West Side Story (2021)Movies

I wasn’t planning on seeing West Side Story. I’ve never seen the 1961 original all the way through, and the subject of racial tensions in 20th century America is well-worn at this point. It takes a lot to make a story like this interesting to me these days, and usually, they don’t even try. Most movies I see about racism and prejudice are boring, failing to analyze where racism comes from and how to truly address it. Furthermore, while I appreciate Steven Spielberg’s filmography and titanic career, I wasn’t familiar with most of this movie’s cast. West Side Story’s closest thing to a draw would be Ariana DeBose (Anita), who I knew from Hamilton, or songs by great American lyricist Stephen Sondheim. I won’t be referring to the original movie much...