West Side Story
Somehow I just saw West Side Story for the first time tonight. (I saw Scotch and Soda perform it at CMU, but that’s not the same thing.) What a beautiful and sad film. The lighting, cinematography and choreography are amazing, Natalie Wood is perfect as Maria (as is Rita Moreno in the role of Anita), and their voices are beautiful. The set design is as grand as Rear Window. Plus I submit that you can’t make it through all the beautiful songs in this movie without your eyes tearing up at least once; for me, “Somewhere” was the clincher.
Really, can you go wrong with Stephen Sondheim, Jerome Robbins or Leonard Bernstein? And when a movie’s songs have more or less all made their way into popular culture, that’s a reliable sign that the movie itself is great. It’s a rough test, I’ll grant you, but it’s not a bad one. The Wizard of Oz and West Side Story are responsible on their own for a scary fraction of the culture’s music.
The music for West Side Story is phenomenal — offbeat but engaging. I’m not sure about the casting of Richard Beymer as Tony. He always seemed a bit too earnest to me, and his smile makes me feel like I’m looking at a doctor advertising cigarettes in the 50’s.
Comment by Seth — January 6, 2008 @ 5:03 pm
Yes, but Seth: Beymer will help improve your T-zone.
I agree with you that he was poorly cast.
Comment by slaniel — January 6, 2008 @ 5:15 pm
Enjoy the smoooth taste of The Jets. It’s Toasted!
Comment by mrz — January 6, 2008 @ 6:40 pm
The music for this thing is hard as fuck — I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the hardest musical that exists. I say this having been in the pit orchestra for it in high school (playing the actual music, not some Fisher-Price version).
Comment by Jon — January 7, 2008 @ 1:33 pm