Bonus – West Side Story
Forbidden love and gang wars. Happiness and tragedy. Singing and dancing. Director Steven Spielberg's love letter to the iconic West Side Story has it all! Popcorn Podcast brings you the action and energy of Spielberg's adaptation, which unravels the tale of Tony (Ansel Elgort) and Maria (Rachel Zegler), teenage lovers threatened by circumstances they can't control.
Find an edited extract of this episode below.
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WEST SIDE STORY MOVIE REVIEW
Tim: Let's talk about Steven Spielberg. He's the man in the chair and, believe it or not, this is his first movie musical. Doesn't that blow your mind?
Leigh: Yes! And there was some hesitancy because of that.
Tim: From who?
Leigh: From the general public, when it was announced that he would do a musical. I mean, he is the king. He's amazing. He's one of the greatest directors of modern times. But people still kind of went, “Oh, can you do a musical though?”
Tim: Do you think he did a good job?
Leigh: The man can do no wrong.
Tim: He can do no wrong. He may not have done a movie musical, but here’s a piece of trivia: he has dabbled in this world once before. Back in 1984, he opened up Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom with the classic song Anything Goes. So it has always been his dream to direct a movie musical. He just waited another 37 years before he actually was able to realise that goal of his.
Leigh: With, of course, his future wife, Kate Capshaw.
Tim: Exactly, yes! She was in that opening number.
Leigh: Spielberg loves the West Side Story musical though. I think that goes a long way. He's loved it since he was 10 years old, listening to the cast recording on a record player. One thing I found really amazing is that he says his first experience seeing this musical come to life was in his imagination.
Tim: Really?
Leigh: How cool!
Tim: Well, he's a director, he sees things, right? Oh, that's such a beautiful story.
Leigh: You can't fault Spielberg's eye as a director.
Tim: Not at all.
Leigh: People might have been a bit unsure, but the proof is in the pudding. He knows how to beautifully present a character-driven drama – and now we come to discover – even a musical.
