Posted on 12/12/2021 10:43:05 AM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
"West Side Story" had little to sing about this weekend.
20th Century Studios' remake of the 1961 classic musical brought in an estimated $10.5 million for its opening in North America this weekend. This total was below expectations, which projected the film to make closer to $15 million in its debut weekend.
The total is a bit surprising considering that the film had a lot working in its favor. For starters, it is directed by Steven Spielberg, one of the most recognizable and blockbuster directors in history. His name alone appeared to not be enough to get people to buy a ticket.
Great reviews also weren't enough. The film, which has a stellar 93% score on Rotten Tomatoes, garnered critical acclaim as well as early Oscar buzz. Yet, despite getting an "A" CinemaScore from those who saw it, the box office returns are lackluster at best.
The film could have some legs in theaters over the next few weeks as the holidays kick in and more families have time to hit the theater, but so far the movie has failed to find an audience...
"West Side Story" could have faltered this weekend due to myriad factors. There may have been concerns over coronavirus variants, older audiences have been somewhat reluctant to return to theaters compared to younger ticket buyers, and musicals have struggled at the box office of late.
Recent film adaptations of Broadway musicals, such as "In The Heights," "Dear Evan Hansen" and "Cats," all disappointed at the box office, with each bringing in less than $30 million in domestic ticket sales, according to Comscore (SCOR). And while musicals have also experienced some big hits, including "La La Land," "The Greatest Showman" and "Mamma Mia!," it appears "West Side Story" has so far fallen in the former category.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
I also read somewhere that you have to be bilingual to understand all the dialog since when Spanish is being spoken there are no subtitles because Speilberg wanted the movie to be more inclusive, whatever that means.
Oh my.. lol
Plus, they have stretched it to 2 hours and 36 minutes. Brutal!
That’s only 3 minutes longer than the original. And that’s probably all in the credits since those are much longer these days.
No need to see it. I saw the original version in the theater.
Ha—you’re right. I loved that film: it didn’t seem long to me at all.
It isn’t Woke at all. This is one of the better American studio films in years.
It actually is very good.
It isn’t a remake. It’s a new filmic spin on the play. The people who created the original Broadway show did not like the 1961 film.
Famous Rex Reed movie review:
“I’ve seen better film on teeth.”
” . . . when Spanish is being spoken there are no subtitles because Speilberg wanted the movie to be more inclusive . . .”
What a dick - all he had to do is make one version with English sub-titles when Spanish is spoken and a second version with Spanish sub-titles when English is spoken - how hard is that? Let the theater owners pick what version they want to project - in Chicago neighborhoods like Humboldt Park, Little Village and Pilsen, they might actual do better with the English sub-titles.
It isn’t a remake. Just like every film of Macbeth isn’t a remake of an earlier film.
LOL, “Cats”! I wouldn’t compare ANY of the other movies mentioned in that article to that train wreck. I read a couple of reviews of that, some people felt like they were having psychotic breakdowns while watching it.
Exactly. The Democrat dictators and bureaucrats have screwed over an industry that probably votes 90% Democrat.
But, Hollywood, at least those in Hollywood who were already rich, seems just fine with that.
“Spielberg lost all credibility with me when he cast his wife, Kate Capshaw, in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.””
They were not married when that movie was made. That is where they became acquainted.
It doesn’t really matter what Bernstein, Sondheim, et al thought about the 1961 film. Or what I think about it (overrated film based on the greatest American musical). It’s a beloved classic.
The reason people think this is woke is because that’s how they’ve been trying to sell it. Correcting a “wrong” has been a huge focus of the PR surrounding this film. My hunch is that they have done this to try to appeal to my generation (millennial) and younger, but it’s a fool’s errands because most younger people have no sense of culture and think trash like Mamma Mia is high art. Beyond that, it’s a huge turnoff for people who loved the original to be told that the 1961 film was racist, flawed, etc.
Still makes no difference. He was tryna get in her pants, then. Same thing.
We should not support our enemies.
My guess its all about gays, transsexuals, cross dressers, and all the other depravities Hollywood just loves to shove in our faces to try and convince us its normal. I am glad to hear it flopped. I guess sexual depravity is not as normal as they want us to believe.
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