Steven Spielberg's musical movie West Side Story is a complete victory

Spielberg's new musical movie, adapted from a Broadway classic, is quite different from the 1961 award-winning film.

"West Side Story" can be said to be one of the greatest musical movies in history and one of the best musicals in history. In 1961, west side story, adapted by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, won ten Oscars, including best picture. For ordinary people, shooting a new version seems to be a daunting thing, but Steven Spielberg plunged into this new adapted film, which not only makes people feel fresh and intuitive, but also retains the classic sense of the original. Spielberg's west side story is adapted from the screenplay of Tony Kushner, a Tony Award winner and playwright. It is more political than west side story in 1961, but its incredible photography, palette and dance arrangement still make people feel that it is a classic musical. Although purists can debate which adaptation works best, there is no doubt that Spielberg devoted himself to this project and produced a film that can be proudly compared with the Oscar winners loved by wise and Robbins.

In the 1950s, with the gentrification of the upper west side of New York City, the jets composed of white Americans and the sharks composed of Puerto Rican immigrants were on the brink of war. The success of the Puerto Rican community in their new country has caused dissatisfaction with the jet team led by Reeve (Mike fast). Reeve wants to fight for territory (this is a territory that neither organization owns, but it is considered a kind of pride, especially for the weak masculinity of two oppressed groups). Bernardo (David Alvarez), the head of the sharks, is happy to meet his requirements. But between these two opposing factions, there are a pair of young lovers Tony (Ansel ergot) and Maria (Rachel Ziegler). The former is the best friend of Jeter and Reeve, and the latter is Bernardo's sister and friend of Bernardo's girlfriend Anita (Ariana dibos). When the two gangs went into conflict, Tony and Maria tried to be together.

"Why do we need another west side story?" This is a reasonable question, because the 1961 edition is such a respected classic. However, we have always accepted the revival of broadway music, and it is fair to consider Spielberg's works in this context. This is not to say that there is too much room for improvement in the version of wise and Robbins (although Spielberg's adaptation does not have a black face, and he often talks in Spanish without subtitles, which is undoubtedly an improvement), but that "West Side Story" still makes people feel very direct, and it is worth new actors to deal with this kind of theme. Spielberg also tried a type he has never completely completed before.

The film is worth seeing just because there are outstanding talents. Although ergot plays Tony very well (he can sing, and his style is also very in line with the style of that era), only those less well-known names will make you have something to say after the performance. Maria played by Ziegler is very charming. She perfectly integrates innocence, optimism and romance, making this role her own. When you are in the shadow of Natalie Wood, this explains some problems. When he skillfully balanced riff's sadness and aggression, Faist definitely popped out of the screen. When other members of the jet team made a splash in "oops, Sergeant krucky", it was riff who really expressed his dissatisfaction. Debos quickly became a star with her bold and charming performance. Her performance can fascinate you in songs such as America, and then break your heart in the climax of the film.

Although the cast is shining, the west side story also reminds us that Spielberg is unshakable when he is at his peak. Spielberg has previously played with musical elements in films such as 1941 and Indianapolis II: the temple of doom, but in this film, he will devote himself to dazzling effects. Spielberg's way of moving the lens and his dependence on close-up make his version very different from the 1961 version without affecting the pictures of wise and Robbins. The interaction between Justin Parker's choreography and Spielberg's camera movements is amazing, especially in scenes like dancing in the gym or "cool". Although Spielberg never slackened, this is undoubtedly his best work since Lincoln in 2012.

Between Lincoln and the west side story, there are good reasons for Kushner to cooperate with it forever. Kushner's play is more obvious in its criticism of social problems, but in a more modern and ideological way. For example, in the 1961 version of "oops, Sergeant krugie", boys play different roles in the game, but here, it is more like a system problem. The film also publicly shows that "anyone" (iris menas) is a transgender, and readily accepts this fact. In addition to adding a lot of Spanish dialogue, Kushner's actions are also more in line with the 1957 stage version, so "I think it's beautiful" appeared after the fight, adding a layer of tragedy that was not in the 1961 film. In addition, by performing "cool" between riff and Tony, their conflict has a new dimension, which helps to enrich the two roles. Finally, by updating the role of "doctor" to Valentina (Rita Moreno), you can not only connect the epot award winning legend with the original (Moreno played Anita in the 1961 film), but also add a new aspect to Tony's role by showing their relationship.

These are deliberate adjustments, not large-scale reforms. It is obvious that Spielberg and Kushner have deep and lasting respect for the material of the west side story. They did not shoot the west side story to "repair" it, but to provide some minor updates to further emphasize the advantages of the works of Arthur Laurent, Lennard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim and Jerome Robbins. This does not mean to make this film "more courageous" or "cooler", but to treat it as a classic musical, and I believe that the audience will be attracted by it as it has been for decades. Although I believe modern audiences will also like the 1961 version, Spielberg showed some new things, which are as valuable as classics.

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