The original West Side Story had actors with darkened faces to represent the Puerto Ricans. This one actually has real Puerto Ricans.
That's not "woke." That's simply a more accurate presentation of the story.
This movie is brilliantly done. It is arguably the best movie remake since 1994's Miracle on 34th Street and will make a profit when overseas and streaming is countered in. The box office tally that is used now is obsolete.
Real Puerto Ricans? Well, that does it; break out the oscars. I haven’t seen it, true, but I also don’t intend to see it. Reason: Who cares? I don’t need one; but that said, I’m familiar enough with spielberg’s past stuff not to trust it. Remakes tend to be crap anyway, and suggest the paucity of originality in that pit.
“This one actually has real Puerto Ricans.”
The original had Rita Moreno who is Puerto Rican and George Chakiris who is of Greek ancestry (not a WASP in any case). Which Puerto Rican star who could pull big box office at the time the original movie was made should have been used in place of Natalie Wood as the other major Puerto Rican character? Were there enough Puerto Rican dancers and singers at the highest level of Broadway/Hollywood talent in existence to be cast when the original movie was made?
The new Maria has Colombian and Polish ancestry, so not Puerto Rican.
It isn’t enough just to be Puerto Rican. You have to have the chops to sing/dance/act at this level, and there is lots of competition.
The big issue I have heard is there are no sub-titles. Are you bilingual? Can someone who only speaks English follow the story, or do we just get half of it? I'm not likely to see it anyway. I haven't been in a theater since COVID shut them down, and I only went occasionally prior to that. Our theater in town is small and horrible. The nearest decent theater is an hour away. I've been meaning to go see the latest Bond, but it looks like I'm not going to make it.
In the original Broadway production of West Side Story, the character of "Anybodys" is a young tomboy from the neighborhood who desperately wants to be part of the Jets gang. The 1961 film stayed completely faithful to this: Susan Oakes's "Anybodys" in the film was a 1950s-era tomboy: short hair and a spiky attitude.
In the new 'West Side Story', the character of "Anybodys" is reimagined as "openly transgender", both via dialogue heard in the film and the performer cast in the role: "nonbinary" Broadway actor Iris Menas.
Yeah, "Transgendered character" just TOTALLY fits the mid 1950s setting and isn't pandering to 21st century SJWs... right?