Steven Spielberg's West Side Story Dances Its Way To Being A Stunning Reimagining Of Its Classic Predecessor

 Very few Hollywood remakes manage to fulfill the daunting task of not only matching their original works, but actually improving upon them along with modernizing the story for a new generation. With West Side Story, legendary director Steven Spielberg rises to the occasion and delivers a stunning remake that not only honors the work of the 1961 film which won 10 Academy Awards including Best Picture, but thrills in giving audiences a different look at the classic source material. Though such a task proved risky for everyone involved, the end result unequivocally stands as being one of the best films of 2021.

      Inspired by William Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet and the 1957 stage musical of the same name, West Side Story focuses on a young white boy (Ansel Elgort), and young Puerto Rican girl (Rachel Zegler) falling in love with their respective communities doing everything possible to keep them apart. The films plot serves as being a stunning parallel to Juliet's with a more present setting and themes revolving around racism, gentrification, and gangs. The newest version is not only masterfully directed but wonderfully acted with it carrying a tremendous amount of heart and respect towards the stories representation regarding Latino heritage. With what could've easily ended up being a pointless remake that lacked both the charm and heart of its predecessor, Spielberg's West Side Story meets expectations head on while showing that it's possible to deliver a worthy remake which can enchant as well as speak to a new era of moviegoers.

      As far as performances go, the acting, singing, and directing in Story is terrific with everyone pouring their souls into their roles. Both Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler give fantastic performances with them boasting stellar chemistry as young star-crossed lovers. Elgort is convincing as young white youth Tony, whose out on parole for nearly killing a Puerto Rican in a fight and becomes starstruck when he notices Maria. Zegler is perfectly casted as Maria, who yearns for independence and falls equally in love with Tony. Their relationship is what ultimately gives the film its power. Other knockout performances include David Alvarez and Ariana DeBose as Maria's migrant brother Bernardo and leader of the Sharks gang, and DeBose as his fiance Anita with the latter's supporting role being stunning in the films second half. Other noteworthy additions to the cast include returning cast member Rita Moreno from the original in a special appearance as Valentina, a Puerto Rican owner of Doc's general store, along with Mike Faist as Tony's best friend and Jet leader Riff, and Brian d'Arcy James as aggressive Police Officer Krupke. As a whole, the cast  is wonderfully assembled with everyone appropriately fitting their characters, as well as matching their cultural backgrounds. In terms of effort, West Side Story's cast gets an A+ with Zegler and Denise's performances being downright starmaking.

      Given Spielberg as director, one expects West Side Story to be masterfully filmed with breathtaking cinematography and impressive streetwise sets and costume designs. That's exactly what audiences get here as the production feels grand in scale with the picture being gorgeously lit with vibrant camera lighting that instantly draws them into the stories time setting. The music by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim is remarkable with Spielberg getting the entire cast to effectively convey a wide range of emotions through their song and dance routines. The choreography conducted here is a mixture of jazz, ballet, and Latin styles that all result in a kinetic display of emotion with key iconic songs like America and I Feel Pretty being amazingly conducted. Along with the films visuals, Spielberg adds a touch of sincerity to the film with letting key characters speak in their native Latin tongue minus subtitles. He does this to let the audience focus on the actors performances with them getting the overall gist of what's being said. Upon watching the film, it's apparent that Spielberg has a profound love and respect the original 1961 classic, as he gives his all in crafting a remake that honors the past while reimagining it for the present.

      With a classic story like West Side Story, strong social commentary was always going to be ensured regardless of what era it's set in. Spielberg's version proves no different with the film further updating the Shakespearean romantic tragedy between two star-crossed lovers with the rivalry being between gangs rather than royal families. West Side's plot is one that addresses themes regarding identity, citizenship, and fitting in with a message which says that true love can transcend adversity along with hate only breeding violence. Despite the films 1950's New York setting, many of its themes feel relevant to today's political climate which immigrants find themselves enduring in regards to both blending in and finding their own place in America despite issues regarding turf war that's shown with the tension between second-generation American street game the Jets and the rival Puerto Rican gang the sharks. Like the films fantastic directing and choreography, West Side's writing remains strong with concepts such as breaking barriers and immigration status being at the heart of its plot. 

      Watching the film though, it's clear on why Spielberg chose to upgrade the original for a new generation of audiences as many of its themes carry timely relevance to today's world. With the new version, he makes a compelling case that not only was a remake necessary, but that its themes are universal enough to reflect upon people's struggles from one generation to the next. The newest West Side Story is one that's engaging to watch from start to finish and packed with remarkable talent. Whereas most remakes fail to earn their respective titles, Spielberg's does so while managing to be a fine musical/romance that's presented in a form that feels larger-than-life. Even with Spielberg giving the story a new look, he never loses sight of what made the original a beloved pop culture classic and instills it with endless amounts of energy and heart.

Final Verdict: For fans of the original 1961 West Side Story, Steven Spielberg's remake is a must see cinematic triumph.

Images courtesy of Disney/20th Century Fox Studios

Marvel's Spider-Man: No Way Home Swings The Homecoming Trilogy To Fantastic New Heights While Maintaining It's Heart

      

 NOTE: This review contains NO SPOILERS

     

      The wait is finally over. After a year of intense marketing and secrecy surrounding it, Marvel releases Spider-Man: No Way Home. In a year which saw the releases of Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Eternals, No Way Home arrives to complete the Spider-Man: Homecoming, once again placing both Tom Holland and Zendaya in the main roles. With much speculation going around regarding the films true premise and whether it lives up to the standard of both Spider-Man: Homecoming and Far From Home, fans can rejoice in knowing that the newest sequel not only delivers immensely as tremendously fun entertainment, but exceeds the expectations placed upon it.

      Continuing from where Far From Home left off, No Way Home's plot has Peter Parker (Tom Holland) seeking the help of Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) in making his identity as Spider-Man a secret again after being framed by Mysterio. In doing so, a multiverse is opened, allowing numerous supervillains from alternate timelines who fought their own alternate versions of Peter Parker to enter his universe. In bringing these villains together, director Jon Watts and Marvel producer Kevin Feige not just give audiences a fitting cap off to the Homecoming trilogy, but present a story that's bigger than any previous Spider-Man film done prior. What's more impressive about No Way Home outside of its unifying of key villains, is the amount of heart the film carries with Tom Holland cementing himself as being one of the best Spider-Man's to grace the screen. The film not only works as being bigger and bolder than its previous films, but dares its main character to question about what it means to be a hero. 

      The soul of the film lies within the fantastic performances of its main cast with Tom Holland and Zendaya demonstrating themselves as being the MCU's power couple. With Peter Parker, Holland really comes into his own here. He goes from being a young teenager struggling to balance his normal life along with realizing the full cost of being a hero. Zendaya is stunning as MJ with her character really showing her love and commitment to Peter in this one with both actors chemistry being spot-on. Benedict Cumberbatch is stellar as Dr. Strange with the audience getting a kick out of their of their friendship as it becomes tested throughout the film. Both Marissa Tomei and Jacob Batalon give strong performances as Parkers aunt May and his best friend Ned, with Jon Favreau lending support as the likable Harold. As for the returning villains, Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, and Jamie Foxx all give top-notch performances as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin, Doctor Otto Octavius, and Max Dillon/Electro with everyone further demonstrating that they're still the ideal choices for their parts while getting the opportunity to expand on them. No Way Home's cast has much to do with why the film is thrilling to watch along with being surprisingly emotional. 

      The directing by John Watts, who helmed the previous Homecoming films, is highly commendable in delivering the biggest Spider-Man film thus far in terms of scope. Like the other films, he starts off by presenting a breezy High-School atmosphere while making the story feel more mature as it progresses. The films comic book style violence is well-handled with it relying on a heavy usage of impressive CGI to excite audiences. The film contains action set-pieces that are deeply thrilling to watch such as Spider-Mans first encounter with Doc Oak, which has been repeatedly shown in the trailers or the climactic fight with all the main villains, that gives it an Avengers: Endgame style feel. Boasting a 2.5 hour running time, No Way Home effectively uses every minute to steadily build up its story. One technical aspect of the film that feels underwhelming is its score with the music lacking a powerful theme that's memorable like Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy. In terms of establishing the overall look and feel of the film, Watts nails it in keeping consistent with the previous Homecoming films while making this one feel much larger in scope.

      Out of the three Holland Spider-Man films, No Way Home's writing stands as being the strongest of the three with the story having its main character realizing the full consequence of choosing to help others, while raising the stakes higher than ever before. Here, the audience really find themselves caring about the main characters with the film being stuffed with the traditional Marvel style humor that accompanies each film. Each character outside of Parker and MJ are given their key moments to shine, and ultimately add something to the story that strengthens it. The script carries it all from action to comedy and drama with numerous callbacks to previous Spider-Man films being thrown in. Though there's much to digest here with the film story wise, the screenplay for No Way Home does exceptionally well in placing its main character front and center in the multiverse while giving him the attention he appropriately requires for fans who've grown with Tom Holland's Spider-Man to see him mature and grow into adulthood in the most emotionally satisfying way. 

      When audiences didn't think that Marvel could top what was pulled off with Endgame, the bar is raised even higher with No Way Home. The film has everything that Spider-Man fans could want, including major plot twists and revelations that'll generate tremendous amounts of excitement, along with celebrating the entire cinematic mythology of Spider-Man. Fun, thrilling, funny, and touching, Spider-Man: No Way Home honors the past while showing what's possible for the future with such a beloved young character whose shown to finally be morphing into the hero that comic book fans know him to be. The film carries a powerful message regarding the importance of doing good deeds, along with the responsibility of carrying great power. Not only will it please Spider-Man fans, it redefines all the possibilities of what can be done with a top-notch superhero story.

Final Verdict: For both Marvel and Spidey fans, No Way Home is a must see.

Images Courtesy Of SONY

Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City Delivers Fans A Serviceably Fun Reboot That's Much Closer To The Games

     

      Adapting a popular video game series into a film franchise has proven to be challenging within the realm of cinematic filmmaking with most cases proving to be misfires. Despite a few notable exceptions, most game based film adaptations have fallen short of capturing the glory days of playing their counterparts. With the Resident Evil franchise, none of the live-action films came close capturing the pure shock and terror of their classic Playstation counterparts. Burning out as a film series with the release of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter in 2016, the popular game franchise gets its second attempt to bring the films closer to the original storyline with Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City. The latest rebooted attempt is darker, more action-packed, and overall faithful representation of the games. 

      Set in 1998, Raccoon City's plot explores the secrets of the mysterious Spencer Mansion and the ill-fated Raccoon City from the first two games. One thing which felt underwhelming about the 2002 Paul W.S Anderson film, was how little of the game it felt with it essentially abandoning the franchises horror aspects in exchange for embracing a more Sci-Fi tone with loose references connecting it to the games. Welcome To Raccoon City takes things further with it operating as being a more faithful adaptation, despite having scriptwriting issues. Carrying a lower budget than the previous films and resorting to old school action which may feel generic to audiences, Evil's main intent in bringing the film series closer to the games stands as being admirable. Whereas one found the Milla Jovovich series to be underwhelming, Welcome To Raccoon City aims to stay close to both the style and mood of the games with the overall experience being reasonably satisfying.  

      Resident Evil's cast does a strong job of breathing new life to the film series while attempting to do their game characters justice. Though they look nothing like their original counterparts, Kaya Scodelario and Avan Jogia deliver strong performances as Claire Redfield and Leon S. Kennedy. Scodelario makes for a serviceably tough female lead, whose investigating the Umbrella corporation with Jogia being believable as a clumsy rookie whose essentially viewed as being inexperienced by his peers. Hannah John-Kamen does well with her part as Jill Valentine, member of the STARS alpha team and partner of Claire's brother Chris. Robbie Amell is convincing as Chris Redfield, Claire's estranged older brother, whose dispatched to inspect the Spencer mansion. Both Donal Logue and Tom Hopper give impressive performances with Logue stealing the show as Raccoon City's Police Chief Brian, and Hopper as STARS Alpha Team member Albert, whose revealed to be working as a double agent for a rival company. Other noteworthy performances include Neal McDonough in a typecasted role as William Birkin, one of the Umbrella's experiments leaders. Evil's cast definitely make the most of what their given, while adding to the films level of suspense. 

       Evil's directing by Johannes Roberts is effective in recapturing the desolate feel of the games while keeping things fast-paced and the violence on the level of being ultra-gory with effectively scary sound effects. Some of the films most shocking bits include violence against animals (A Dog, bird, cow, and dragonfly), as well as the showing of a person on fire. The cinematography is well-handled with the film appearing impressively atmospheric with the usage of dark corridors, including key shots of the Spencer mansion and Raccoon City Police Station sets, that give stunning throwback moments to the games. The film carries an effective soundtrack, which appropriately fits the stories 90's setting with the pacing never letting up throughout the films 107 minute running time. Along with the films breathtaking set designs, the creature designs are unquestionably impressive, particularly the iconic Licker from the games. Roberts gives the story the perfect visual appearance that beautifully compliments that of the games. Here, he aims for a look and style of the first two games that's undeniable, with the results being hugely satisfying. 

      Resident Evil's writing however, comes across as feeling generic with zero risks being taken here. Most of the characters lack true depth, although Claire and Leon receive a fair amount of development. The latter is portrayed as a bumbling cop who likes to drink with him scripted as being the films comic relief. Claire is written as being an estranged individual with a backstory showing her in an orphanage, and ultimately escaping from Dr. Birkin upon being selected to be experimented on for scientific research. Other characters like Wesker and jock are portrayed as being stereotypical with the former being a jock, and the latter being an expert at firing a gun. The script throws out fun references like Hollywood Video or Blockbuster to emphasize the films 90's setting. The writing attempts to combine the storylines of the first two  games with the results being mixed. On one hand, it makes the film feel more true to the games than Jovovich's series with the other making it feel crammed despite its relatively short running time. To cover the plot of both games, a much longer running time is required in order to do it complete justice. As commendable as the new Resident Evil's efforts are in following the originals storyline, the writing still feels uninspired and lacking at times. 

      If the end goal was to bring the series closer to the games, then Resident Evil succeeds in doing so. The film is made with profound admiration for the series and carries enough Easter eggs to please the most ardent fans. Though not perfect and contains numerous faults, Welcome To Raccoon City passes as being decent popcorn entertainment that's well-intentioned but required stronger filmmakers to fully realize the material to its fullest potential. As a reboot of the series, it offers a path forward that's closer to what was originally desired in 2002. It's not a fantastic video game film adaptation, but it gets the job done in delivering a heavy dose of 90's nostalgia for fans of the series.

Final Verdict: Worth a watch if you're a fan of the series.

Images Courtesy Of Screen Gems

Rocky IV: Rocky VS. Drago-The Ultimate Director's Cut Delivers A Knockout Hit That improves Upon Its Theatrical Version

             

      The true purpose of any directors cut is to improve upon the original version of the film, that might've been compromised in order to deliver a more commercialized version to audiences. In the case of Rocky IV, franchise star and director Sylvester Stallone takes the series most commercially successful entry which initially received a critical drubbing, and releases a new version that adds 40 minutes of additional footage, making it a superior cut to the one that came out c 37 years prior. Now titled Rocky VS. Drago, the newest cut takes what was essentially viewed as being an unnecessary entry in the series and turns it into one of the series best.

     Rocky VS. Drago's plot has Rocky Balboa going up against the Soviet Union's 6ft Russian boxer named Ivan Drago, after witnessing his former rival turned friend Apollo Creed, killed in a previous boxing match with Drago. Feeling guilt for not intervening, Balboa decides to avenge his friends death by challenging Ivan to a boxing match in the Soviet Union. One of the theatrical cuts main issues despite being entertaining, always stemmed from the lack of emotion that it carried. Here, Stallone rectifies that problem with the directors cut having more of an emotional core to it. This time, the friendship between Rocky and Apollo is deepened along with his death being more impactful. Gone from this cut are the questionably cheesy elements like the subplot between Paulie and his robot, SICO. With the changes Stallone gives in the new version, the narrative feels more focused and the hits carry a deeper impact with the experience ultimately being a rewarding one.

      One key area that improves over the theatrical version are the actors performances. Both Stallone and Carl Weathers are stronger here with the former portraying a more remorseful Balboa, who feels guilt for not throwing in the towel to prevent his friends death. The eliminating of old scenes and the adding of newer ones makes their friendship feel more genuine, almost on a brotherly level essentially. Talia Shire is solid as Adrian with Dolph Lundgren receiving more lines here as Drago, making him feel less like a Schwarzenegger type cyborg and more of a person whose a product of the system that bred him into a fighter encouraged to commit cold-blooded murder. Of all the actors that experienced changes in the newer cut, Burt Young does well as Paulie despite losing his arc with SICO, yet maintains his more serious moments including his heartfelt monologue to Rocky before his fight with Drago. Though he has less screentime this round, his character still remains effective nonetheless.

     Stallone's directing remains identical to the theatrical cut despite minimal changes. One example is Rocky driving and having flashbacks to the previous Rocky films with the song No Easy Way Out playing in the background. Whereas the original version has the flashbacks in color, the newest one plays them in black-and-white which proves more effective. Another change that works here, is the switching of the opening scenes. Instead of the old version replaying Rocky defeating Clubber Lang and fulfilling Apollo's favor of a private rematch, the new opening shows Rocky losing to Lang the first match and feeling the defeat only to win the rematch with Apollo's help. Like the theatrical cut, both versions of Rocky IV remain fast-paced with the newest version clocking in at 94 minutes, compared to the originals 92 minutes. Stallone also incorporates some of the more quieter and emotional music from the previous Rocky films to further enhance the emotional scenes, while also adding in new shots during the boxing scenes, particularly Creed and Drago's that makes it feel more brutal this time around. With the directors cut, Stallone doesn't waste the opportunity issues that he had with the original cut while making good scenes stronger.

      The writing for Rocky VS. Drago feels more straight-forward and connects with Creed ll in a more significant way than before. The audience better understands the sacrifice that Apollo and Rocky made in challenging Drago. The latter also has a stronger first presence in the film that gives him a Frankenstein-type vibe, while also playing into the dated 80's Cold-War image of the perfect super soldier. The newer cut definitely carries a heavier U.S.A VS. Russia political undertone with Creed first seeing the announcement of Drago wishing to seek the boxing championship title, and feeling obliged to challenge him in a fight. The little changes made between Rocky and Apollo's dynamic really go a long way of making Creed's death more impactful, along with the inclusion of Adrian encouraging Rocky to not back the fight with Creed also adding to the guilt that Balboa feels later in the series. 

      Given the recent tensions between the U.S. and Russia, one can see Stallone's reasoning behind revisiting this Rocky installment. The directors cut isn't without its flaws such as the editing feeling a bit choppy at times with key characters now receiving a shortage of screentime (Rocky's son and Paulie). How much one enjoys the newly improved version of the Rocky IV will depend on their liking of the previous one. If one found themselves enjoying the theatrical version despite its imperfections, then they'll be shocked to discover that the directors cut is even better. However, if one found Rocky IV to be a completely unnecessary sequel in the series that contributes to the franchises diminishing returns, then the their feelings will remain the same. It's clear upon watching this version that Stallone wasn't satisfied with the original cut, and sought to improve that as best as he could. He succeeds mostly in crafting a newer film that stands closer to the previous installments, while fixing the problem of the original cut being emotionally bankrupt. This time when Rocky defeats Drago and gives his big speech about people changing and walks off to Eye Of The Tiger playing in the background, it means something with the franchise ultimately being better for it. 

Final Verdict: For both Rocky and Creed fans, Rocky VS. Drago is a must see experience that turns a flawed sequel into a good one. 

Images Courtesy Of MGM