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West Side Story (1961)

thereviewers
May 9, 2015
2 min read

West Side Story is a musical drama that sees two lovers (Tony and Maria) caught on the opposite side of a gang war. Maria is the sister of the leader of the Sharks, while Tony is the best friend of the leader of the Jets. The two gangs are sworn enemies and nothing Maria or Tony can say will dissuade them from violence, which culminates in the film’s heartbreaking finale.

Overall Review Score

5 out of 10

Review

West Side Story is the film adaption of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same name. While the film features a cast of unknowns and is directed by Robert Wise – it stays accurate to the source. However, being filmed in 1961, the film suffers from a poor picture resolution, a very slow love-interest plot, old-fashioned film concepts where the actors do not speak at all for the first fifteen minutes of the film and characters who build chemistry at a snails pace. Overall, West Side Story has one of the most emotionally fuelled endings in cinema, but most modern audiences will never see it as they would have turned the film off long before the end.

Reviewer 1's score & comments:

Score: 5 out of 10

Comments:

Filmed in 1961 West Side Story sets the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet against the backdrop of 1950’s New York with some mixed results. The film starts slow, with no dialogue spoken by any of the cast until the 15-minute mark instead the audience is treated to a punchy musical score and frequent whistling. The story can become tedious and places, and can lead to those watching quickly losing interest, such as, Reviewer 2 who fell asleep three times during the later parts of the film.

Reviewer 2's score & comments:

Score: 5 out of 10

Comments:

As Reviewer 1 has pointed out my inability to stay awake during this film, I had better explain. While watching the film I was extremely tired, the slow pace and limited talking for the first quarter of the film relaxed me so much that I had a catnap or three. West Side Story should stick to being a theatrical play, as it does not have the interest to entertain a modern audience. As such, those watching may find themselves drifting into a ‘Whimsical Sing-along Sleep.’