“I like to be in America, OK by me in America, everything free in America, for a small fee in America!”
Musicals have been declining in popularity since the 70s, but they used to be big business in the movie industry. Classics like Singing in the Rain, The Sound of Music, and even some that only recently got movie adaptations, like Les Miserables, are all revered as amazing films. West Side Story, a 1961 musical directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise, comes from a changing era when the old classic musicals were still popular, but the world was changing and they were becoming less relevant. It attempts to bridge that gap by giving us a story set in inner-city New York about two rival gangs fighting for control of their turf. This is still every bit a classic musical, and having every gang fight take the form of a choreographed dance number does tend to understate the inherent danger, but this film does do a good job of remaining fully a classic musical while also addressing modern topics. It honestly does feel a bit dated today, but I still had fun watching it and many other modern viewers do too.
Brandon Talks Movies 