West Side Story

 3.5/4

Starring: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, Mike Faist, David Alvarez, Rita Moreno, Brian d'Arcy James, Corey Stoll

Rated PG-13 for Some Strong Violence, Strong Language, Thematic Content, Suggestive Material and Brief Smoking

Note: I missed the first minute or two of this movie.  And yes, I'll catch up to it later.

Remakes provide a prospective groan from film lovers.  We've seen the story before and it reeks of "playing it safe" and being cheated money from risk-averse studios.  And yet we go to them because of the brand name and, in many cases, what else is there to see?

This is, of course, not always the case.  It depends on the filmmaker's interpretation of the material.  How does the filmmaker use their talents and vision to reinvigorate the material.  Do they treat the story and the characters slavishly, as Gil Kenan did with his remake of "Poltergeist"?  Or do they use the film's core concepts and push it in a different direction, as was the case with the "RoboCop" remake?

With his new version of the 1961 musical "West Side Story," director Steven Spielberg opts for the former.  This isn't meant as a criticism; in fact, in many ways it's a better film than the original.  This new update is designed in every way to replicate the look and feel of its predecessor, but the director makes the social commentary stronger and the film's central tragedy hit harder.

It's the 1950s and New York is once again the face of the melting pot that is the United States.  Of course, an influx of immigrants has never passed without some resentment by the "native borns."  For the "all-American" kids filled with too much swagger and perceived resentments, they have banded together to form the Jets, intending to protect "their turf" and "their jobs."  Their sworn enemies are the Sharks, a group of kids who have immigrated from Puerto Rico.  Caught between them are Tony (Elgort), a former member of the Jets who is determined to leave the gang behind, and Maria (Zegler), a Puerto Rican girl whose brother Bernanrdo (Alvarez) is the leader of the Sharks.  It's love at first sight for them when they meet at a dance.  Of course, this being an update of "Romeo and Juliet," it's destined to end tragically for all concerned.

One smart choice that Spielberg makes is that he more thoroughly embraces the violent nature of the material.  This is a tragedy and more than a few characters won't live to see the end credits.  The director doesn't shy away from bloodshed, but by so intensely focusing on his young cast, he emphasizes the stupidity of their rivalry and the pointlessness of their hatred.  For them, it's all posturing until they come into a head-on collision with their choices.

The film centers around two lovebirds, and the actors sell it.  They're cute and we want them to be together.  Rachel Zegler makes a sparkling debut as the innocent Maria, bringing a natural charisma along with acting talent and an impressive singing voice.  Her co-star Ansel Elgort is less impressive.  He's charming and has a good voice, but he lacks the machismo and raw sexuality needed to play this role.  His Tony isn't as tough as he is purported to be, and that limits our ability to accept his character.

The supporting cast members are much more interesting, however.  Ariana DeBose is a scene-stealer as the saucy Anita, playing the role with fire and feistiness.  Also impressive is Mike Faist, who plays Riff as a barely contained carton of rage.  He even has the old-fashioned accent.  When the Oscar nominations come out next year (and this film with be in the running for many), it is they who will end up on the short list.  Rita Moreno, who won an Oscar for playing Anita in the original, appears in a retooled version of Doc, who knows everyone in the cast and is an effective voice of reason that is universally ignored.

It is clear that Spielberg wants to use "West Side Story" to comment on how modern American culture has descended into the same pointless tribalism that has infected the characters in this story.  Yet while his intentions are obvious, it doesn't really resonate all that well.  Perhaps it would have been better realized had he transplanted it into the modern age.  This is just an idea, of course, and I don't know if it would work with the time-shift.  The film is great entertainment as it is.

The film has a better first half.  Plot contrivances, unconvincing motivations and a rushed pace limit the film's impact as it descends towards its inevitable conclusion.  Spielberg doesn't allow the intensity to build so the sense of doom isn't as pronounced as it should be.  In a tragedy like this, the longer the sense of foreboding is, the more dread it generates and the harder the gut punch will be.  Also, Spielberg has more closely reflected the racial and cultural disparity by casting his film appropriately and by having a considerable amount of the dialogue in Spanish.  It is strange then that none of this is subtitled.  While it doesn't really hurt the film, it is a curious choice.

"West Side Story" is a big, splashy musical of yesteryear.  It's a throwback to not only the original film, but also to golden age musicals that were once Hollywood's bread and butter.  The dancing is extravagant and energetic and, thankfully, doesn't feel like a music video as so many movie musicals do these days.  It's a prime time holiday movie that we have been missing for so long.

As timely as it is entertaining, there's no better time to go back to the theaters than to see Steven Spielberg's "West Side Story."