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West Side Story (1961)
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Overview
User Rating:
Directors:
Writers:
Release Date:
23 December 1961 (Japan)
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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
Awards:
Won 10 Oscars.
Another 15 wins
&
6 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(100 articles)
Harold Prince Talks Phantom's Lasting Emotional Power to Las Vegas Review Journal
(From BroadwayWorld.com. 28 November 2009, 3:06 PM, PST)
This Week on Stage: 'Fela!' rocks, Matthew Broderick disappoints
(From EW.com - PopWatch. 27 November 2009, 6:00 AM, PST)
(From BroadwayWorld.com. 28 November 2009, 3:06 PM, PST)
This Week on Stage: 'Fela!' rocks, Matthew Broderick disappoints
(From EW.com - PopWatch. 27 November 2009, 6:00 AM, PST)
User Comments:
It could hardly have failed
more (261 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Natalie Wood | ... | Maria |
 | Richard Beymer | ... | Tony |
| Russ Tamblyn | ... | Riff |
 | Rita Moreno | ... | Anita |
 | George Chakiris | ... | Bernardo |
| Simon Oakland | ... | Schrank |
| Ned Glass | ... | Doc |
| William Bramley | ... | Krupke |
 | Tucker Smith | ... | Ice |
| Tony Mordente | ... | Action |
| David Winters | ... | A-rab |
| Eliot Feld | ... | Baby John |
| Bert Michaels | ... | Snowboy |
| David Bean | ... | Tiger |
| Robert Banas | ... | Joyboy |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
152 min
Country:
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:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Goofs:
Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Doc says, "What are you doing there?" after stopping the Jets from taunting Anita in the drugstore, his lips actually mouth, "What are you doing now?" which was the line in the original stage script.
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Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Spoofed in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
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Soundtrack:
End Credits
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FAQ
A Note Regarding SpoilersHow much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
Is this movie based on a novel?
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more (261 total)
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Note the opening credits. I use the term "credits" loosely, because there aren't any. There's just a reddish orangish title card which changes colour ever so slowly while they play the overture. Now THAT takes courage. Obviously Wise was certain that Bernstein's music provides so much interest on its own that it would have been redundant to do anything but play it. And he was right. Bernstein simply wrote better music than any other Broadway composer of his day - much better music - and whether or not "West Side Story" contains his very best music, it's his very best musical. It would take a special effort to make a bad movie out of it.
In fact Wise handles things very well. We get the same silent sweep over New York that he later gave us over Austria in "The Sound of Music" - the sweep that says, "I'm going to show you New York" (or Austria, as the case may be). The filming and the colours are stark and intentionally artificial: it does feel as if we are being shown a city. Performances are all fine.
Of course, most of what makes this film great was already present in the musical. But what's wrong with that? Surely Wise shouldn't HAVE to spin straw into gold. A wise man - sorry - just accepts it with good grace when he is handed gold to begin with.