West Side Story: 1961 vs. 2021

Just saw the new WEST SIDE STORY, and before I say anything else, you need to know these three things:

1. In my opinion, West Side Story is the greatest Broadway musical ever made.

2. Robert Wise's 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story is one of my all-time favorite movies. I know every beat and scene of it almost better than I know myself, and I think it's superior to the stage version. I also acknowledge it has its share of issues that are mostly products of the time it was made (hello, brownface?) Still, I was highly skeptical, to say the least, that we needed a new movie version, even from as great a director as Spielberg and as great a (play) writer as Tony Kushner.

3. I saw Spielberg's version. And I absolutely loved it.

No, it isn't better than the 1961 version. But it's right up there going toe-to-toe with it, delicately balancing between respectful homage and thoughtful update. Sadly, it's underperforming severely at the box office, though I imagine the pandemic may be a factor there. (And before you say SPIDER-MAN, I'll note the target audiences for these two movies are quite a bit different, with WSS's more likely to be COVID-cautious and, to the extent they're older, more vulnerable.) If there's any justice, though, in time it will become a classic, just like its predecessor. In the meantime, here are some thoughts and reactions I had in comparing the two.

What I liked about the Spielberg version:

-It really evokes a graphic, tactile, specific (though still highly stylized) sense of place, i.e., that this is taking place in 1950s New York. Even if it's still mostly sets, they feel both grittier and more vivid than the backdrops of the 1961 version, which I wouldn't call generic so much as...minimalist, mostly just there to highlight the choreography. Whereas the way the camera here transitions from semi-realistic urban spaces to set pieces for singing and dancing is impressive in its seamlessness.

-This movie also does a better job making the hoodlums, especially the Jets, look dirty and desperate, and accentuating just how pitiful and ephemeral the Jets' ambitions are.

-Casting actual Latinos/Latinas as the Puerto Rican characters, duh!

-Tony's character arc, as rewritten by Kushner: Makes him more believable as a former Jet leader trying to go the straight and narrow.

-Making Chino (Maria's "intended") not a Shark but kind of a dork, with aspirations to better himself. This gives his fate an extra layer of poignancy that it didn't have in the 1961 version.

-Giving Doc's role to Rita Moreno and giving her "Somewhere" - adds a whole new poignant gloss to that character and that song.

What I still prefer about the 1961 version:

-The choreography overall. Justin Peck is a gifted choreographer, but let's face it, it's hard if not impossible to top Jerome Robbins. I often think of the 1961 WSS as a filmed ballet with songs, rather than a musical. Although that has its limitations cinematically, the film really works on that level.

-The filming of the choreography, especially in the dance at the gym. While Spielberg's version goes more for close-ups, I missed the long shots that show not only the differences between how the two sides dance, but also how they treat the dance floor like another extension of their turf war. Same goes for the moment Tony and Maria first lock eyes across the room and come together, as if in a dream, to dance the cha cha.

-The sequencing of the songs. Getting really into the weeds here, in the original stage version of WSS, "Cool" is performed before the rumble, while both "I Feel Pretty" and "Gee, Officer Krupke" are after. Tonally, it's a jarring shift having these light-hearted songs (although admittedly "Gee, Officer Krupke" has a pretty angry edge) follow the deaths of Riff and Bernardo; so much so that for the 1961 movie, Sondheim had them moved up to the first half (before the rumble) and moved "Cool" to post-rumble. In my opinion, this works much better. In Spielberg's version, for some reason, they put both "Gee, Officer Krupke" and "Cool" before the rumble but "I Feel Pretty" after, a decision I'm still scratching my head over.

-Differentiating the Jets (other than Riff and Tony): In the new version, they're all excellent at the singing, dancing, and acrobatics, but the only ones I was able to identify as characters were Baby John and Anybodys. Whereas, in the 1961 version, Ice, A-Rab, and Action all emerge as distinct personalities. (Alas, in both versions, most of the Sharks, other than Bernardo, are barely defined at all.)

-Bernardo and Anita: Don't get me wrong, David Alvarez and Ariana DeBose are excellent as the leader of the Sharks and his lady. They're just not a patch on George Chakiris (brownface and all) and Moreno for sheer charm. Not for me, anyway.

-"Gee, Officer Krupke": This is subjective, since it depends on whether you want a funnier version or a darker/angrier version. You get the former in 1961, the latter in 2021. Either way, it still resonates; I prefer the former.

It's a draw:

-Tony and Maria: Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler get automatic bonus points for doing all their own singing (and doing it beautifully), and they are both quite good when they're not singing, too. Kushner's script also tries - maybe a little too obviously - to make the 2021 Maria a more independent, self-sufficient character than the docile, demure 1961 version. But, well, Natalie Wood. That says it all. (I'm also one of the few defenders of Richard Beymer as Tony, though I wouldn't say he's better than Elgort, who seems - somewhat unfairly, in my opinion - to be getting cooler reviews than his castmates. I can't help wondering if part of that is due to the sexual assault allegations against him.)

-Riff: Mike Faist is phenomenal as Riff with a death wish. However, as with my comment on "Gee, Officer Krupke," what you gain in dark edge you lose a little in the comic goofiness that made Russ Tamblyn's Riff so engaging. Totally legit to prefer Faist's take as more realistic...but I have a soft spot for Tamblyn.

-Costumes: Both movies effectively draw a stark color contrast between the Jets and the Sharks, although they allow a few more flouncy skirts to the Jets' ladies in the new version. Maria's iconic white dress with the red belt (which I coveted as a kid) remains pretty much the same. But I miss Anita's purple dress.

All in all, while my loyal heart still belongs to 1961 WSS, I fully acknowledge that Spielberg has accomplished something truly extraordinary with his version. He's made a West Side Story that both fans of the prior version and newcomers can enjoy. Here's hoping more people will discover and embrace it as time goes on.