West Side Story (2021) — A Review

12th January, 2023.

Right.

It’s a Thursday night.

And, frankly?

I have a quandary.

Or possibly a problem.

I’m writing this on an evening with little to do.

Bar fret.

And wonder what to watch.

Frankly?   I’m thinking the Spielberg cut of West Side Story looks attractive.

As does the documentary about 1996 made for TV, Dr Who movie: imaginatively named Dr Who Am I.

Or do I start watching the third season of Apple TV+’s For All Mankind?

Before the start of Picard’s third series, in February?

At any rate?

I’m going to watch something, tonight: and tell you about it, tomorrow night.

Here’s hoping I make my mind up.

~≈💃🏽≈~

Nik Nak’s Daily Teaser — 27th June, 2018

27th June 2018

I have to confess, I’m pleasantly surprised.

I had a sneaky look at my YouTube account, last night.

On my phone.

Which told me I had five hundred and ninety subscribers.

So I double checked, when I got home.

Yes.

Definitely five hundred and ninety.

Mostly, I suspect, eyeballing the film clips I’ve managed to post.

But still … 

It’s nice to see there’s a few of them, there … !

Thanking you, whoever you are!

~≈§≈~

I know I’m trying to move on quickly, at the point.

But … ?

I’m also aware of one piece of news.

Saddleworth Moor, up in the Peak District is one of the UK’s most beautiful parts of the world.

But it’s doing something I can’t remember seeing happen in the UK, in my lifetime.

Burn.

We have a wild fire on the moor.

I’m … 

Well, obviously concerned for people, there: and hoping everyone’s safe.

But … ?

That’s a wild fire.

In the UK.

That’s the first I can remember seeing in the UK … 

~≈§≈~

West Side Story: Phew!

1st February, 2014.

Right now … ?

Right now, I’m gently going to get something of an early night.

A comparatively early night, at any rate.

After all, the night is closing in: and my electricity is slowly running out.   Or getting nearer to me having to dip into the emergency credit, at any rate.

Either way … ?   I wanted to get a start on this particular post.

And tell you I’ve just watched West Side Story.

In part because I had a couple of tunes from it playing my head, overnight.   And in part, because the piece is one of those films — musical or otherwise — that I felt should be seen.

For no other reason than to say to myself that I’ve seen one film I know people say one should … 

~≈Ù≈~

2nd February, 2014.

Yes, yes, I know!   It’s been a long time  since I got started on this post.

Some twenty-two hours, certainly.

But, amazingly … ?   

Amazing, I’ve only managed to sit down in the past couple of hours.

My nephew, Jude … ?

Is rather active: to the point of inventing the game of Catch Mummy’s Hat.

Six hours of that, train-sets, cars, keyboards and ‘Where’s The Orange’ can be fun … but SERIOUSLY exhausting … 

~≈Ù≈~

But I was telling you about last night’s film, wasn’t I … ?

I’d actually managed to see the 1961 film version of Broadway musical, West Side Story: after having a couple of songs from the film play through my head, whilst sleeping.

Directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, West Side Story tells us the story of the Jets — a gang of second generation Polish-American youths — and their arch rivals, the Sharks: equally young, poor,  Puerto Rican immigrants to the US.

Opening with an aerial overview of the city, the film opens by showing us that by now famous dance routing: that closes with a fight between the gangs that’s broken up with by the local police.

After the fight, the Jets’ leader, Riff, decides enough is enough: and that he, and Jets co-founder, Tony, are going to have a war council with Bernardo, the leader of The Sharks.

That war council is set for after the dance arranged by a local social worker.

What neither Jets or Sharks realise … ?   Is that Tony (Richard Beymer) is going to meet Maria (Natalie Wood) at that dance.

Meet … 

And almost immediately fall in love with … 

~≈Ù≈~

Now … 

Did I enjoy West Side Story, and would I see it again?

Would I recommend it to you?

Let’s start with ‘would I see it again?’, shall we?

Right at the moment, I don’t know that I would: but I can say that, yes, I did enjoy it.

Granted, West Side Story isn’t my usual run of fare: my standing joke, if anyone asks, is a film’s got to have tentacles, lasers and aliens to grab my attention.

Just don’t ask what the tentacles are doing … !

But being the musical iteration of Romeo and Juliet that it is, I feel West Side Story has much to say to us: not least that letting hate and bigotry can kill as surely as a street thug’s bullet.

And please: view the music in West Side Story as integral to both plot and character.

This is no light-weight, Barnumesque piece of flummery.

No.

West Side Story is quite a bit darker than you’d think.

For my money … ?

That makes it worth seeing, at least once.

West Side Story
★★★★