Rating: 
Summary: A 'Special Edition' for a very Special Movie!
Review: Its hard to review a film like "West Side Story, that has been cannonized as a film classic. All I can do is try to relate the joy, energy and wonder I feel everytime I view this movie. This is one of those rare instances in film history, where commerce/box office success intersects with great art to create an entertainment legacy, that is truely special. We all pretty much know the story. It is a modern, musical retelling of Shakesphere's Romeo and Juliet.Instead of aristocratic families, we have poor NYC youth gangs(Jets & the Sharks), who battle for territory and respect.Two young lovers (Tony & Maria) from the opposite sides try to end the violence, but ultimately their love cannot overcome hate and biogtry.Where do you start with what makes this movie great? Do you begin with the talented youthful cast? Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood both are wonderful as the young lovers, who make the ultimate sacrifice. Likewise Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno and George Chakiris give amazing performances as young people, who are caught up in a world that dosn't seem to understand their need to explode in violence. The entire cast is just fantastic and never gives us a false note of acting. Then there is the music. The Leonard Bernstein/ Stephen Sondheim songs such as"Tonight", "Maria", "America", "Somewhere" and the rest of the score have become enshrined in our cultural consciousness. Everytime I watch this movie I unknowingly start singing along to those wonderful tunes, that just seem to stick in your brain and make your toes tap. Finally there is the brilliant Choreogaphy of Co-Director, Jerome Robbins. The only word that comes to mind is 'GENUIS', when I see the dancing at the gym or during the songs "America" and "Cool".How did he get the actors to move like that? The story, music and dancing all comes together under the artistry of Robbins and his Co-Director Robert Wise, who both share the responsiblity for the creation of this filmmaking masterpiece."West Side Story" has now been lovingly remastered in a 'Special Edition', two DVD set.If you are a fan of this movie, then you will be in heaven with the tons of extras included. Most prominent is a great one hour documentary called "West Side Memories", which includes both home movies, original vocal soundtracks, and interviews from actors and production people. Also included along with the DVDs is a 150 page book, that has the script, publicity materials and reviews from the original film release. If you are a fan of "West Side Story" or classic movies in general, then I highly recommend this 'Special Edition'!
Rating:
Summary: West Side Story-Classic Film for all Ages: Timeless
Review: West Side Story is one of the greatest films ever made. This may sound like an opinion, but the American Film Institute has named it one of the top 100 hundred films ever. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave it a well-deserved 10 Academy Awards in 1961. Those two bodies are who determine if a film is truely great. Enought said.
This film although was made in 1961, it doesn't appear old at all because it is timeless, and it's story can happen anytime.
Set in the 1950's in New York, West Side Story is a modern day(at least when it was concieved) Romeo and Juliet. Two kids from rival gangs fall in love, and because of the other gangs feelings for each other, their lives then fall apart. Natalie Wood plays Maria, and Richard Beymer plays Tony. Russ Tamblyn plays Riff, George Chakiris plays Bernado, and Rita Moreno plays Anita. Berando is the leader of a gand called the sharks, who are from Puerto Rico. Riff is the leader of the Jets, from New York, the native New Yorkers.
This film can get deep with underlying messages, but I wont discuss that because what makes West Side Story so great is its music. Those wonderful songs, and great Score(Leonard Bernstein). It's great for the Family, nothing to hide from.
My Favorite role in the Musical is Anita, by Rita Moreno. She is just so spunky and full of energy. Rita Moreno won one of the 10 oscars, and George Chakiris did too.
This edition comes with a wonderful scrap book, with a complete screen play for West Side Story, so now you can get those lyrics that you are a little unsure about.
This is a keeper and one that you need to add to your collection. Don't be someone who hasn't seen it, because once you see it, you never forget it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent DVD for Fans of the Movie
Review: This new 2-DVD set of DVD of West Side Story is great for those who love the movie -- the print is excellent and sound is very good too on my home sound system. The film is of course a masterpiece, with great music, song lyrics, and especially dance all brought from the Broadway stage and really tailored to the film medium.What really makes this DVD set appealing is the extra features that come with it. The second DVD in the set includes a very good one-hour documentary that provides a lot of informaiton on the making of the film, including interviews with the cast, Stephen Sondheim, Robert Wise, and (from a radio interview) Jerome Robbins. The documentary gives some real insight into how the film was brought together and how hard Jerome Robbins (fired during the production!) worked the cast to bring the dance numbers to the screen. The DVD inclused an interesting set of trailers, a short film comparing storyboards to the final film, and as a nice bonus, a 1/2 inch thick book that includes the complete shooting script and material from the original release of the film. This is a very nice release of the film. If you already own a DVD of it, you may or may not want to get it, depending on how much the added features appeal to you. If you like the movie, you will probably want to get this deluxe set for the extra appreciation it provides.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent DVD for Fans of the Movie
Review: This new 2-DVD set of DVD of West Side Story is great for those who love the movie -- the print is excellent and sound is very good too on my home sounds system. The film is of course a masterpiece, with great music, song lyrics, and especially dance all brought from the Broadway stage and really tailored to the film medium. What really makes this DVD set appealing is the extra features that come with it. The second DVD in the set includes a very good one-hour documentary that provides a lot of informaiton on the making of the film, including interviews with the cast, Stephen Sondheim, Robert Wise, and (from a radio interview) Jerome Robbins. The documentary gives some real insight into how the film was brought together and how hard Jerome Robbins (fired during the production!) worked the cast to bring the dance numbers to the screen. The DVD inclused an interesting set of trailers, a short film comparing storyboards to the final film, and as a nice bonus, a 1/2 inch thick book that includes the complete shooting script and material from the original release of the film. This is a very nice release of the film. If you already own a DVD of it, you may or may not want to get it, depending on how much the added features appeal to you. If you like the movie, you will probably want to get this deluxe set for the extra appreciation it provides.
Rating:
Summary: Best DVD I have ever bought!!!
Review: The information on this movie is incredible. The ordeal that the dancers went through in making this picture. Jerome Robbins certainly knew what he wanted from his dancers, and it showed in the movie. I love this movie because of how it told the story of "Romeo and Juliet" in a modern setting. I have seen the musical a couple times and I can say the movie adaptation is wonderfully done. Arguebly, the best movie musical of all time.
Rating:
Summary: Great Film, Bad DVD Sound
Review: This is one of my favorite films of all time. I won't go into the plot as so many others have. I prefer to just mention a few of my reactions to technical qualities of the DVD. First, I agree with others who have described the picture quality as excellent. However, I must disagree regarding sound. I think the quality of sound is abyssmal! There's an awful lot of background hiss on the DVD, which I found distracting. I also felt the dialogue of characters as well as sound quality relating to musical numbers was very "tinny." I wonder if there are any others out there who agree with me?
Rating:
Summary: THE Best Musical DVD Ever Created On The Planet!!!!!!!!!
Review: If I could give this DVD 100 stars I would! The film is wonderful. Natalie Wood gives an enchanting performance as Maria and all the others are great. This special edition is THE best. If you love this film, you'll love the scrapbook that comes with it. Not only do you get a copy of the script, you get a reproduction of the program first-nighters were given at the Mann's Chineese Theatre on opening night of this great film. The first disc includes the film in all its glory. The second includes and in-depth documentary telling how this magic film was created, photos, trailers and more!
This is a great buy and if you love West Side Story, you'll love this!!!
Rating:
Summary: masterpiece
Review: Having played the role of Bernardo in many theatres, I have grown very attached to the film West Side Story. The new DVD version is flawless: The colous are clear and bold, Bernstein's music even more crisp and clear. And unlike most 2nd disks on DVD with useless filming to upcharge you, the 2nd disk here is very impressive.
Rating: 
Summary: With the S.E. I now get the film
Review: When I first saw this movie on VHS pan and scan. I smiled and shrugged my shouders and passed the movie off as nice but outdated. Entertaining but not really seeing what the big deal was. With this new offering of the DVD I get it. The sound and music explode on the screen. And I realize the only way to see this reworking of Romeo and Juliet is in widescreen. I'm not much of a fan of dance numbers, not much of a fan of the entire genre itself, but there were at least a dozen times where I said "Wow!" watching this one. This is also where most of the films strength comes from. They are having a great time on screen and it's infectious!
With respect to Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer I found myself tuning out after the first of many songs where they declare there love for one another. Richard Beymer even says himself in the documentary on the second disc that the character is one dimensional until the climax at the end.
Speaking of the second disc, the documentary is the only thing worth seeing here. It's quite good but uneven. Great stories from Beymer, Tamblyn and Moreno but where the heck is Chakiris? They talk very highly of him but he's nowhere around. They also have sound bites from past interviews of deceased cast and crew but no Natalie Wood. The love/hate stories about perfectionist Jerome Robbins are entertaining and informative. You have a deeper respect for the dancers. Particularly after "Play it Cool." Not to mention the archive footage is really neat and I liked hearing the difference between Woods and Nixon. You also learn that Natalie was not the only one whose vocals were replaced and the justification and the still now slightly wounded pride by the cast members is unintentionally funny.
The book that comes with this is interesting eye candy, but really not that useful. I think an audio commentary would have been much more appreciated.
However despite the criticism, I'm glad I got the disc.
The packaging is great, the sound is outstanding and the picture quality does the film justice. The special features may less than expected, but it's a great addition for a collector and fans of the genre. Solid "B" rating.
Rating:
Summary: absolutely magnificent then...absolutely magnificent now!
Review: i had the honor of seeing west side story on broadwaY 5 times with carol lawrence, chita rivera and larry kert! i saw this great film at least 10 times in it's initial roadshow release aND i'm so thrilled with this marvelous new dvd! it looks and sounds better than it ever has before. my only problem-someone help me here now, please--asap! how do i choose the option on disc one-the film- to play with the intermission music included! it is and was always such a strong piece of music-no matter what i search no matter what i do-i don't find this option as is listed here and on the dvd box! if anyone here has unlocked the secret please e mail me asap. thanks.......robert
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