When you're a Jet, you're a Jet all the way, from your first cigarette to your last dyin' day!

[CapnHook]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 7:49pm

Just completed my Christmas tradition: watching the Academy Award-winning WEST SIDE STORY. This time, my 16-year old sister watched the film with me. She is a film buff (wants to be a film critic) and this was her first time watching the film. For the record, she enjoys musicals and has pretty informed opinions on films, despite her young age.

She laughed. She laughed and laughed and laughed. Apparently the film is too dated for her. AND she didn't like most of the music. AND she was confused as to what age they all were.

And you know what? To an extent, I agree with her.

We now know that an "updated" WEST SIDE STORY is coming to Broadway next season directed by Arthur Laurents. We've been speculating, fun-heartedly, as to what his fresh concept is.

Watching this film again, however, which won 10 Oscars mind you, and is considered one of the best films of all time, and the stage musical considered one of the best of all time...I can't help but think it cannot be improved upon for today's generation.

Part of the reason as to what made the original stage production and film so great was its use of the actor in its storytelling. The actor had to act while singing and dancing - singing and especially dancing that told the story in ways never before done. Decades later, the artform of storytelling has further evolved and we have had more masterpieces make their mark in history.

Sure, we can now take this show and make the choreography and costumes and characters and book more contemporary...but the music and lyrics are still the same...can they make this classic music mesh with new, updated storytelling? The spirit of WEST SIDE STORY will always be timeless, but I hope that Laurents achieves the goal of this new production and succeeds in making the show work better for today's generation.

It breaks my heart to think that WEST SIDE STORY will only be thought of as a great film of its time, and not for today and tomorrow.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 7:56pm

Things that are dated can still be considered great works of art. Even if it doesn't jive with today's measures, what happened to respecting it for what it is? With a film like West Side Story, I think you can think it's dated and still recognize its greatness.

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:04pm

I 100% agree with Emcee.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:06pm

I'm not sure I agree with your point (then again, I'm not too sure what your point is exactly). But I watched WEST SIDE STORY for the first time when I was 16 as well (I am 21 now) and was completely enthralled by it. Then, the only other movie musical I could stand was THE SOUND OF MUSIC (and I don't think I had ever seen any classic stage musical live, though I had seen INTO THE WOODS on DVD for a class in high school and loved it). At that age I used to fast-forward through the songs whenever I had to watch a musical, and when my mother sat me down to watch what is probably her favorite film of all-time I went in thinking I would have to endure three hours of "boring old music."
Let me just say that by the end of "The Dance at the Gym" I was a musical lover for life. The dialogue IS dated but not only did I understand but I didn't mind for one second, it is a period film and I took it as such. I don't find it laughable.
We saw the movie again in a "Race & Gender in US Latino Literature" class that I took during my undergrad time in college. We had read a book called LOCAS that talked about gangs in Echo Park and had a bunch of WEST SIDE STORY references so we watched the movie. The people in my class DID laugh during some moments that seemed absurd to them (can't recall what exactly) but overall after the movie people had some very strong reactions to it. Even one particular (straight) guy said it was his first time watching it and loved it. I wanna say all of these people were between 19-23.
I saw a production of the stage show on campus that was a bit clunky but again, audiences (mostly composed of undergrads ranging from freshmen taking Theater Appreciation to seniors) seemed to be so captivated by it. The "Tonight (Quintet)" stopped the show cold.
All throughout the music and choreography are what keep the story so tight, IMO. The book IS faulty and I do feel it is outdated. But I don't think this film/show is the best of its time, I feel it has remained a loved classic that has A LOT more merits than faults and I feel that even today's generation can relate to it without any problems (with a few exceptions of course).

[StickToPriest]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:06pm

"AND she didn't like most of the music."

Well, while she is entitled to her opinion, the fact that she doesn't like the music causes me to take her opinion with a grain of salt.

And great point, emcee.

[Rosalind]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:13pm

Yeah, is the fact Singin' In the Rain is dated mean it's still not a great piece?

[CapnHook]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:31pm

Emcee - I figured that went unspoken. I wasn't clear, but I was referring to the impact of the film's message -- not looking at it as a piece of art.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 8:39pm

Oh, okay, I was talking artistically. I still think things in the story can be lauded for their greatness even if they're not as obviously relatable now, being that the story is obviously part of the craft, and because these aren't matters foreign to us. I think a lot of times, people tend to be too literal when talking about how relatable something is or isn't.

Updated On: 12/24/07 at 08:39 PM

[sing_dance_love]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 9:52pm

I'll always feel this film is just brilliant in every way. The music is sumptuous, the choreography is energetic, beautiful, and absolutely electric, and the story is gripping.

I've never once felt to laugh except at the funny parts. though when I watch it with newbies they always laugh at the beginning when they start dancing. I guess I'm so accustomed to the conventions of the musical world I'm much more easily inclined to accept it.

Not everyone will like it but there is no doubt in my mind that this is a truly great film. And as ridiculously cliche as this sounds, as long as there is hate in this world this movie will be relevant. And touch us and cause us to reflect. Thats what I look for in a great film.

[StephanietheStar]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 10:02pm

I agree that some may not "get it" but I feel like anyone who is even remotely familiar with movies and television from the 40s 50s 60s whenever....just anything older than 1996, gets that times and film making was different from today. I know I get it at my young age of 21.


West Side Story is one of my all time favorite movies and the only movie (aside from maybe my other favorite-Little Mermaid)that without fail makes me burst into tears (during happy moments, and of course the ending too!).

It's a beautiful piece and even though it is of course not without faults they just don't make 'em like that anymore :)

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 11:10pm

WEST SIDE STORY is my favorite musical of all time...always has been since the first time I saw it in elementary school.

When I was a senior at my fine arts academy high school I got the pleasure of playing Tony in our production of WEST SIDE STORY. Up until that year we had always done fun and lively musicals for our large production of the year (Anything Goes, Crazy For You, Oklahoma, Bye Bye Birdie, etc...). So, when we did WEST SIDE STORY my senior year for our large production we weren't sure how the student body was going to react.

Well, it ended up being our most popular production while I was in high school and made us the most money. The student body was so fascinated by it and LOVED it. The jocks...intellectuals...band nerds...all kinds of students came and everyone was amazed by it.

While it is dated...there is something to captivating about this show and the characters that it will always be cherished by many people. WEST SIDE STORY tells such a beautiful story in such a way that many shows don't anymore. It truly is an incredible experience to watch it live on stage and I think that people will always go see it because it's easy to identify with it.

[TheEnchantedHunter]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 11:21pm

"It breaks my heart to think WSS will only be thought of as a great film as its time..."

Why? Just because you and your inexperienced and uninformed sister think so? The film has thrilled and delighted audiences for nearly 50 years. It'll get along without the both of you very well.


Vivian Darkbloom
Ramsdale, New England

[CapnHook]

Posted: 12/24/07 at 11:32pm

Obviously if my sister and all the people others here have mentioned who laughed at the film weren't affected by it, it's not as impacting as we want to believe.

I adore the film and was deeply affected by it the first time I saw it. That being said - I understand that it was easier for me to be affected by it as a musical theatre fan and as one who already knew some of the music.

I think we can all agree that the film is less impacting today as it was back in 1961, generally speaking. Of course it still works its magic, but to a lesser magnitude. And it is less to do with the film (which will always remain great) as it has to do with how our generations are evolving. And that's a sad shame, IMO.

[sing_dance_love]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 12:56am

I do want to say that the most of the people who i've shown it too that laughed at the beginning, were fully converted when they gave the whole film a chance.

We simply live in a time where young people didn't grow up with movie musicals and can't accustom themselves the way older generations and us Broadway fanatics can.

However, that doesn't make the film less of a masterpiece.

[MerMaggieGalinda]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 1:05am

I usually need to see musicals like WSS a second time to really appreciate/respect them. And I did. I watched it first with my brother, a pessimist know it all who made fun of it the whole way through, so it was impossible for me to enjoy it. Then, I watched it again alone and fell in love.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 4:10am

"I think we can all agree that the film is less impacting today as it was back in 1961, generally speaking. Of course it still works its magic, but to a lesser magnitude. And it is less to do with the film (which will always remain great) as it has to do with how our generations are evolving. And that's a sad shame, IMO."

On the other hand I completely disagree. I would take a piece of art like the WSS movie, over a contrived and very calculated movie like Crash any day when I think about which movie has more impact, today, on race relations.

[bk]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 10:37am

To the poster who said that West Side Story is not relatable - say what? We don't have gangs today? This same race crap isn't going on today? If you made this same movie and put in hip-hop dancing and rap music what do you think a sixteen year old would think of it forty-seven years from now? If a sixteen-year-old "film buff" wannabe "film critic" cannot understand CONTEXT and history, then she'll just be fine reviewing the crap they make today, but will never understand what film is all about unless she gets over her todayness and actually watch some older films - is Casablanca dated? Only to a fool. Is Chaplin's City Lights dated? Only to a fool. Even when I was sixteen I didn't "laugh" at older films - I loved them because they showed me a different time, different and wonderful actors, blah, blah, blah. You can't be a "film buff" if you can't see beyond your own generation.

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 11:42am

The reason the film doesn't work to me has nothing to do with the show - it's all in the cinematic translation (WHY THE VASELINE????). So I have high hopes for the broadway production.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 12:48am

I think the issue has been very well addressed by previous posters, but I'm sitting at home pretty bored during Christmas break, and well, I hardly pass up the chance to discuss my favorite show.

Shesamarshmallow had an excellent point that I was going to address -- you too quickly go from saying someone didn't like the film to assuming that means people won't like the show. Though the film is without a doubt one of the best of its kind, and stays fairly faithful to the story, you still can't forget that they are separate entities. For example, my sister saw my high school's production of WSS and loved it, but couldn't fall in love with the film the same way because she couldn't get past the gangs ballet dancing in the actual playgrounds. But she had no problem accepting them ballet dancing on stage with a playground scenery. That, I think, is more reflective of how audiences more easily suspend disbelief, at least in the matter of ballet dancing, on the stage than on the screen. So that's one point.

Also, I can't say I love Richard Beymer's or Natalie Wood's (and I'm sure would disagree with me where she is concerned) performances in the film. The dubbing certainly doesn't help, but I don't know, with the other talented actors playing the other parts, their parts seem a little more boring.

And I could also go on my rant on some of the small musical changes in the film that irk me very much, but I'm sure that's not really the issue so I'll let that slide.

I will say I can't agree more with sticktopriest when he says: "Well, while she is entitled to her opinion, the fact that she doesn't like the music causes me to take her opinion with a grain of salt." Even if you want to argue that some aspects of the book are dated, which I may address in a bit, the score is anything but. Bernstein created the score in such a compact, connected way that West Side Story has a sound on its own. And it's so exciting. I could be playing "Cool" on my reed 2 part at home for fun, and there's a part when I have a rest, but it just builds so amazingly that I can't help but find myself singing the next part and dancing and getting so into it -- I would even do that in the pit (assuming the audience couldn't see me, of course).

Furthermore, take something like the Tonight Quintet. Well, let's consider for a minute "the world's most popular musical" -- Les Miserables. One of the most popular moments of this popular show is "One Day More." And it's been pointed out time and again that it is very similar and uses the same formula as the Tonight Quintet (Don't get me wrong, I love One Day More in its own right). And I think the quintet, like I already mentioned, has this moving tension to it that I think makes such a powerful moment even greater. I see no good reason it wouldn't be as, or more popular loved by *today's* generation.

So in terms of the "datedness" of the book -- most issue in terms of datedness has been taking with some of the dialogue, no? Wacko Jacko, etc. Again, I just think it's all part off the suspension of disbelief that you bring in when watching the show on stage, but it...works. There's something about "Krup you" that is so much more effective than the alternative. I mean, can any of us really imagine the gangs walking around saying yo yo, wut up dawg? It's justifiable that West Side Story has its own musical language, there's no reason it shouldn't have its own "gang language." I think it's much more...frightening and surprising to see the Jets attempt to rape Anita when they're not using the hardcore slurs of today.

I won't further dwell on the whole relevance of hatred thing, as that has been excellently pointed out. But one other point is important into integrating West Side Story into...not only today's generation, but today's curriculum. In 9th grade, in my high school, everyone reads Romeo & Juliet. So my senior year, when we put on WSS, our high school scheduled it so during the normal school day, the entire ninth grade would come see it and relate it to Romeo & Juliet in their classes. It's so interesting to analyze how...really intelligently they adapted from Romeo & Juliet.

Another thought I just though of...even some of my straight male friends love it. That's an accomplishment

I still fully believe West Side Story to be the best show in Broadway history, and I for one...though I'm wary about...certain things, still I could not be more excited to be a professional production of this.

When it comes down to it, where WSS is concerned...all I can think about the excitement that must come in seeing all that tension, dancing, everything on the stage...the excitement really can't be equaled in film, no matter how well made.

Oh wait, one more thing: "AND she was confused as to what age they all were. " Please don't tell me you're using this as a serious criticism. Because in today's films, actors always look the age they are playing

So thank you to those of you who are still reading for indulging a bored, suburbia-bound, West Side Story fanatic

*updated for editing*

Updated On: 12/26/07 at 12:48 AM

[Jennifer Lynn]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 3:38pm

As much as I love the WSS movie...I wish they'd had a different Tony. Even Richard Beymer expressed bemusement that he, a kid from Iowa, was supposed to pass himself off as a tough ex-gang leader.

Sure, Tony is capable of tenderness with Maria and of longing for something greater, but his time with the gang should have left its mark on him, and that should show in any Tony's performance. The only time Beymer hits that note is when he automatically snaps into fighting stance during the rumble, and then looks at his clenched fists in shock and shame.

In one of the best performances I've ever seen, a small production from a local youth theater, Tony's "DON'T PUSH ME!" right before the fight wasn't a wimpy plea, but a desperate warning--he KNEW what he was capable of and didn't want to be pushed to it.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 3:44pm

I definitely agree Jennifer Lynn.

And for me, the WORST part is the guy they got to friggin dub isn't even as good as Larry Kert!

[JohnBoy2]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 4:17pm

West Side Story defined how good a film musical could be. It's ability to take a great stage vehicle and tweak it just enough to make it a great cinematic accomplishment, is fairly definitive. Its international success (the most successful musical motion picture up to that point), green-lighted musicals, for the next decade. Anyone who watches film and judges it based on today's sensibilities, is no motion picture fan.

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 9:17pm

In college, we watched WEST SIDE STORY in my film class and majority of the people snickered and went "ugh" every time they broke out dancing . . . especially during the very beginning.