Leave it us to make sure we're the very last blogger to offer opinions on why Steven Spielberg's universally praised remake of "West Side Story" slid down the tubes faster than Taco Bell slides out of a human colon........
Let's start with the usual suspects......
The Pandemic? For older folks who don't belong to the GOP anit-vax, itching-to-die death cult, yeah, that reason seems valid enough. . after you've put a few years on the odometer, you realize seeing a movie is not worth catching a virus that'll kill you.......(besides, it's easier to stay home and have your brain and soul sucked out of your head by binging "Emily In Paris".....)
Anyone younger naturally thinks they'll live forever, so all aboard for "Spiderman"........
Does anyone know or care about "West Side Story" anymore? We thought that the music and original film were so built into American culture that asking that question was foolish.......but then what the hell do we know ? Or as master screenwriter William Goldman said of the film industry, "Nobody knows anything".......so we stand with Bill.
We will say this much about the film's initial marketing.........it stunk beyond comprehension. The first ads skirted around even telling people it was a musical......and included not a single clip from any of the legendary songs. Nice job guys.....you really sold the movie......to nobody.
Everybody would rather see "Spiderman: No Way Home" True enough and therein lies the most depressing aspect of 'WSS's failure.......that multiplex audiences couldn't support anything but another Marvel Universe Behemoth......and nothing else.....
We can still remember the Holiday week releases of decades gone by'(especially our personal favorite, the 1960's.........and the diversity of content, stories and genres was something glorious to behold.....like a vast buffet of cinema artistry. What we see offered at the multiplex today is a buffet alright, but all of it tastes and smells catered by McDonald's.........
So now let us bid a sad, fond farewell to the theatrical release of "West Side Story"......though it may have died an embarrassing death at the multiplex, it will no doubt shortly rise from the dead and live again......on streaming and blu-rays. Long may it sing and dance......
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