How much different can Steven Spielberg‘s West Side Story (20th Century Studios, 12.10) be from Robert Wise‘s Oscar-showered 1961 version?
Spielberg’s will presumably be woke-ier, for sure. (More critical of Riff and the Jets, more embracing of Bernardo and the Sharks as well as the general Puerto Rican perspective.) In the Wise version tenement back alleys and fire escapes were freshly painted in one or two scenes; Spielberg almost certainly won’t go there. Janusz Kamiński‘s partially desaturated cinematography will distinguish itself from Daniel Fapp‘s somewhat prettified capturings, and will doubtless seem snazzier and more sophisticated in terms of framing and cutting. And perhaps the performances in the new version (principally from Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez and Mike Faist) will feel stronger and more affecting that those from those from the old gang (Richard Beymer, Natalie Wood, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris, Russ Tamblyn).
But these aspects aside, Spielberg’s film can’t help but resemble its cinematic forebear in countless ways. The story is the story, the musical is the musical.
