Steven Spielberg's WEST SIDE STORY - News & Discussion Thread- Page 67

[bear88]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 4:54pm

The box office is disappointing but to be expected. I am a little surprised it apparently won’t draw more of an audience than In the Heights and is barely beating out Encanto in its third weekend but it’s a tough time to open a movie whose target audience is older women in blue states. As my wife points out, those women are shopping for holiday gifts.

In the SF Bay Area, I have been going to movies in theaters since May and there are rarely more than a handful of people there (even for the one Marvel movie I saw.) COVID-19 concerns can’t be underestimated. I was hoping to see the film tonight, and the 6:50 showing currently has two people going.

While I can imagine West Side Story may hold up better through the holidays, it is unlikely to have Greatest Showman type of legs. There’s no new pop hit to save it. The movie isn’t about comic book characters or horror, and isn’t the sequel to a popular franchise. Its target audience lives in blue state cities. (OK, the true target audience is people like us.)

West Side Story, like In the Heights, was budgeted and filmed in a pre-pandemic world. Expectations were different.

Everyone is going to have to adjust their expectations for films aimed at adults. They are all losing money. They will continue to lose money until the budgets are adjusted. Most people will wait watch films like Belfast, C’mon C’mon and King Richard when they’re available on TV. (I did see the first two in theaters because they’re not available to stream yet and I’m more of a movie buff.)

That is likely the fate of West Side Story once the holidays pass. People will wait to stream it. Unless it performs very well overseas, it will almost certainly lose money - probably a lot, even if it wins a bunch of awards.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 5:52pm

Box office aside, it's a wonderful film and –– I think –– an improvement on the '61 film and some of the more dated aspects of the stage show. (My only qualm is having Valentina since Somewhere...I thought she was going to start it and then it would transition to Tony and Maria or others singing it.)

Updated On: 12/11/21 at 05:52 PM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 5:57pm

My aunt Irma saw the film this afternoon. She was moved and at the same time, it was extremely painful for her because she resided with my uncle Fernando and my 2 cousins in San Juan Hill before they were evicted and wound up in the South Bronx. She told me that every time she has to go to the Lincoln Center area all she sees is the pain it caused to build it.

[Globefan]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 6:13pm

The film might've been a box office hit in a non-COVID world 

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 6:18pm

While those numbers are poor, it is not unlikely that this will still come out with a respectable result. I wonder if a platformed release plan might have been wiser, but most successful musicals in recent years have opened very small and held tight. 

[SpiritualGangster]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 6:42pm

Scarywarhol said: "While those numbers are poor, it is not unlikely that this will still come out with a respectable result. I wonder if a platformed release plan might have been wiser, but most successful musicals in recent years have opened very small and held tight."

Sadly COVID infections are on the rise. Wicked, Freestyle Love Supreme, Little Shop have all had to cancel performances because of it.

Not everyone is 100% comfortable going out to public venues. 

This is concerning me on a personal level, I received a call that I was exposed on the job. I exhibít no symptoms and have taken my test, I anxiously await my results. 

Everyone please stay safe. 

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 6:46pm

Wow. Just one big wow.

There isn’t a lot to be said, other than this is a f***ing masterpiece. It played me like a fiddle from beginning to end. My face was absolutely soaked with tears.

Bravo.

Updated On: 12/12/21 at 06:46 PM

[broadwaybabywannabe2]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 6:55pm

BEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR!!...i saw it in IMAX...i suggest that is the way to see this magnificent musical movie...it is seamless in every way...not one false note in the acting, choreography or direction...plus the score NEVER sounded better...i started tearing up during the opening dancing and never stopped until the lights came up in the theatre...here in the Palm Springs area theatre there were maybe 20 people in total in the theatre...and most clapped when it was over...if this doesn't make a ton of box office, then i give up on the movie going public...

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 7:09pm

Mike Faist (as Riff) turning to Ansel Elgort (Tony) and looking into his eyes during that pivotal moment in the rumble, destroyed me.  A cinematic moment I’ll have forever.  Wow!  

[bwayobsessed]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 7:33pm

I just saw the film, thought it was wonderful. Such a well crafted piece. Centering around the destruction of the neighborhood was a brilliant choice. I thought most of the story reworkings worked really well. I thought Gee Officer Krupke and Cool were two standouts for me in that they were both done in sorta different ways than usual and worked really well. I thought everything the Rumble onwards was perfection. I’ve never really liked One hand, one heart and sorta wish they could’ve had a normal date without a symbolic marriage. Another thing I thought they did really well was making the guys all seem young and scared in the right ways. The way their faces turn when it gets serious. When they buy the gun and then are playing with it like it’s a toy was super effective. I’m glad we have two really wonderful movie musicals after the issue that Dear Evan Hansen was.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 7:36pm

broadwaybabywannabe2 said: "BEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR!!...i saw it in IMAX...i suggest that is the way to see this magnificent musical movie...it is seamless in every way...not one false note in the acting, choreography or direction...plus the score NEVER sounded better...i started tearing up during the opening dancing and never stopped until the lights came up in the theatre...here in the Palm Springs area theatre there were maybe 20 people in total in the theatre...and most clapped when it was over...if this doesn't make a ton of box office, then i give up on the movie going public..."

 

I, too, saw it in IMAX but I guess there are different sizes of IMAX screens. The one in Deer Park NY wasn't much bigger than the ordinary multiplex screen. It didn't affect my enjoyment of the film, though.

 

[SpiritualGangster]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 7:43pm

I also liked that Tony actually fought in the rumble and that he realized that he almost does to Bernardo what he did to the Egyptian King gang member that got him into jail in the first place and stops short of it.

Also the look on Bernardo’s face when he realizes what he has just done to Riff - that look of utter fear and “what have I done?” 

Chilling!

Updated On: 12/11/21 at 07:43 PM

[SpiritualGangster]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 8:22pm

The twitter trolls have their knives out and are already proclaiming WSS a bomb. It makes me sick.

[sng]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 9:09pm

Globefan said: "Do you think the Ansel allegations played a role in the box office?"

nope not at all, no one in real life seems to give a f*ck about the allegations. The main reason for this underperforming is just that the core audience for this type of film just ain't comfortable enough to return to the cinemas yet. And I think their marketing strategy got the whole campaign wrong by focusing on the nostalgia of the originals' fans and blindly trusting the younger audience to know what WSS is about. 

[Globefan]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 9:19pm

If it wasn't Ansel in the film, I think Antonio Cipriano would've been a great Tony. 

[SpiritualGangster]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 9:28pm

I found this wonderful video on YouTube where Steven Spielberg reveals that Russ Tamblyn, Richard Beymer and Chita Rivera all visited the set while they were filming. When Rita Moreno saw Richard Beymer on the set she ran over and threw her arms around him and they both started crying. Spielberg filmed it on his iPhone. What a beautiful story.....

 

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 11:27pm

Add my voice to the chorus of hosannas proclaiming the glories of this film. The first 2/3 is about as perfect as a film can be, gorgeous, funny, heartbreaking, magical, everything we go to movies to find. 

Why is the last third something weaker? Oddly as a result of moving “Cool” back to Act 1 (though differently sequenced than on Bway), Act 2 gets one big production number in “I Feel Pretty” and then nothing much else for the balance of the film. Sorry to say, I found Rita’s “Somewhere” a misstep that takes you away from the lead characters just when you care most about them. The duet “A Boy Like That/ I Have a Love” is beautifully sung but basically a book scene, without much of a movie transformation. Instead of musical theater, we mostly get a lot of dialogue to finish the story. And the film sadly fails to stick the landing in its final moments. 

But for 2 hours, I could not be more thrilled at the brilliance of this show. The women deserve all their accolades, but for my money, Mike Faist and David Alvarez are the true MVPs of this cast. Heartbreaking top to bottom. 

Updated On: 12/11/21 at 11:27 PM

[Globefan]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 11:39pm

I don't know about you guys, but I would actually watch a miniseries about Valentina based on Tony Kushner's 25 page backstory that he wrote for her. He did say he envisioned it as a miniseries. 

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 12/11/21 at 11:57pm

''Mike Faist (as Riff) turning to Ansel Elgort (Tony) and looking into his eyes during that pivotal moment in the rumble, destroyed me.  A cinematic moment I’ll have forever.  Wow!''

The Washington Post's profile of Mike Faist says Faist landed the role because of his electric rapport with Ansel Elgort. In a roundtable with Entertainment Weekly, Faist noted that Riff didn't have any family; he really only has Tony. Faist said: ''What's amazing about this particular story is [the] love story between [them].''

[mailhandler777]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 12:18am

Theatre Fan3 said: "Did anybody see a "Dedicated to Stephen Sondheim" credit at their screening? I sat thru all the end credits until the screen went black and the house lights came up and didn't see one. I was at an IMAX screening. I thought that I had read somewhere that the studio was sending out an updated version of the film that included that after Sondheim passed away."

Yes. It was on right after the leads were listed and before the minor ensemble characters were listed.

[mailhandler777]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 12:24am

Dollypop said: "mailhandler777 said: "Dollypop said: "babyjunegem said: "Saw the film last night and my first thought was that Ansel should have been dubbed. I think that his performance was held back by his lack of vocal prowess. His performance wasn't bad per se, and the critics are overdoing it a bit. However, he absolutely cannot handle the vocal demands of the role.If someone dubbed for him, he'd have freed up himself to truly embody the part.

This just highlights how difficult a role Tony is to cast. Directors have gotten it wrong in the past. If you really want a Tony that sticks the landing, you need a character actor with leading man appeal and a great voice. In that sense, Mike Faist would have been an inspired choice. I find it baffling that Bobby Conte Thornton wasn't in consideration."

I have to disagree. I felt Ansel's vocals were excellent. His singing was exactly right for the character he was playing. If anything, his height was a disadvantage to his characterization and he LOOKED Polish!

"

Pretty sure he is Polish and there is literally a line in the movie about his height. My bad he is Russian."



I just read that Rachel is the one who's Polish! Mom's Columbian. Dad's Polish.

"

Yes Rachel is half Polish half Columbian. 100% gorgeous. 

[windowwaving]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 12:30am

Saw the movie in Dolby at AMC and it is definitely worth the extra money. The film looks and sounds absolutely stunning in it. The orchestrations sounded so lush. 

I was actually surprised at Ansel's vocal abilities. I don't think I had low expectations necessarily, but he definitely had moments of "wow that was really good." And I thought they had fabulous chemistry. That first moment they have behind the bleachers at the dance, I was in love with both of them. Rachel's face in "Tonight" is so pure, she does so much acting in her face without even saying a word. 

Also was Ariana singing live in "A Boy Like That"? If so, I thought it was so powerful compared to the rest of the pre-recorded vocals because of the raw intensity of the scene.

Clearly, loved the film. I agree with others that it's up there with "Chicago." Beautiful from start to finish. It's what I wish all modern-day musicals would look like now. It answers my question of "what would a golden age musical movie look like if it was shot today?" While I enjoyed "In The Heights" for its energy, it felt like a very long music video. WSS is a film in its absolute best form. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 1:30am

Someone in a Tree2 said: "Oddly as a result of moving “Cool” back to Act 1 (though differently sequenced than on Bway), Act 2 gets one big production number in “I Feel Pretty” and then nothing much else for the balance of the film. Sorry to say, I found Rita’s “Somewhere” a misstep that takes you away from the lead characters just when you care most about them."

Rita's SOMEWHERE feels a little disjointed...it probably would have landed stronger if she started it, then it was sung by Maria and Anita. And of course missed the Somewhere Ballet.

Structuring the film so the Rumble comes at the end of "act 2" of a 3-act film works better for a movie and keeps things moving through the end of teh film. Similarly, the juxtaposition of I FEEL PRETTY is a bit jarring after what has just transpired. But it's a lovely moment of young love, and the scene out of it where Chino gives the reveal works. 

Zegler was heartbreaking and so raw in the last moments of the movie.

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 1:40am

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

 

Saw this tonight. First time seeing a movie in a theater since February 2020. 

I really, really liked it. For some reason I can’t say “loved”. At least not yet. I think one reason for that may be because I went in fearing I wouldn’t love it despite really, really wanting to love it. I mean it’s my first time sitting in a theater in almost two years so I wanted it to be a phenomenal experience. Plus it’s Spielberg adapting a beloved property and released so soon after Sondheim’s passing. It arrives with more than a modest amount of expectation. So I think I kept wondering if I was loving it as I watched which is of course not the ideal way to approach a movie-going experience. It kinda takes you out of the experience.

Also, while I loved Spielberg’s and Kushner’s changes, I do feel this (as opposed to the 1961 version) is so much grittier and grounded in reality that the more “fairy tale” elements of the plot (some of which date back as far back as Romeo and Juliet) stand out more as unlikely. (I’ll list those plot points in the spoiler section for the one person who somehow doesn’t know the plot - lol - or those like me who keep forgetting certain plot points and would like to not be reminded before seeing this new adaptation)

I also felt like a couple of the early “book scenes” went on a bit too long.

I think the guy crinkling his apparently endless plastic bag of candy throughout the ENTIRE two and a half hour movie also didn’t help. Lol.

Well, enough about that. Let’s discuss what I did love. From the minute the show opened with that giant wrecking ball I knew I was in a professional’s (Spielberg’s) hands. I’m not sure I wanna live in a world where Janusz Kaminsky doesn’t win the Oscar for best cinematography.

So many times stage-to-film musical adaptations miss the fluid movement of the original. This film does not make that mistake. Kudos to Spielberg, Janusz Kaminski, and choreographer Justin Peck.

I adored every single performance. Yes, even Ansel Elgort. My personal favorite performances were Ansel Elgort, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Rita Moreno, Iris Menas, and Josh Andrés Rivera (his performance perhaps surprised me the most as his Chino changed throughout the movie).

I also loved the effective and purposeful mix of English and Spanish in the movie.

As someone who can start sobbing at the drop of a hat when watching movies/stage productions/tv (I sobbed intermittently through the first two episodes of And Just Like That… especially after you know what at the end of Episode 1), I was surprisingly mostly dry-eyed here although I got misty a few times, most notably at the end of The Rumble.

In fact, the rumble was just so…visceral. I felt so connected to what was happening on screen while in a state of suspense and terror and hoping it wouldn’t turn out the way I knew it had to. It also felt so symbolic of our current day. Masterful.

There were other moments that almost matched this for me: The Dance at the Gym, Maria, America, Gee Officer Krupke, and pretty much every thing after The Rumble. And that shared moment of carrying off the body at the end? Chills!

The chemistry between Ansel’s Tony and Rachel’s Maria was palpable.

If it sounds like I liked this more than I’m saying I did, perhaps that’s true. Maybe I went in with unrealistic expectations today that no film could satisfy.  I certainly like the original movie, but I don’t hold it in some place of holy reverence. It’s not even in my list of my favorite films (musicals or not). My only experience of a stage production is seeing the most recent revival on Broadway twice which I quite enjoyed despite its faults. 

I do plan to try to see this again on a better screen in a better theater. Hopefully this week. I chose to see it today at a theater that was 10 minutes from my house. This theater opened either pre-pandemic and then had to close or was supposed to open right after the pandemic started up here in the states and had to delay its opening. I had never been there before and I thought it was gonna be a great experience.  Great reclining seats (even a seat warmer option which I accidentally initiated), but standard (sub-standard?) sound system and apparently regular screens throughout. I asked when I walked out and the greeter told me that it was indeed a regular screen. It was curved, but wasn’t large like an IMAX. Does that sound right?  I don’t remember regular screens being like this one pre-pandemic.  

I did find it very frustrating they didn’t even have a poster out for it or anything in front of the theater or inside except for right outside the specific theater it was playing in. I guess that’s what I get for living in a red state.   

I do feel like my second trip will only deepen today’s overall positive experience. 

As far as this movie’s box office prospects, Spielberg’s movies have always made more than their budget (sometimes minimally so), but that was pre-Covid. Also, if this is moving to streaming in 45 days, Oscar nominations may not help it much. Which is a shame as it deserves to be seen in a theater  Also, after seeing this, I don’t think it appeals to the same audience that thinks The Greatest Showman is a great movie musical. Fingers crossed! 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

Spoiler-related plot points that stood out as more unfeasible in this more reality-grounded production:

- [ ] Tony and Maria are already talking about being in love & running off together after knowing each other for just a few hours. The falling in love so quickly made more sense when I thought about something I heard recently I believe in Drew Michael’s masterful HBO stand-up special “red blue green” about how “love at first sight” really is just two people’s trauma histories matching up. And I do feel like the scene on the fire escape where they discuss running off together is directed & acted to suggest they could be talking literally or jokingly about running away together.

- [ ] That after Tony kills Bernardo that Anita could be convinced in any way to assist in Maria running away with Tony. I do feel like A Boy Like That/I Have A Love almost convinced me and the scene right after that with them switching back-and-forth between Spanish & English in front of Lieutenant Schrank was masterful.

- [ ] Most unlikely to me is that after just meeting Tony less than 48 hours before, she’d agree to run off with him after he killed her brother.

Again these are not new plot-points, but stood out for me more perhaps due this movie being more founded in reality.

Also sorry about that first empty spoiler box. I accidentally inserted it and now I can’t figure out how to delete it.  

Updated On: 12/12/21 at 01:40 AM

[lovebwy]

Posted: 12/12/21 at 4:12am

My West Side Story review: First off, my humble apologies to Miss Natalie Wood. One of my standard lines about the notion of a remake was that the 1961 original was a flawed masterpiece, and that two of the main flaws were the leads. And while I still believe Richard Beymer's Tony left something to be desired, I now realize that Natalie Wood's Maria was quite good. Rachel Zegler was, for me, serviceable. Lovely voice, for sure. The thing is, I've seen the 1961 WSS at least a dozen times, and every time, the final scene makes me tear up. Tonight, when Zegler did it, I wasn't even close. There wasn't a wet eye in the house. Plus, Wood just had an undeniable star quality that Zegler lacks.

However low a bar to clear, Ansel Elgort is an improvement on Beymer. Let's face it, playing Tony was always something of a thankless task. And in 2021 it is very difficult for any actor to pull off convincingly. Elgot acquitted himself quite well in the acting and singing department. Not an unattractive dudebro either. It has to be believable that Maria goes crazy for him on first sight. It is. He's hot as ****.

Mike Faist was a fantastic Riff. I loved writer Tony Kushner filling out his backstory a bit. This Riff is clearly troubled, and there's a certain danger to him. Ariana DeBose and David Alvarez were both wonderful as Anita and Bernardo. No complaints about those supporting performances.

As for Rita Moreno, it was ALL about the novelty of seeing a spry 88 year old woman in a remake of a movie she originally did 60 years ago. I'd heard beforehand that she sang Somewhere in the movie, but as I was watching the poignancy of her singing it suddenly hit me. The things the characters were longing for, the societal problems that existed when the song was sung in the 1961 version when Rita was 30 are still exist. They have not abated in Rita's long life time. The tears that didn't come later in the movie came upon that realization.

For me, the biggest issue was the choreography. When you see Jerry Robbin's original, it still feels fresh, exciting and vibrant. Anything else can't help but be "eh." Justin Peck's steps might be very good, but I can't even judge it. Watching WSS without Jerry Robbin's choreography is like kissing your sister. It was a major misstep on Spielberg's part to discard it. I would've liked the movie much more had he used it for most numbers.

I didn't like how they moved the songs at all. Cool or Krupke work just fine after Riff and Nardo are killed as is done in the 1961 movie and the stage play respectively. To put both before the rumble deprives the second half of something. I don't know, it just didn't work.

The biggest shock of the movie was when Tony started singing Cool (!) That was a Spielberg change that really did work, and one place where I'm ok with new dance steps. This scene was edgy. It popped. The Rumble did away with most of the dance steps altogether. Another change that worked in Spielberg's favor.

I'm happy this movie was made because I think it may expose the brilliant work of Stephen Sondheim and Leonard Bernstein to a younger audience. And there was some beautiful cinematography.

tl;dr : While this aesthetically gorgeous remake contains a few improvements, surprises,  and wonderful performances, the 1961 West Side Story remains the one to watch. Still, a worthwhile endeavor that may bring the timeless classic work of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim to new audiences.