West Side Story the movie

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Permalink Reply by Boatloads1017 on August 4, 2009 at 6:38pm

it was all right, but yeah it's best on the stage (depending on the competence of the company involved). same with Sweeney Todd.

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Permalink Reply by Q on August 4, 2009 at 11:07pm

I honestly thought this whole movie and production as one bad joke...

Don't get me wrong, I'm a musical fan no doubt. But these are gangs we're dealing with! This is a story of love and youth violence! So, I doubt I'm the only one who feels that seeing them prance and spin about on the screen just as they were gearing up for a knife fight is a little underwhelming, to say the least...

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Permalink Reply by Lab Rat on August 4, 2009 at 11:14pm

I'm right there with you, Q. Officer Krupke should have whipped their punk asses.

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Permalink Reply by Artsy Girl on August 5, 2009 at 12:55am

I liked the dancing because I do dance and respect the good choreography, but yes it did get in the way of the story.

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Permalink Reply by ProtoEva00 on August 4, 2009 at 11:58pm

I have no comparison, I've only ever seen the movie. I can say, that Westside story was the only 60's musical, other than Disney films, I did enjoy. I had no problem seeing these guys as gang memebers, as I was reading Harlan Ellison's Memos from Purgatory at the time I first saw it, and although very different, seemed to fit togther well.

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Permalink Reply by Bayley on August 9, 2009 at 12:16am

Did not care for it. The plot (yes yes I know it's Romeo and Juliet, it just wasn't a very interesting spin on it) or the music. In fact, the only musical number i liked was America. Maria bored me to death, as the opening sequence and Goodnight or whatever that part was.

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Permalink Reply by That Film Student on August 9, 2009 at 12:26am

I'm a big fan of this film. I got the Collector's Edition DVD for $5 on Amazon. =]
It came with a copy of the film's script, the brochure for the film while it was in Theaters etc.

Love the film, but as with most broadway-to-film adaptions, the original stage show is normally better.

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Permalink Reply by MyWifeDave on August 9, 2009 at 12:26pm

It's pretty gay.

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Permalink Reply by Boatloads1017 on August 9, 2009 at 12:34pm

it's a musical, dude. musical theater doesn't exactly scream machismo.

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Permalink Reply by MyWifeDave on August 9, 2009 at 1:08pm

Not all musicals are gay, nor theatre. It's just something about dancing gangs of guys. Why would they spend so much time together in such tight clothes?

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