West Side Story (2021 film)

West Side Story
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Steven Spielberg
Screenplay by	Tony Kushner
Based on	West Side Story by Jerome Robbins Leonard Bernstein Stephen Sondheim Arthur Laurents
Produced by	Steven Spielberg Kristie Macosko Krieger Kevin McCollum
Starring	Ansel Elgort Ariana DeBose David Alvarez Mike Faist Rita Moreno Rachel Zegler
Cinematography	Janusz Kamiński
Edited by	Michael Kahn Sarah Broshar
Music by	Leonard Bernstein
Production companies	Amblin Entertainment TSG Entertainment
Distributed by	20th Century Studios
Release dates	November 29, 2021 (2021-11-29) (Jazz at Lincoln Center) December 10, 2021 (2021-12-10) (United States)
Running time	156 minutes
Country	United States
Languages	English Spanish
Budget	$100 million
Box office	$74.5 million

West Side Story is a 2021 American musical romantic drama film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Tony Kushner. It is the second feature-length adaptation of the 1957 stage musical of the same name. It stars Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler in her film debut with Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Mike Faist, and Rita Moreno in supporting roles. Moreno, who starred in the 1961 film adaptation, also served as an executive producer alongside Kushner. The film features music composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.

The film entered development in 2014 at 20th Century Fox; Kushner began writing the screenplay in 2017. In January 2018, Spielberg was hired and casting began that September. Justin Peck choreographed the dance sequences. Principal photography occurred in New York and New Jersey; filming began in July 2019 and ran for two months.

West Side Story had its world premiere at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater in New York City on November 29, 2021, three days after Sondheim's death. The film was theatrically distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through the 20th Century Studios label in the United States on December 10, 2021, after being delayed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film received universal critical acclaim with praise for the performances of the cast, Spielberg's direction and the cinematography with some critics deeming it superior to the 1961 film. It was named one of the top ten films of 2021 by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute. The film was a box-office bomb, grossing $74.5 million against a $100 million production budget. Among its multiple awards and nominations, it received seven nominations at the 94th Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It also received four nominations at the 79th Golden Globe Awards, winning three, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical for Zegler, and Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture for DeBose.

Plot

In 1957, the Jets are a gang of white youths that fight the Puerto Rican Sharks for control of San Juan Hill on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Officer Krupke and Lieutenant Schrank break up the brief skirmish, telling the gangs that their conflict is pointless since the neighborhood will be imminently demolished to make way for Lincoln Center. The gangs are too proud to care, and Jet leader Riff proposes a "rumble" (fight) between the two gangs. He approaches his friend Tony, who is on parole, for help. Tony refuses, wishing to turn over a new leaf with the help of Valentina, the Puerto Rican owner of Doc's general store. Meanwhile, Maria, Shark leader Bernardo's sister, is betrothed to his friend Chino but yearns for independence. At a local dance, Tony and Maria meet and fall in love. This angers Bernardo, who agrees to Riff's terms for a rumble if Tony attends. Tony voices his love for Maria and the couple meets on Maria's fire escape, promising to see each other the next day.

Bernardo and his girlfriend Anita feud over life in New York compared to Puerto Rico, with Anita believing in the American Dream in spite of the pessimistic Bernardo. The police interrogate the Jets about the rumble, but they deny any knowledge. Tony takes Maria on a date to the Cloisters in Upper Manhattan. He reveals he was imprisoned for a year after he nearly beat a rival gang member to death, which scared him into reforming. Maria makes Tony promise to stop the rumble, and they pledge their love to one another. Tony tries to convince Riff to call off the rumble by stealing his newly-bought gun, but the Jets steal it back. Schrank orders Krupke and the police to stop the rumble. Despite their and Tony's efforts, the rumble continues and Bernardo fatally stabs Riff. Tony, in a fit of rage, stabs Bernardo and kills him. The gangs flee when the police arrive, while Chino finds Riff's gun.

Maria gushes about her love for Tony at work, but Chino arrives and reveals Tony killed Bernardo. Maria is distraught, but meeting Tony later she refuses to let him turn himself in as it would mean losing him as well, and they plot to run away together. Valentina learns of Bernardo's death and reflects on her mixed-race relationship with the late Doc. Meanwhile, Chino plots to kill Tony against the Sharks' protests. After identifying Bernardo's body at the morgue, Anita returns home to see Maria with Tony as he leaves the apartment. Anita argues with Maria but accepts that she and Tony are in love. While Schrank interrogates Maria about Tony's whereabouts, she sends Anita to warn him about Chino. However, Anita encounters the Jets, who shout racial slurs and attempt to gang rape her, but Valentina intervenes. Traumatized, Anita spitefully claims Chino killed Maria and vows to return to Puerto Rico, giving up all hope on her American dream. Valentina condemns the Jets, who disband in shame.

Valentina informs Tony of Anita's claims, and he runs into the streets begging for Chino to kill him. Maria arrives to his relief, but Chino emerges and shoots Tony; he dies in Maria's arms. Maria takes the gun and aims it at the gathered Jets and Sharks, berating them for the senseless deaths their conflict caused, before tearfully dropping the gun. As the police arrive to arrest Chino, the gangs assemble together to take Tony's body and carry it into Doc's with Maria following.

Cast

File:Rachel Zegler during an interview, December 2021.jpg

File:LAG-011112-Mike-Faist-400x592.jpg

Top row: Ansel Elgort (left), Rachel Zegler and Ariana DeBose respectively play the roles of Tony, Maria and Anita.
Bottom row: David Alvarez (left), Mike Faist and Rita Moreno respectively play the roles of Bernardo, Riff and Valentina.

• Ansel Elgort as Tony
• Rachel Zegler as Maria
• Ariana DeBose as Anita
• David Alvarez as Bernardo
• Mike Faist as Riff
• Rita Moreno as Valentina
• Brian d'Arcy James as Officer Krupke
• Corey Stoll as Lieutenant Schrank
• Josh Andrés Rivera as Chino
• iris menas as Anybodys
• Andréa Burns as Fausta
• Mike Iveson as Glad Hand
• Jamila Velazquez as Meche
• Annelise Cepero as Provi
• Yassmin Alers as Lluvia
• Jamie Harris as Rory
• Curtiss Cook as Abe

Sharks

• Julius Anthony Rubio as Quique
• David Avilés Morales as Anibal
• Sebastian Serra as Braulio
• Ricardo A. Zayas as Chago
• Carlos E. Gonzalez as Chucho
• Ricky Ubeda as Flaco
• Andrei Chagas as Jochi
• Adriel Flete as Julito
• Jacob Guzman as Junior
• Kelvin Delgado as Manolo
• Carlos Sánchez Falú as Pipo
• Yurel Echezarreta as Sebas
• David Guzman as Tino

Jets

• Sean Harrison Jones as Action
• Jess LeProtto as A-Rab
• Patrick Higgins as Baby John
• Kyle Allen as Balkan
• John Michael Fiumara as Big Deal
• Kevin Csolak as Diesel
• Kyle Coffman as Ice
• Daniel Patrick Russell as Little Moly
• Ben Cook as Mouthpiece
• Harrison Coll as Numbers
• Garett Hawe as Skink
• Myles Erlick as Snowboy
• Julian Elia as Tiger

Shark girls

• Ana Isabelle as Rosalia
• Ilda Mason as Luz
• Tanairi Sade Vazquez as Charita
• Yesenia Ayala as Clary
• Gabriella M. Soto as Conchi
• Juliette Feliciano Ortiz as Cuca
• Jeanette Delgado as Ili
• Maria Alexis Rodriguez as Isa
• Edriz E. Rosa Pérez as Jacinta
• Jennifer Florentino as Montse
• Melody Martí as Pili
• Gaby Diaz as Tati
• Isabella Ward as Tere

Jet girls

• Paloma Garcia-Lee as Graziella
• Eloise Kropp as Dot
• Leigh-Ann Esty as Gussie
• Lauren Leach as Karen
• Brittany Pollack as Mack
• Kellie Drobnick as Mamie
• Skye Mattox as Maxie
• Adriana Pierce as Natalie
• Jonalyn Saxer as Rhonda
• Brianna Abruzzo as Sorella
• Halli Toland as Sweden
• Sara Esty as Tat
• Talia Ryder as Tessie
• Maddie Ziegler as Velma

Three of the Jets from the 1961 film of West Side Story, Harvey Evans, who portrayed Mouthpiece, Bert Michaels, who played Snowboy, and David Bean, who played Tiger, appear as extras. Andréa Burns, who played Maria in the 1992–1993 European Tour of the musical, appears as Fausta.

Production

Development

"I've always wanted to make a musical. Not like Moulin Rouge though – an old-fashioned, conservative musical. ... Like West Side Story or Singin' in the Rain. I've been looking for one for twenty years. I just need something that excites me."

– Steven Spielberg, 2004

In March 2014, Steven Spielberg first seriously expressed interest in directing an adaptation of West Side Story, prompting 20th Century Fox to acquire the rights to the project. Tony Kushner, who previously worked with Spielberg on Munich (2005) and Lincoln (2012), revealed in a July 2017 interview that he was writing the screenplay for the film, stating he would be leaving the musical numbers intact, and that the story would be closer to the original stage musical than to the 1961 film. In a 2020 interview, Spielberg told Vanity Fair: "West Side Story was actually the first piece of popular music our family ever allowed into the home. I ... fell completely in love with it as a kid." Spielberg would ultimately dedicate the film to his father, Arnold, who died during production at age 103.

The following year, he further explained why he felt the time had come for a new film adaptation of the musical, saying:

"Divisions between un-likeminded people is as old as time itself. ... And the divisions between the Sharks and the Jets in 1957, which inspired the musical, were profound. But not as divided as we find ourselves today. It turned out in the middle of the development of the script, things widened, which I think in a sense, sadly, made the story of those racial divides – not just territorial divides – more relevant to today's audience than perhaps it even was in 1957."

Pre-production

Director Steven Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner

In January 2018, it was announced that Spielberg would likely direct the film following completion of filming for a fifth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise. This was followed a few days later with an open casting call issued for the characters Maria, Tony, Anita and Bernardo. Additional open casting calls were hosted in New York City in April, and in Orlando, Florida in May. In July, the fifth Indiana Jones film was pushed back, allowing Spielberg to begin pre-production on West Side Story.

Justin Peck was hired to choreograph the film in September 2018, with Ansel Elgort cast in the film as Tony. In November, Eiza González emerged as a contender for the role of Anita. Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 film, plays Valentina and also serves as an executive producer for the film. In January 2019, newcomer Rachel Zegler was picked from over 30,000 applicants to play Maria, with Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, and Josh Andrés Rivera also cast as Anita, Bernardo, and Chino, respectively. In March 2019, Corey Stoll and Brian d'Arcy James joined the cast. A month later, the rest of the ensemble comprising the Jets and Sharks factions was announced.

Filming

Filming took place in Harlem and other Manhattan locations and in Flatlands, Brooklyn in New York City in July 2019. There were ten days of shooting in Paterson, New Jersey, where an outdoor set was built, in August 2019. Filming also took place in Newark and other parts of Essex County, New Jersey. It wrapped on September 27, 2019 for a total of 79 days of shooting. All of the sets were constructed at a warehouse at Steiner Studios.

As one of the film's executive producers, Moreno was on-set for a large portion of production, often consulting with Peck on choreography. Moreno described shooting the scene where Valentina saves Anita as particularly difficult, due to her own well-documented experiences with sexual assault in Hollywood, as well as the surreal challenge of saving a character she played six decades prior. The scene was rehearsed with an intimacy coordinator to ensure DeBose's safety during the scene: Moreno, who recalled having a panic attack when she shot the same scene for the 1961 film, was surprised that such a position existed upon being told about it in a joint interview with her and DeBose. She also had the honor to do clapperboard for the film's famous "puddle shot" of Tony stepping into a large puddle of water and making it become a pool of rippling light while singing "Maria". That shot was the last to be filmed on the final day of principal photography, as it was a last-minute suggestion made by cinematographer Janusz Kamiński to Spielberg following completion of the Balcony scene.

The beginning of "The Dance at the Gym" sequence involved three different shots stitched together to make it look like one continuous shot. Kamiński described that it "starts as Steadicam, bringing the actors down the hallway, then as soon as the doors open up, it transitions into a cable cam shot that goes up into the air and over to the other side of the gym." He went on to mention that its execution was also laid upon the film's lighting team, saying "We had our lights rigged on the dimmer so when the camera was turning around, some sections of the scene would dim out, another section would dim up with the lights. You set the light so it’s in one direction, then when you turn around, you have to either cut or relight or do lights in the dimming board so you can fade the lights in, or fade the lights out, so you can maintain the romance and beauty of the shot." Andy Aaron, who served as sound effects recordist, added that the dance footsteps during the sequence were recorded live on set, allowing those tracks to be used in the final sound mix without the music intruding. This moment from the film went viral on social media, and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro described it as "extremely hard to execute."

Spielberg and Sondheim initially wanted to cut "I Feel Pretty" from the film. Its presence in the original musical, right after the rumble, was largely done against the wishes of Sondheim: he and Bernstein had been instructed by the producers to add an upbeat song after intermission to start Act 2, and so the song was written in protest. Sondheim would later remark that he was embarrassed by its lyrical content, to the point that he allowed it to be cut from the 2020 Broadway revival directed by Ivo van Hove. Spielberg, likewise, questioned whether the upbeat song would still work without an intermission between it and the rumble. It was ultimately due to the intervention of Tony Kushner that the song remained, as Spielberg later explained, "Tony [Kushner] explained to me, and then I explained to Stephen... that this is the first time in our story that the entire audience is ahead of Maria's story. And the audience will feel very protective of her because we know she’s about to find out."

Choreography

Choreographer Justin Peck, cinematographer Janusz Kamiński, and Spielberg worked closely on how the film's choreography would work in concert with the camera. Spielberg was constantly present during the film's dance rehearsals and would use the camera on his hand-held iPhone to figure out how to frame the shots.

Peck noted that dance in movie-musicals had grown into something of a joke in the past several decades, with the 1961 film receiving some light mockery for depicting violent gang warfare with ballet movements. Mindful of the new film's more realistic approach to material, he chose to treat the dance as symbolic of the unity between the gangs: "We have to remember that it is still a musical and that there’s a unique kind of expression that exists in it. This isn’t full blown realism, literal realism." Peck cites "Cool" as the dance sequence most indicative of this approach, combining virtuoso ballet movements with the dangerous violence of the scene in the fight over the gun.

The film does not attempt to recreate the Jerome Robbins choreography used in most productions of the stage show and in the 1961 film. However, Peck and the creative team were mindful of Robbins' integral role in the movement language of the show, and occasionally reused Robbins movements for nostalgia. Spielberg cites the Rumble as an example: the scene initially reuses some of the Robbins choreography but as it grows more intense more of Peck's original choreography is used. Peck also highlighted the skirt flaring in "America" and Tony and Maria's dance at the gym as direct "quotes" of the Robbins choreography. "America", which in the 1961 film takes place on a rooftop at night, was restaged to take place on the streets of New York during the day. The shoot took 10 days at locations across Harlem, Queens, and Paterson. Ariana DeBose's dance shoes melted and had to be replaced multiple times throughout the shoot, due to a combination of hot weather and the intensity of the choreography.

Although a few dance doubles are credited in the film as they were required to be on standby for the underage actors, all of the film's actors performed their own dancing with no doubles. This included Ansel Elgort, who is a former student of the School of American Ballet.

Costumes

Paul Tazewell, known for his work on Hamilton and The Wiz Live!, served as costume designer for the film. To distinguish the two gangs from one another visually, he had the Jets dressed in cool-toned colors to reflect "the steel, the concrete, the streets of New York City as it was in the 1950s" and the Sharks in warm-toned colors to represent "where they’ve come from of Puerto Rico, of the island, having a tropical feel, many of the dresses of the Sharks, I reserved all of the floral pattern for that group for the Puerto Rican community."

Music

Spielberg initially approached his frequent collaborator John Williams to serve as the film's music director. Williams instead suggested composer David Newman and conductor Gustavo Dudamel. Newman arranged and adapted Bernstein's original score for the film, incorporating alterations originally made to Bernstein's Broadway score by Johnny Green for the 1961 film (e.g., interpolation of the "Cool" fugue motif into the "Prologue", the extended trumpet solo in "Mambo"). Dudamel conducted the New York Philharmonic during the film's recording sessions in 2019, with additional recording by the Los Angeles Philharmonic done during the COVID-19 pandemic the following year. Jeanine Tesori and Matt Sullivan served as vocal coach and music supervisor, respectively, while Williams served as music consultant. All of the songs were pre-recorded and used as playback on set, with the exceptions of "One Hand, One Heart", "Somewhere" and "A Boy Like That/I Have a Love", which did not use the playback and were instead sung live on set. Portions of "Maria" were also sung live on set without the playback, as per Elgort's request.

Musical numbers

• "Prologue" – Orchestra
• "La Borinqueña" (Sharks version) – Bernardo, Quique, Braulio & Sharks
• "Jet Song" – Riff, Ice, Diesel, Big Deal, Baby John & Jets
• "Something's Coming" – Tony
• "The Dance at the Gym: Blues, Promenade" – Orchestra
• "The Dance at the Gym: Mambo" – Orchestra
• "The Dance at the Gym: Cha-Cha, Meeting Scene, Jump" – Orchestra
• "Maria" – Tony
• "Balcony Scene (Tonight)" – Maria & Tony
• "Transition to Scherzo" / "Scherzo" – Orchestra
• "America" – Anita, Bernardo, Rosalía, Luz, Sharks & Shark Girls
• "Gee, Officer Krupke" – Diesel, Big Deal, A-Rab, Mouthpiece, Snowboy, Baby John & Balkan
• "One Hand, One Heart" – Tony & Maria
• "Cool" – Tony, Riff, Ice, Action, Tiger & Numbers
• "Tonight Quintet" – Riff, Bernardo, Anita, Tony, Maria, Jets & Sharks
• "The Rumble" – Orchestra
• "I Feel Pretty" – Maria, Luz, Rosalía, Fausta, Charita, Lluvia, Meche & Provi
• "Somewhere" – Valentina
• "A Boy Like That/I Have a Love" – Anita & Maria
• "Mambo" (reprise) – Orchestra
• "Tonight" (reprise) – Maria
• "Finale" – Orchestra

Soundtrack

Main article: West Side Story (2021 soundtrack)

The soundtrack album was released digitally in Dolby Atmos by Hollywood Records on December 3, 2021, and physically on December 10, 2021.

Release

Theatrical

The film held its Los Angeles premiere at the El Capitan Theatre on December 7, 2021.

West Side Story was initially scheduled to be distributed in the United States on December 18, 2020 by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through the 20th Century Studios label. In September 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Disney delayed the release date to December 10, 2021, which coincided with the 60th anniversary of the release of the 1961 film. The film had an exclusive 45-day theatrical run, including engagements in Dolby Cinema and IMAX. An IMAX fan event, with a live Q&A with Spielberg and the cast, took place in IMAX theaters nationwide on December 6, 2021. Deadline Hollywood reported that Disney considered a limited release strategy for the film before expanding into wide release, but opted not to due to ramifications caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the exhibition market.

The film was first screened for members of the cast, including Zegler, Faist, Andrés Rivera and some members of the ensemble, at the Daniel Koch Theater in Lincoln Center on November 17, 2021. The screening was one of Sondheim's final appearances before his death on November 26. It then screened for industry and critics at its world premiere on November 29, 2021 at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater. Its Los Angeles premiere took place at the El Capitan Theatre on December 7, 2021.

Home media

West Side Story became available to stream on Disney+ and HBO Max on March 2, 2022. The film was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray and DVD on March 15, 2022 by 20th Century Studios Home Entertainment.

Marketing

On April 25, 2021, during the 93rd Academy Awards telecast, DeBose introduced the film's teaser trailer, and Moreno later presented the Academy Award for Best Picture, commemorating the 1961 film's release and awards wins. The film's official trailer premiered on September 15, 2021 on ABC's Good Morning America. An exclusive look at the film, featuring extended sneak peeks at the "Dance at the Gym" and "America" scenes, was presented at the 49th Annual American Music Awards on November 22, 2021, introduced by Elgort and Zegler.

A book by Laurent Bouzereau about the making of the film, featuring interviews with the cast and crew, was released by Abrams Books on November 16, 2021. A television special, Something's Coming: West Side Story – A Special Edition of 20/20, aired on ABC on December 5, 2021.

Censorship

Deadline Hollywood reported that the film was initially banned in all the GCC countries, believed likely due to the role of Anybodys being a transgender character, as played by non-binary actor iris menas. In some cases, Disney has allegedly refused to make cuts requested by censors. An earlier Disney release, Eternals, was also banned in the GCC countries, except the United Arab Emirates albeit with some cuts to intimacy scenes. That film featured Marvel's first openly same-sex couple. The cast and creative team responded, with co-producer Kevin McCollum telling The Hollywood Reporter, "I think we have to remember that during Shakespeare's time, at the height, the Puritans came in and tore all of the theaters down. You couldn't go to the theater, and yet Shakespeare survived. ... I believe that love will win, and this is a story about love, made with love, and what happens when you try to keep people from loving freely. ... I think we've done our jobs as artists to make this film, and the world will discover it even if certain cultures decide they don't want it in their borders." West Side Story eventually released in cinemas in the United Arab Emirates around a month later.

Reception

Box office

As of March 16, 2022, West Side Story has grossed $38.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $36.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $74.5 million. The film needs an estimated $300 million to break even.

Worldwide, the film was initially projected to gross $22–31 million in its opening weekend, including $12–17 million in the United States and Canada. Boxoffice Pro projected the film would earn $14–22 million in its opening weekend and around $55–85 million from its total domestic box office run. It earned $800,000 domestically in Thursday previews, hinting that the film would flop in the opening weekend with contributing factors such as the reluctance to go to theaters amidst the pandemic, the rise of the Omicron variant of COVID, and the trend of musical films disappointing at the box-office given the recent failures of In the Heights and Dear Evan Hansen. It made $4.1 million on opening day (including previews) and went on to debut to $10.6 million, topping the box office but finishing below estimates, making it a box office failure. Audiences were 57% female and 52% over age 35 as well as 30% Latino/Hispanic, 52% White, 6% Black, and 12% Asian/other. According to EntTelligence, around 800,000 people bought tickets to see the film during its opening weekend. Jeremy Fuster of TheWrap was hopeful that the film could recover throughout the Christmas season as a sleeper hit, similar to what happened with The Greatest Showman (2017), through ongoing positive word-of-mouth and awards-season buzz. In its second weekend, the film earned $3.7 million, placing third behind Spider-Man: No Way Home and Encanto. The film went on to make $2.8 million in its third weekend, $2.2 million in its fourth, and $1.4 million in its fifth.

Outside the United States and Canada, the film made $4.4 million in its opening weekend from 37 international markets, of which $1.3 million came from IMAX. The highest-grossing countries were the United Kingdom ($1.7 million), France ($1.1 million), Germany ($300,000), Russia, and the Netherlands (both $200,000). The film earned $2.1 million in its second weekend, $1.7 million in its third, $1.9 million in its fourth, $1.6 million in its fifth, and another $1.6 million in its sixth.

In his final week as Disney chairman, Bob Iger said the company "did a brilliant job marketing" the film, but speculated that its weak performance could be due to competition with streaming services, the cost of theater tickets, and the effect of the pandemic. However, Kyle Buchanan of The New York Times blamed "the marketing campaign, which missed crucial opportunities", including leveraging Spielberg, "the movie's biggest name." Sarah Whitten of CNBC observed the film was targeted towards older audiences, who were less likely to go to theaters due to the pandemic, particularly with the rise in the Omicron variant. She also noted the film lacked big names in the cast (save for Ansel Elgort and Rita Moreno) and was released around the same time as Spider-Man: No Way Home, all factors that could have hurt its ability to fare well at the box office.

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 368 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.30/10. The website's consensus reads: "Steven Spielberg's West Side Story presents a new look at the classic musical that lives up to its beloved forebear – and in some respects might even surpass it." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 85 out of 100, based on 62 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled by PostTrak gave it an 88% overall positive score, with 70% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Chris Evangelista of /Film wrote, "Spielberg's West Side Story is a knock-out. A dynamite blend of old-school musical showmanship and modern sensibilities. It's one of the best movies of the year, and one of the best movies of the acclaimed filmmaker's career. Yes, really." Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote: "Spielberg quite rightly doesn't try hiding any of those stage origins. His mastery of technique is thrilling; I gave my heart to this poignant American fairytale of doomed love." Helen O'Hara of Empire gave the film five stars and wrote, "Heartfelt and heart-breaking, this feels like Spielberg has made an adaptation faithful to its roots but also, always, alive to the modern world." Jason Bailey of The Playlist wrote, "West Side Story moves like a freight train, its 156 minutes passing in barely a breath, and that breakneck pace, combined with the expressionist aesthetic and candy-colored imagery, reminds us that blockbusters don't have to be greyscaled dreck." Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair wrote that "Spielberg and Kushner have done justice to what Bernstein, Robbins, and the quite recently late Stephen Sondheim made all those years ago – not subverting its enduring value, but rather, with fire and grace, doing so much to earn it." Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote that the film "has a brash effervescence. You can feel the joy he got out of making it, and the kick is infectious." However, Richard Brody of The New Yorker panned the film, saying that the film's creators "made ill-conceived additions and misguided revisions."

It was named one of the top ten films of 2021 by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute. Metacritic reported that the film appeared on 66 film critics' top ten lists for 2021 in being among the top ten films with the most appearances as it ranked first on 10 lists and second on 7 lists.

Representation of Puerto Ricans

Some Puerto Ricans and other Latinos have been critical of the remake. Arlene Dávila wrote in an op-ed in El Nuevo Día: "It's sad to realize once again the reality that Puerto Ricans and Latinos will be reduced to made-up themes and ideas taken from the playbook of what 'Puerto Rican' and 'Latino' are to the white imagination because what's certain is that nowadays Hollywood is whiter and more exclusionary than ever." Mandy Velez criticized the casting, stating, "Once again, the actress playing the character of Maria is not Puerto Rican".

Aurora Flores questioned the use of accents in the film and wrote: "In the end, you need more than just an advisory board. You need writers, directors, and producers. We need our stories told, our way." Arlene Dávila echoed this sentiment, writing, "It's high time to say enough with the half-baked remakes, imports, and adaptations, and to start demanding productions and original content that is written and produced by our diverse community."

Josie Meléndez Hernández praised the film's portrayal of Puerto Ricans, writing: "Many have been nervous about this new iteration of the musical. The original gave way to a stereotypical view of Puerto Ricans and our culture, which has affected how we are portrayed in the media since then. This time around, with Spielberg at the helm, it is safe to say that many of the harmful pieces of the first adaptation were patched up." Hernández also noted that the film had "a better depiction of Puerto Ricans" while suggesting it "is not a musical for Latines".

Accolades

Main article: List of accolades received by West Side Story (2021 film)

West Side Story was nominated for several awards and won accolades from various organizations, critics' groups and circles, particularly in recognition of the cast's performances, Spielberg's direction, Kushner's screenplay, and the film's production merits. At the 94th Academy Awards, the film has received seven nominations, including Best Picture. It became the second adaptation of the same source material for a previous Best Picture winner to be nominated for the same award after 1962's Mutiny on the Bounty. With his Best Picture nod, Spielberg became the most nominated individual in the category with eleven films. Spielberg's Best Director nomination also made him the first filmmaker to be nominated in that category in six consecutive decades. Paul Tazewell became the first African American male costume designer to be nominated for Best Costume Design for his work on the film.

At the 79th Golden Globe Awards, it received four nominations and three wins, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Rachel Zegler made history as the first actress of Colombian descent/Latina to win Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical for her performance as Maria as well as becoming the youngest winner in that category at 20 years old. It also tied with Belfast for a leading eleven nominations at the 27th Critics' Choice Awards, including Best Picture, and won two awards, including Best Editing. In addition, it received five nominations at the 75th British Academy Film Awards, including Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Faist, and won two awards, including Best Casting.

For her performance as Anita, DeBose became the first Afro-Latina and openly queer woman of color to win the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role. She also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture, the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actress, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Differences between film and stage versions

The film's screenplay hews more closely to the Broadway script of West Side Story than to the 1961 film adaptation written by Ernest Lehman. Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 film, plays Valentina, a reconceived and expanded version of the original character Doc, who serves as a mentor to the younger characters. A new Black character, Abe, makes the cast "more representative of ... 1950s New York". Siblings Maria and Bernardo are given a surname: Vasquez. Anybodys, who is portrayed as a tomboy desperate to become a Jet in the stage show and 1961 film, is portrayed as transgender in this version. Peck's choreography is original and does not attempt to replicate Jerome Robbins' choreography. Some scenes are played out in Spanish or a mix of Spanish and English with no subtitles providing translation. Spielberg further explained that the decision to not subtitle the Spanish dialogue was done "out of respect for the inclusivity of our intentions to hire a totally Latinx cast to play the Sharks' boys and girls. ... If I subtitled the Spanish I’d simply be doubling down on the English and giving English the power over the Spanish. This was not going to happen in this film, I needed to respect the language enough not to subtitle it."

The film follows the song order of the Broadway script, except that both "Gee, Officer Krupke" and "Cool" are performed in the first half, with "One Hand, One Heart" appearing in between. Tony sings "Cool" to Riff to convince the Jets not to fight at the rumble that evening, while playing keep away with the gun bought by Riff, instead of Riff singing it to encourage the Jets to stay cool during the war council at Doc's Drug Store.

The locations where some of the songs take place, as well as some of their contexts, are also changed for this version. "America" now takes place the day after the neighborhood dance, on the streets of the Sharks' community in New York City, rather than on the rooftop of Maria and Bernardo's apartment on the same night of the dance, as seen in the stage show and 1961 film. It also uses more of the 1961 film's lyrics than the original stage show version. "I Feel Pretty" takes place at the Gimbels department store in this version, instead of Maria's bedroom in the stage show and the bridal shop in the 1961 film. In addition, the song appears after the rumble, like in the stage show, whereas in the 1961 film, it is sung before the rumble. In this version, the rumble itself takes place in a salt warehouse instead of under a highway.

Whereas the stage show and 1961 film both located "Gee, Officer Krupke" outdoors in an alley, this version moves the hijinks to the 21st Precinct of the New York City Police Department, allowing the Jets to wreck the place during the song. Instead of the bridal shop, Maria and Tony sing "One Hand, One Heart" in the Church of the Intercession, as part of their date, which also involves visiting The Cloisters. The context of "Something's Coming" is slightly changed to reflect the character background change for Tony. In the stage show and 1961 film, Tony has the feeling that "something great" is just around the corner, like he tells Riff. In the 2021 film, however, Valentina tries to get Tony to pick himself up and start again despite his past difficulties. She gives him the confidence that launches him into singing the song. The dream ballet associated with "Somewhere" is omitted, as in the 1961 film. Still, the orchestration of its music, called "Scherzo", follows the balcony scene inside Maria's bedroom where she reacts to the joy of her romance. Later, "Somewhere" is sung by Valentina. As Tony dies in the finale, Maria sings a brief reprise of "Tonight" in this version, instead of "Somewhere".

External links

• West Side Story page on 20th Century Studios official website
• West Side Story page on Amblin official website
• West Side Story page on West Side Story official website
• West Side Story at IMDb
• Official screenplay