Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story (2021)

[Jurassic Shark 12,073]

Why is there a gazillion similar Marvel movies?

[bruce marshall 1,315]

1 minute ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Why is there a gazillion similar Marvel movies?

Or, Italian Western.

Same sets, locations, actors and plots😅

[A24 4,331]

1 hour ago, bruce marshall said:

 

But, the venue is still closed. No doubt due to the idiotic COVID restrictions that continue to suffocate the City.😞

 

Is that you, Drax? Are you back?

[bruce marshall 1,315]

1 hour ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Why is there a gazillion similar Marvel movies?

Because JWFAN members are a guaranteed audience?

😅

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

7 hours ago, TheUlyssesian said:

 

I feel this film didn't answer the question it had to answer - why was it remade? Sure it fixed the casting issue, casting Latino actors in Latino roles.

 

But besides that, how is this a significant update? It's still based in the same period, has similar scenes, even similar dresses, similar choreography and obviously the same story beats even though the dialog is different.

 

Why was this made? Is it well made? Sure. But I don't think the movie justified why it exists. 

 

I am afraid the answer is - JUST BECAUSE.

 

Based on this answer, any movie can be remade. 

It was remade because Spielberg wanted to make a musical and has a close bound to the original one (it's dedicated to his "dad") so I just see the answer as someone need and while to remake it.

And yes any movie can be remade, it doesn't need a why and certainly doesn't take away the quality of the original, it's just a risky bet from those who decide to remake it.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

Musicals, like operas,plays,  are designed to be " remade". It's what keeps them alive.

A better term might be ",reinterpreted"

[mstrox 6,651]

12 hours ago, TheUlyssesian said:

Based on this answer, any movie can be remade. 

Now you’re getting it!

 

12 hours ago, mrbellamy said:

It is kind of just a movie that exists for its own sake, and I guess it's a question of how much that matters in the long run.

Zero!  That’s literally the basis for every movie ever made.

[Edmilson 7,439]

😞 

 

Box Office: ‘West Side Story’ Disappoints With Poor $4.1 Million Friday

[Naïve Old Fart 9,525]

How many screens?

[TheUlyssesian 2,478]

56 minutes ago, Edmilson said:

😞

 

Box Office: ‘West Side Story’ Disappoints With Poor $4.1 Million Friday

 

 

Ooof! This is a very expensive production - 100 mil. And I have seen posters for this literally every where. They must have spent a fortune marketing this movie. The mouse house is likely to lose a lot of money on this film.

 

When will Hollywood realize that they need to stop making pointless remakes no one asked for. Will they only stop when they start losing the shirt off their back?

 

Maybe this film will be a lesson to Hollywood.

 

But who knows maybe its a sleeper and sails through the next few months on oscar buzz.

[mstrox 6,651]

“Disappointing box office on major film released amid a pandemic; more at 11.”  Zzzzzzzzz

[TheUlyssesian 2,478]

Let's see if the same is the case for Matrix and Spiderman.

[mstrox 6,651]

I’m sure they’ll do better, but they appeal to a wider audience (children, young adults) - and types who are less likely to be carefree about COVID.  A prestige-y Oscarbait musical is at a significant disadvantage right now.  
 

Even then, all of the big hits so far this year have had an asterisk.  In our last non-COVID year, the  middling Marvel movies well outperformed this year’s middling Marvel movies.

 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

No non-genre, non-franchise movie has done well this year.  At a certain point I'm afraid it will become clear that box office potential is permanently a fraction of what it was pre-pandemic for all but the very biggest tentpole releases (and not even all of those).  Hopefully I'm needlessly pessimistic.

[mstrox 6,651]

I’m super pumped for the day when we are comfortable to go back, especially since my kid is old enough to watch a wider swath of movies.  I’m gonna watch every fucking movie, every movie I would never have seen before previously.  Dumb Venom movies and boring old people romcoms about relationships after age 60 and everything in between.  I don’t think it’s the death of theaters, I think people just don’t find theatrical viewing on the inside portion of their risk assessments right now.

[mrbellamy 6,286]

I agree that this is the kind of movie that even pre-Covid would have opened modestly and then at best would have had legs through winter. It's never gonna compete against Spider-Man. 

 

It reminds me, though, back when Spielberg and Lucas were predicting an implosion of the theatrical industry. Their thought was that too many expensive superhero movies would fail one year. Cute.

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

It's really a shame for such a great movie. Sadly Covid and also, at least in France, the high price of theater tickets are sinking the theatrical industry.

I mean it's cheaper to get one month of Disney+ or Prime than to afford one movie in theater. If it's the same elsewhere I wouldn't be surprised that lot of people are saving for Spider-Man while skipping the smaller productions.

 

Spider-Man should works badly compare to the other, butt be the biggest hit of the year while Matrix will failed epically.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

3 hours ago, mstrox said:

I’m super pumped for the day when we are comfortable to go back, especially since my kid is old enough to watch a wider swath of movies.  I’m gonna watch every fucking movie, every movie I would never have seen before previously.  Dumb Venom movies and boring old people romcoms about relationships after age 60 and everything in between.  I don’t think it’s the death of theaters, I think people just don’t find theatrical viewing on the inside portion of their risk assessments right now.

I'm willing to die for Spielberg

[Disco Stu 15,495]

4 minutes ago, Not Mr. Big said:

I'm willing to die for Spielberg

[A24 4,331]

Franchises still perform well at the box office. Spielberg should have named this movie West Side Story 2 .

[Naïve Old Fart 9,525]

On 11/12/2021 at 8:01 PM, May the Force be with You said:

...Covid and also, at least in France, the high price of theater tickets are sinking the theatrical industry.

It's £7.50, up here. Not sure what that is in Euros, but it's about $12.

[publicist 4,643]

6 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

It's £7.50, up here. Not sure what that is in Euros, but it's about $12.

 

About 8,80€. Though with the usual surcharge (overlength, 3D, whathaveyou), you end up paying more all the time.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

I'm not concerned about COVID.

What keeps me away from theaters is multi-plexes, commercials, and twenty minute previews

[Naïve Old Fart 9,525]

3 hours ago, bruce marshall said:

I'm not concerned about COVID.

What keeps me away from theaters is multi-plexes, commercials, and twenty minute previews

Exactly!

 

3 hours ago, publicist said:

 

About 8,80€. Though with the usual surcharge (overlength, 3D, whathaveyou), you end up paying more all the time.

Sorry, dude, but... what's "overlength"?

[publicist 4,643]

Everything that runs beyond 120 minutes.

[Tallguy 3,386]

For myself this would be another case of being kind of excited to see a movie and the film makers doing a really good job of talking me out of it. Someday someone is going to rediscover the Michael Jordan rule and they will make ALL of the money.

 

I read an interview with the screenwriter who said (paraphrasing) "People have been confused. This isn't the Montagues and Capulets" (really?) "there is actually a good side and a bad side to this story."

 

I still want to see it (my wife wants to so that always helps) but I won't be contributing to the opening box office.

 

OTOH I still haven't seen Lincoln. (But I have seen BFG. What a world.) Maybe I'll just watch that.

[mstrox 6,651]

You don’t like the previews?  Nuts!

 

When I worked at a theater, there was always a certain number of people who tried to game the commercials/trailers by coming to the movie X minutes late, which is fine, but then they’d always get mad and complain to you when they missed part of the actual movie.  
 

Buddy, we can promise the movie itself will not start before the time on the board, but that’s it.  There’s nuance in when we started the previews (how tight is the window between showings, how chaotic is my schedule between that house and the other ten or so, etc.)

17 minutes ago, Tallguy said:

Someday someone is going to rediscover the Michael Jordan rule and they will make ALL of the money.

What rule is this?  Googled this and all I could find was “make lots of faces at Michael Jordan when you play him to try and distract him.”

[Naïve Old Fart 9,525]

58 minutes ago, publicist said:

Everything that runs beyond 120 minutes.

Wha'?! 

You mean that you're charged more, if you watch a longer film???!!!

 

 

 

38 minutes ago, mstrox said:

You don’t like the previews?  Nuts!

I used to like previews, but, nowadays, I throw a hissy fit, if a DVD or a Blu, takes longer than 30 seconds to load.

Oh, and don't talk to me about interactive fucking menus!

[Fabulin 3,511]

On 11/12/2021 at 5:37 PM, Edmilson said:

😞

 

Box Office: ‘West Side Story’ Disappoints With Poor $4.1 Million Friday

One could say that this time, Williams savvily didn't attach his name to a sinking ship.

[WampaRat 1,105]

Just adding my two cents. Got to see the film on Saturday. The original version was one me and my siblings would watch constantly. So I had sky-high expectations. And I personally feel Spielberg went above and beyond with this one. You could tell it’s been a passion project for him. I loved that every character had added depth without being burdened with a ton of backstory and exposition. Simple shots like Chino helping Tony open the garage door just added to the emotional stakes at the end of the film. And there were a ton of other moments like that. A glance here - a simple shot there. (The interpretation and use of the song “Cool” was just brilliant and a highlight for me). I had no qualms about the vocals or music mix (and I usually DO with modern movie musicals.) There’s usually ONE person that can’t hold their own in these things. And I didn’t find that to be the case at all. The color palette and lighting did a wonderful job at paying homage to the original and yet it was never trying to recreate the original. And it didn’t destroy what made the original great for me. A tricky tightrope act. I never once asked myself in the middle of the film “But WHY do this again?” I was completely invested. I loved it so much. We now have too fantastic adaptations of this classic show. 
That is all. “Vamanos muchachos”

*****

[Tallguy 3,386]

1 hour ago, mstrox said:

What rule is this?  Googled this and all I could find was “make lots of faces at Michael Jordan when you play him to try and distract him.”

 

I'd heard him say something more generic along the lines of "Everybody buys shoes so why piss off half your customers?" but of course the only thing I could find now is more specific "Republicans buy shoes too".

 

I'm sure there are lots of reasons that the box office is down but I bet the lecturing is not nothing. (Hell, DUNE made more money!)

 

1 hour ago, mstrox said:

You don’t like the previews?  Nuts!

 

I like previews. But when I saw Dune the movie started THIRTY FIVE MINUTES past the show time.

 

4 minutes ago, WampaRat said:

And I loved it so much.

 

Awesome. I have no idea WHEN we'll see it, but it's second on the family list after Spider-Man.

 

[publicist 4,643]

1 hour ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

Wha'?! 

You mean that you're charged more, if you watch a longer film???!!!

 

Of course, always like this in german cinemas. And there was a time when you didn't mind because the actual number of films exceeding 120' wasn't high. With 'Braveheart' & Co. this all changed and suddenly every POS movie was 145 minutes long. 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

So this is what they mean by "ruthless German efficiency"

[Jay 37,358]

I've never heard of a movie theater charging different prices based on movie length before.  That's kinda interesting

[A24 4,331]

Happens in Belgium too. Longer films means less income for theaters. 

[publicist 4,643]

I find myself wondering why the motherlands of capitalism are so slow in closing this obvious income gap.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Well operating in a market also involves not pissing off customers, especially when it's an easily substituted leisure product.

[publicist 4,643]

Releasing shitty movies hasn't pissed off any customers for decades. 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Audiences say "Yum yum!  More shit please!"

[Bespin 8,481]

It's been a while since Spielberg's movie stopped to attract big crowds.

 

But he continue to make the movies he want to make...

[Naïve Old Fart 9,525]

1 hour ago, publicist said:

 

Of course, always like this in german cinemas. And there was a time when you didn't mind because the actual number of films exceeding 120' wasn't high. With 'Braveheart' & Co. this all changed and suddenly every POS movie was 145 minutes long. 

My giddy aunt! How much would they charge you to watch SHOAH???!!!

[publicist 4,643]

It's probably for free on Netflix. Overlong garbage like 'Armageddon' or 'The Patriot', that was money wasted afair, but at least still Deutsche Marks.

[Positivatee 327]

40 minutes ago, publicist said:

free on Netflix

 

[Edmilson 7,439]

I'd be pretty mad if I had paid extra for watching The Patriot in the theater, great Williams score notwithstanding.

[Positivatee 327]

1 hour ago, Edmilson said:

I'd be pretty mad if I had paid extra for watching The Patriot in the theater, great Williams score notwithstanding.

 

I saw it in the theater and enjoyed it at the time. That was before I knew how grossly inaccurate it was (the church fire). But it's a fun historical romp. 

 

I didn't pay. My parent did. 

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

The Patriot rules

[crumbs 14,313]

Really enjoyable film, great score too. Probably Emmerich's best.

 

Jason Isaacs is such a delicious villain!

[bruce marshall 1,315]

15 hours ago, Tallguy said:

 

I'd heard him say something more generic along the lines of "Everybody buys shoes so why piss off half your customers?" but of course the only thing I could find now is more specific "Republicans buy shoes too".

 

I'm sure there are lots of reasons that the box office is down but I bet the lecturing is not nothing. (Hell, DUNE made more money!)

 

 

I like previews. But when I saw Dune the movie started THIRTY FIVE MINUTES past the show time.

 

That's why i stay home😠

 

 

3 hours ago, Positivatee said:

 

I saw it in the theater and enjoyed it at the time. That was before I knew how grossly inaccurate it was (the church fire). But it's a fun historical romp. 

 

I didn't pay. My parent did. 

Horrible film that could have been worse.

It was originally supposed to be about a real character, Francis " The Swamp Fox" Marion who, like the film character, waged a guerilla war against British troops.

But, they found out the real guy was a racist and slave owner.

Fine. I don't mind them fictionalizing the story.

First, they turned him into a civil rights champion!!!!!

Worse, it was turned into " DIE HARD" 1776, complete with cliche villains and plot twists.

An atrocious depiction of an historical event.

 

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

22 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

It's £7.50, up here. Not sure what that is in Euros, but it's about $12.

Well where I am it's 12.90€ which is £11.01 for an adult, if you're student you get a smaller price £8.02 so it's kind of really expensive plus extra charges (3D, IMAX...)

[bruce marshall 1,315]

Was the DISNEY ppv of HAMILTON successful?