Watched: West Side Story

Hello again and happy Tuesday! I'm so excited about last night I'm just going to jump right in today!

I love movies. All kinds, all genres, all styles, all seasons. And anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE classic films like Singin' in the Rain and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Last night I decided to watch West Side Story. Ever since I became interested in classic films about eight years ago, I've wanted to cross this beautiful and tragic musical off my list, and I am so glad I did.

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It was such an amazing story that surprisingly still stands as a common issue in today's culture. It has colorful costumes, a wonderful love story, and a ton of fun songs throughout. Something I didn't expect was that I had already heard several of the songs before, whether through listening to vintage music or in passing somewhere. I was surprised to find that the song "I'm so Pretty" was originally from this movie! Here is a quick synopsis (originally found here) – I promise no spoilers!

West Side Story was originally a musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, inspired by Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The original 1957 Broadway production ran for 732 performances before going on tour. The film West Side Story is a 1961 American musical.

The story is set in the Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City in the mid-1950s in an ethnic, blue-collar neighborhood. The musical explores the rivalry between the Jets (from Puerto Rico) and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds. The members of the Sharks (a white gang), from Puerto Rico. Tony, a member of the Jets and best friend of the gang leader, falls in love with Maria, the sister of the leader of the Sharks.

The dance scenes and costumes are fabulous as usual and you won't leave your seat without crying at least a few times! Here are a few of my favorite scenes from the film:

Maria singing "I'm so Pretty"