West Side Story 1961

imdb-logo 7.6 / 10

West Side Story

In the slums of the upper West Side of Manhattan, tensions are high as a gang of Polish-Americans compete against a gang of recently immigrated Puerto Ricans, but this doesn't stop two romantics from each gang falling in love.

In the slums of the upper West Side of Manhattan, tensions are high as a gang of Polish-Americans compete against a gang of recently immigrated Puerto Ricans, but this doesn't stop two romantics from each gang falling in love.

Videos & Photos

All 2 Videos & 31 Photos

User reviews

See All 2 Reviews

23 Jun 2021 by John Chard

Why do you kids live like there's a war on? West Side Story is directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris, Simon Oakland and Ned Glass. Music is by Leonard Bernstein (lyrics by Stephen Sondheim) and cinematography by Daniel L. Fapp. In the less affluent areas of the upper West Side of Manhattan, New York, a gang of Polish-American teenagers called "The Jets" are in conflict with a rival gang of immigrated Puerto Ricans called "The Sharks". They each thirst to own the neighborhood streets, but with tensions reaching peak point, two kids, one from each rival gang, fall in love... A Multi Oscar winner, West Side Story is a musical update of Romeo & Juliet. Set in the 50s in a steamy gangland New York, pic unfurls in a blaze of booming colour and scintillating choreography (Robbins). It has very much become a film that musical lovers can rejoice in, for even though it has problems, when it soars it soars far and away. Problems come with the crossed gang lovers played by Wood and Beymer, the actors dubbing is poor, their dialogue delivery also itchy. It doesn't help that the film's quality noticeably dips when this fall in love axis of the story (as key as it is) shows up - stretching the run time to a nearly unbearable and unjustified length. Yet it remains a joyous experience even today, you can forgive it for its ills when you get songs like "America" (Moreno the best thing in the film by far) that transport you up there on the screen. Or that the choreography is like a ballet version of circus acrobatics in full effect. In short, if you have any kink for musicals in filmic form, this is a must see. 8/10

Release Date:

Dec 13, 1961 (United States)

Run Time:

2hr 33`

MMPA Rating:

NR

Original Language:

English

Production Countries:

United States

Status:

Released

Related Movies To

West Side Story

Write Review

Found 2 reviews in total

23 Jun 2021 by John Chard

Why do you kids live like there's a war on? West Side Story is directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris, Simon Oakland and Ned Glass. Music is by Leonard Bernstein (lyrics by Stephen Sondheim) and cinematography by Daniel L. Fapp. In the less affluent areas of the upper West Side of Manhattan, New York, a gang of Polish-American teenagers called "The Jets" are in conflict with a rival gang of immigrated Puerto Ricans called "The Sharks". They each thirst to own the neighborhood streets, but with tensions reaching peak point, two kids, one from each rival gang, fall in love... A Multi Oscar winner, West Side Story is a musical update of Romeo & Juliet. Set in the 50s in a steamy gangland New York, pic unfurls in a blaze of booming colour and scintillating choreography (Robbins). It has very much become a film that musical lovers can rejoice in, for even though it has problems, when it soars it soars far and away. Problems come with the crossed gang lovers played by Wood and Beymer, the actors dubbing is poor, their dialogue delivery also itchy. It doesn't help that the film's quality noticeably dips when this fall in love axis of the story (as key as it is) shows up - stretching the run time to a nearly unbearable and unjustified length. Yet it remains a joyous experience even today, you can forgive it for its ills when you get songs like "America" (Moreno the best thing in the film by far) that transport you up there on the screen. Or that the choreography is like a ballet version of circus acrobatics in full effect. In short, if you have any kink for musicals in filmic form, this is a must see. 8/10

23 Mar 2022 by r96sk

Not one for me. I did not enjoy 1961's 'West Side Story', unfortunately. I felt almost everything about it to be kinda crappy if I'm honest. For one I didn't feel any chemistry with the cast, with no standout performer in sight; and that's on top of the iffy casting itself. None of the music - aside from that one tiny bit of "Tonight" - hits and the story comes across as forced. The musical numbers are also extremely staged, the whole thing feels like a stage performance rather than a film; in fact, I genuinely assumed that the actors were just Broadway performers - à la 'Jersey Boys'. New York City also doesn't feel real or, away from the main characters, lived in. Admittedly musicals aren't my go-to, though I'm more than capable of enjoying them. This, however, just didn't work for me at all. I wouldn't class it as anything awful, it's just simply quite poor - in my eyes, of course. Many, including the Oscars apparently, disagree! With all that said, I'm still interested in checking out the 2021 remake at some point to see what Steven Spielberg did (or didn't do) with it.

Cast & Crew of

West Side Story

Directors & Credit Writers

... Second Assistant Director

... Assistant Director

... Script Supervisor

Cast

... Bernardo

... Lieutenant Schrank

... Officer Krupke

... Action

... Baby John

... Snowboy

... Tiger

... Joyboy

... Big Deal

... Mouthpiece

... Gee-Tar

... Anybodys

... Graziella

Produced By

... Executive Producer

... Associate Producer

Videos & Photos of

West Side Story

Videos ( 2)

Photos ( 31 )

Related Movies To

West Side Story

Found 12 Movies in total

poster-A Working Man
A Working Man (2025)

0 /10

Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss's daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.

Run Time: 1hr 56` . MMPA: R . Release: 26 Mar 2025

Director: Kelly Maracin Krieg , David Ayer , Tom White

Producer: David Ayer , Jason Statham , Finnian Tweed

Stars: Jason Statham , David Harbour , Michael Peña , Jason Flemyng , Arianna Rivas , Noemi Gonzalez

poster-Havoc
Havoc (2025)

0 /10

When a drug heist swerves lethally out of control, a jaded cop fights his way through a corrupt city's criminal underworld to save a politician's son.

Run Time: 1hr 47` . MMPA: R . Release: 24 Apr 2025

Director: James McGeown , Gareth Evans , Xavier Gens

Producer: Aram Tertzakian , Tom Hardy , Matt Levin

Stars: Tom Hardy , Forest Whitaker , Timothy Olyphant , Justin Cornwell , Jessie Mei Li , Yann Yann Yeo

poster-Tarzan
Tarzan (1999)

7.3 /10

Tarzan was a small orphan who was raised by an ape named Kala since he was a child. He believed that this was his family, but on an expedition Jane Porter is rescued by Tarzan. He then finds out that he's human. Now Tarzan must make the decision as to which family he should belong to...

Run Time: 1hr 28` . MMPA: G . Release: 18 Jun 1999

Director: Chung Sup Yoon , Kevin Lima , James P. Alles

Producer: Christopher Chase , Mary Hidalgo , Bonnie Arnold

Stars: Tony Goldwyn , Minnie Driver , Glenn Close , Alex D. Linz , Rosie O'Donnell , Brian Blessed

poster-Out of Exile
Out of Exile (2023)

0 /10

Recently paroled thief Gabriel Russell tries to balance his life and mend a troubled family as an FBI agent hunts him down, along with his crew after a botched armored car robbery.

Run Time: 1hr 47` . MMPA: R . Release: 20 Jan 2023

Director: Kyle Kauwika Harris

Producer: Jacob Snovel , Karrie Cox , Kelley Gann

Stars: Adam Hampton , Karrie Cox , Kyle Jacob Henry , Ryan Merriman , Peter Greene , Hayley McFarland

poster-Another Simple Favor
Another Simple Favor (2025)

0 /10

Stephanie and Emily reunite on the beautiful island of Capri, Italy for Emily's extravagant wedding to a rich Italian businessman. Along with the glamorous guests, expect murder and betrayal to RSVP for a wedding with more twists and turns than the road from the Marina Grande to the Capri town square.

Run Time: 2hr 3` . MMPA: R . Release: 07 Mar 2025

Director: Federica Durigon , Paul Feig , Triini Selgis

Producer: Paul Feig , Micol Lupi , Franesca Biancospino

Stars: Anna Kendrick , Blake Lively , Henry Golding , Andrew Rannells , Bashir Salahuddin , Joshua Satine

poster-Dunkirk
Dunkirk (2017)

7.8 /10

The story of the miraculous evacuation of Allied soldiers from Belgium, Britain, Canada and France, who were cut off and surrounded by the German army from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk between May 26th and June 4th 1940 during World War II.

Run Time: 1hr 47` . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 19 Jul 2017

Director: Eric Richard Lasko , Alexis Chelli , Christopher Nolan

Producer: John Papsidera , Benjamin Hendriks , Olivier Kaczmarek

Stars: Fionn Whitehead , Tom Hardy , Mark Rylance , Kenneth Branagh , Cillian Murphy , Barry Keoghan

poster-GoodFellas
GoodFellas (1990)

8.7 /10

The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

Run Time: 2hr 25` . MMPA: R . Release: 12 Sep 1990

Director: Sheila Paige , Martin Scorsese , Vebe Borge

Producer: Barbara De Fina , Ellen Lewis , Alesandra M. Cuomo

Stars: Ray Liotta , Robert De Niro , Joe Pesci , Lorraine Bracco , Paul Sorvino , Frank Sivero

poster-Desert Dawn
Desert Dawn (2025)

0 /10

A newly appointed small-town sheriff and his begrudging deputy get tangled up in a web of lies and corruption involving shady businessmen and the cartel while investigating the murder of a mysterious woman.

Run Time: 1hr 29` . MMPA: . Release: 15 May 2025

Director: Marty Murray

Producer: Justin Nesbitt , Jason Abustan , Mehrab H. Deboo

Stars: Kellan Lutz , Cam Gigandet , Chad Michael Collins , Texas Battle , Mike Ferguson , Michael-John Wolfe

poster-The Accountant
The Accountant (2016)

7.3 /10

As a math savant uncooks the books for a new client, the Treasury Department closes in on his activities and the body count starts to rise.

Run Time: 2hr 8` . MMPA: R . Release: 03 Oct 2016

Director: Lori Grabowski , Gavin O'Connor , Ivan J. Fonseca

Producer: Mark Williams , Austin Lapierre , Jeanne McCarthy

Stars: Ben Affleck , Anna Kendrick , J.K. Simmons , Jon Bernthal , Jeffrey Tambor , Cynthia Addai-Robinson

poster-Blade Runner 2049
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

8 /10

Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K, unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what's left of society into chaos. K's discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard, a former LAPD blade runner who has been missing for 30 years.

Run Time: 2hr 44` . MMPA: R . Release: 04 Oct 2017

Director: Jessica Clothier , Attila Veres , Brandon Lambdin

Producer: Francine Maisler , Demelza Cronin , Emma Pill

Stars: Ryan Gosling , Harrison Ford , Ana de Armas , Sylvia Hoeks , Robin Wright , Jared Leto

poster-Wicked Minds
Wicked Minds (2003)

5.3 /10

Holden returns home from college and is surprised to find his overpowering competitive father married to a much younger woman Lana. Holden quickly falls for the beauty and charisma of his step mother. A passionate affair begins between son and stepmother.

Run Time: 1hr 33` . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 01 Mar 2003

Director: Jason Hreno

Producer: Josée Mauffette , Nadia Rona , Serge Denis

Stars: Angie Everhart , Andrew W. Walker , Winston Rekert , Amy Sloan , Frank Schorpion , Ellen David

poster-Front of the Class
Front of the Class (2008)

8.1 /10

A boy with Tourette's syndrome overcomes criticism and discrimination to achieve his dream of becoming a teacher.

Run Time: 1hr 35` . MMPA: . Release: 07 Dec 2008

Director: Peter Werner

Producer: Andrew Gottlieb

Stars: James Wolk , Treat Williams , Dominic Scott Kay , Sarah Drew , Kathleen York , Joe Chrest