IMDb > West Side Story (1961)
West Side Story
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West Side Story (1961) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.8/10   27,585 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 9% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Ernest Lehman (screenplay)
Arthur Laurents (book)
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for West Side Story on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
23 December 1961 (Japan) more
Genre:
Musical | Romance | Drama more
Tagline:
"BEST PICTURE!" Winner of 10 Academy Awards! - 1961 (post-Oscar) more
Plot:
Musical about two youngsters from rival NYC gangs who fall in love. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Won 10 Oscars. Another 15 wins & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(96 articles)
Help us save Nicolas Cage
 (From The Guardian - Film News. 19 November 2009, 3:15 AM, PST)
Fantastic Mr. Fox | Review
 (From SmellsLikeScreenSpirit. 18 November 2009, 9:00 PM, PST)
User Comments:
An Uncompromisingly Great film more (261 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Natalie Wood ... Maria
Richard Beymer ... Tony
Russ Tamblyn ... Riff

Rita Moreno ... Anita

George Chakiris ... Bernardo
Simon Oakland ... Lt. Schrank
Ned Glass ... Doc
William Bramley ... Officer Krupke

Tucker Smith ... Ice
Tony Mordente ... Action
David Winters ... A-rab
Eliot Feld ... Baby John
Bert Michaels ... Snowboy
David Bean ... Tiger
Robert Banas ... Joyboy
Anthony 'Scooter' Teague ... Big Deal (as Scooter Teague)
Harvey Evans ... Mouthpiece (as Harvey Hohnecker)
Tommy Abbott ... Gee-Tar
Susan Oakes ... Anybodys
Gina Trikonis ... Graziella
Carole D'Andrea ... Velma
Jose De Vega ... Chino
Jay Norman ... Pepe
Gus Trikonis ... Indio
Eddie Verso ... Juano
Jaime Rogers ... Loco
Larry Roquemore ... Rocco
Robert E. Thompson ... Luis (as Robert Thompson)
Nick Navarro ... Toro (as Nick Covacevich)
Rudy Del Campo ... Del Campo
Andre Tayir ... Chile
Yvonne Wilder ... Consuelo (as Yvonne Othon)
Suzie Kaye ... Rosalia
Joanne Miya ... Francisca
rest of cast listed alphabetically:

John Astin ... Glad Hand (uncredited)
Jimmy Bryant ... Tony (singing voice) (uncredited)

Christopher Culkin ... Dancer (uncredited)
Elaine Joyce ... Dancer (uncredited)
Priscilla Lopez ... Child extra (uncredited)
Marni Nixon ... Maria (singing voice) (uncredited)
Lou Ruggiero ... Police Officer #3 (uncredited)
Penny Santon ... Madam Lucia (uncredited)
Lee Theodore ... Dancer (uncredited)
Betty Wand ... Anita (songs 'A Boy Like That' and 'I Have a Love') (singing voice) (uncredited)
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Directed by
Jerome Robbins 
Robert Wise 
 
Writing credits
Ernest Lehman (screenplay)

Arthur Laurents (book)

Jerome Robbins  conception &
William Shakespeare  uncredited (play "Romeo and Juliet")

Produced by
Saul Chaplin .... associate producer
Robert Wise .... producer
Walter Mirisch .... executive producer (uncredited)
 
Original Music by
Leonard Bernstein 
 
Cinematography by
Daniel L. Fapp (director of photography)
 
Film Editing by
Thomas Stanford 
 
Production Design by
Boris Leven 
 
Set Decoration by
Victor A. Gangelin  (as Victor Gangelin)
 
Costume Design by
Irene Sharaff 
 
Makeup Department
Emile LaVigne .... makeup artist (as Emile La Vigne)
Alice Monte .... hair stylist
 
Production Management
Allen K. Wood .... production manager
Hubert Fröhlich .... production manager (uncredited)
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Robert E. Relyea .... assistant director
Jerome M. Siegel .... second assistant director
 
Art Department
Sam Gordon .... property master
Maurice Zuberano .... production artist (as M. Zuberano)
Leon Harris .... production illustrator (uncredited)
William Maldonado .... construction coordinator (uncredited)
 
Sound Department
Fred Lau .... sound
Gilbert D. Marchant .... sound editor
Murray Spivack .... sound
Vinton Vernon .... sound
Richard Gramaglia .... sound mixer (uncredited)
Fred Hynes .... sound recording supervisor (uncredited)
Gordon Sawyer .... sound supervisor (uncredited)
 
Visual Effects by
Saul Bass .... visual consultant
Linwood G. Dunn .... photographic effects (as Linwood Dunn)
 
Stunts
Eli Bo Jack Blackfeather .... stunts (uncredited)
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Linwood G. Dunn .... title photographer (uncredited)
John Finger .... camera operator: title sequence (uncredited)
Ernst Haas .... still photographer (uncredited)
Louis Kulsey .... dolly grip: title sequence (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Bert Henrikson .... wardrobe
 
Editorial Department
Marshall M. Borden .... assistant editor
 
Music Department
Richard Carruth .... music editor
Saul Chaplin .... music supervisor
Johnny Green .... conductor
Johnny Green .... music supervisor
Irwin Kostal .... music supervisor
Irwin Kostal .... orchestrator
Sid Ramin .... music supervisor
Sid Ramin .... orchestrator
Stephen Sondheim .... lyricist
Robert Tucker .... vocal coach (as Bobby Tucker)
Betty Walberg .... music assistant
Pete Candoli .... musician (uncredited)
Jack Dumont .... musician (uncredited)
Walter A. Gest .... production music playback operator (uncredited)
Shelly Manne .... musician (uncredited)
Red Mitchell .... musician (uncredited)
Albert T. Viola .... musician (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Tommy Abbott .... dance assistant
Margaret Banks .... dance assistant
Saul Bass .... title designer
Robert E. Griffith .... stage producer
Howard Jeffrey .... dance assistant
Tony Mordente .... dance assistant
Harold Prince .... stage producer (as Harold S. Prince)
Jerome Robbins .... choreographer
Stanley Scheuer .... script supervisor (as Stanley K. Scheuer)
Roger L. Stevens .... produced by arrangement with
Hal Bell .... assistant choreographer (uncredited)
John Flynn .... script supervisor (uncredited)
Gerald Freedman .... assistant: Mr. Robbins (uncredited)
Peter Gennaro .... co-choreographer (uncredited)
Eliot Hyman .... production executive (uncredited)
Howard Jeffrey .... assistant choreographer: Mr. Robbins (uncredited)
George Lake .... assistant stage manager: stage production (uncredited)
Harold Mirisch .... production executive (uncredited)
Marvin Mirisch .... production executive (uncredited)
Howard Newman .... press representative (uncredited)
Arthur Rubin .... assistant stage manager: stage production (uncredited)
Wallace Siebert .... assistant: Mr. Gennaro (uncredited)
Ray Stark .... production executive (uncredited)
Lee Theodore .... assistant choreographer (uncredited)
 
Crew verified as complete


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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parents
Runtime:
152 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English | Spanish
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System) (70 mm prints) | Mono (35 mm optical prints)
Certification:
USA:Approved (certificate #19949) | West Germany:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Netherlands:MG6 | Brazil:Livre | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 (re-rating) (1970) | Sweden:15 (original rating) | Ireland:PG | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Peru:PT | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1986)
Filming Locations:
10th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA more
Company:
Mirisch Corporation, The more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Rita Moreno's singing voice was dubbed by Betty Wand only for "A Boy Like That" since it was below her range. Moreno sang "America" and "Quintet" herself. more
Goofs:
Audio/visual unsynchronized: There are several instances of gang members (most notably the Jets) mouthing the wrong words during the songs. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
[the Jets dance across the streets of New York, eventually coming to a playground where they toss around a basketball. The ball is intercepted by Bernardo, leader of the Sharks]
Riff: [snaps fingers at Bernardo] Come on.
[Bernardo drops the ball, Riff picks it up]
Riff: Beat it.
more
Movie Connections:
Spoofed in Dragées au poivre (1963) more
Soundtrack:
Dance at the Gym more

FAQ

How old were Maria and Tony?
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
A Note Regarding Spoilers
more

User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
70 out of 99 people found the following comment useful.
An Uncompromisingly Great film, 5 February 2005
9/10
Author: Tony Dummett (cashcam@ozemail.com.au) from Sydney, Australia

Although I think I've seen just about every musical there is from the forties to the seventies, I'd never seen West Side Story until last night. An amazing omission on my part, as having seen it, I just think it's simply wonderful.

I bought the DVD "on spec" in a CD/DVD exchange store in Sydney for $10. I've had it in my hand a couple of times before but have always put it back on the shelf. This time I went through with the purchase and am now wondering what could have come over me, not buying it before.

Those here who have said you really need to watch it on the Big Screen are absolutely right. In my case I watched it using a video projector throwing the image, big, bright and beautiful, onto a 12 foot screen. The photography used the wide screen format uncompromisingly. There was no caution here to frame the action for possible television cropping, or even much consideration given to a 2.35:1 "Cinemascope" presentation. Super Panavision's aspect ratio is not as wide as Cinemascope's 2.35:1, and every square inch of screen space was used for one or another important element of composition.

Bernstein's music is a tour de force. Having watched On The Town only a few days back, it was interesting to contrast the two musicals. On The town is, of course, 15 years or so older than West side Story, but a comparison between the two scores is chalk and cheese. You could tell that Bernstein was holding himself back in On The Town. It wasn't his project. The numbers were almost self-censored. But West side Story was his baby, and it shows.

The sheer brilliance of the music, the enchanting daring of it, its raucous atonality coupled with sweetness of melody are awesomely impressive, as show-stopper after show-stopper is thrown onto the screen to continually up the amazement quotient, time after time.

I played West Side Story loud, very loud. The surround sound knocked my socks off from the opening aerial ambiance of Manhattan streets to the orchestrations themselves. I remember Bernstein in the documentary about the concert version of West Side Story saying, aside to the camera, after "Cool, Boy" was recorded, "You know, this is pretty good..." One of the great understatements, even if coming from the music's creator.

See this film. Play it loud. Watch it on a big screen if you can. If you do you may, like I did, sit there thrilled, swinging your head from one side of the Super Panavision screen to the other, trying to take in the overwhelming avalanche coming at your eyes, your ears and your heart. It was an almost perfect transfer from film to DVD: color, sharpness, depth.

It's been a long while since I've watched a film with a silly grin on my face right through, sometimes gasping at the sheer knock-out brilliance of what film-making can be at its best. West Side Story was one of those times.

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