A real mixed bag. The drama is forced and unmoving, and the humor is feeble. Lovely Natalie Wood overdoes the Latino bit as Maria, and she and Richard Beymer as Tony lack chemistry, thus the central romance has no urgency and their scenes together bring the movie to a halt. George Chakiris and Rita Moreno, in Oscar winning roles, along with Russ Tamblyn as Riff standout from the generally lackluster supporting cast of characters. Ned Glass is downright annoying as Doc and The Jets are the Dead End Kids recycled. It hoits! It hoits! Though a multi-Oscar winner, WSS is overlong and over-rated. On the plus side, the film has an excellent score, Jerome Robbins' amazing choreography, and first-rate on-location photography. The parts are better than the whole. So watch the film for the terrific musical numbers and fast forward through the rest.
Review of West Side Story
