Side Story” might have become a mediocre film production. But Steven Spielberg has turned it into something very special, without compromising the heart of the original production. The direction and beautiful camerawork made it look like we are in the 1950s and the way they work with color is extraordinary. For example, the Jets are styled in dark and blue tones, where the Sharks are in bright and red/ yellow colors. You can see it best in the dance party scene.
This new adaptation of “West Side Story” is amazing. A movie I didn’t think was necessary, but I’m so glad Spielberg made it. It’s beautiful and a treat for every musical fan. Now streaming on Disney +.

Rating: 5/ 5