Before I begin to pile on the superlatives about Steven Spielberg's new version of West Side Story—and oh, yes, there will be superlatives, many, many superlatives—let me talk to you about the 1961 West Side Story, which won 10 Oscars and made the equivalent of $400 million at the box office.
Sixty years ago, that West Side Story was something new—an adaptation of a Broadway musical that was also a ripped-from-the-headlines problem story about juvenile delinquency and ethnic strife. Even though it was adapted from Romeo and Juliet, it was adult, hip, relevant. Characters almost actually cursed! A song mentioned marijuana! There were knives and guns! It was so advanced that it featured a then-dazzling opening aerial scene of New York City. Location shooting and a zoom lens, in color—what...