Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Story

Don't get fooled by Tony, Chino, Riff or Bernardo. The movie is about Anita and Naria.

The other day I saw the West Side Story again. On widescreen in the EYE museum. Restored and digitized. The loud music was an extra spice to this event. Two-and-a-half hours of a top quality multi-media. A real treat. A must see.

The movie got 10 Oscars in 1962. The dances and the music are so great. Street-rap and immigrant topics. Still relevant in nowadays Holland and in the US of A. Did I mention Leonard Bernstein? Probably a legel immigrant. He is one of my favorites. He tried to explain Mahler to 12 yo. kids. No chance. So cute. There is nothing to explain. Lots to listen. LB made did the music for this movie. Classic, Jazz, Latin, a huge mix of great tunes.

The WSS is about the Jets and the Sharks. I guess you know the story. Testosterone driven street-gangs in New York. Even today a very hot topic. The WSS was [1] a musical on Broadway. Later [2] they made the movie. It's actually about the women. Don't get fooled by the men. This was sharp thinking. 10 Oscars. It's not about Riff and Bernardo. Even Tony and Chico are side-kicks. It's all about Anita and Maria. Girls have hormones too.

Anita (Rita Moreno, in purple dress, Puerto Rican, Shark-side) and Maria (Natalie Wood, in white dress, American, Jet-side) are the real heroins of this movie. In the end, they have a bond. Girls are in, boys are out. Riff, Bernardo, Tony and Chino all leave the movie prematurely and the girls survive.



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