Review of West Side Story (1961) by Rainer K — 12 Aug 2013

A powerful musical set between the reality and the fantasy. The music is amazing and the choreographies are dazzling and revolutionary, the way the dancers take possession of the scenes make of the movie a unique experience in enterteinment.

The story of intolerance and love might be a cliché, evidently taken from the immortal Shakespeare story of "Romeo and Juliet". Yet, this movie seems to be as poignant in our time as "Romeo and Juliet" was at its time.

The use of that dense color that can be almost felt makes the film very realistic as well as the magic in it. Sometimes the actors look tired and sweaty, the emotions are truly expressed through music and the intolerance story is so well portrayed that you can deny the reality of the film.

The colors, designs and some transitions contribute to the magic the creators try to achieve and transmit. "West Side Story" is one of the hughest musical spectacles brought to the screen, full of music and humanism in which the beat and the dancing along with the romance lead to a redemption barely seen because of the drama and the strenght of one of the greatest achievements in film industry.