Month O' Musicals: West Side Story

Vital Stats:
Year: 1961
Directors: Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins
Stars: Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, George Chakiris
Choreographer: Jerome Robbins
Music: Leonard Bernstein
Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim

Summary:
Set in 1950s Manhattan, this updated take on Romeo and Juliet has the conflict occurring between rival gangs (the Jets & the Sharks) with Tony and Maria as the star-crossed lovers.

Memorable Moments:
There's some beautiful songs here ("Something's Coming", "Maria", "I Feel Pretty", "One Hand, One Heart", and "Somewhere") but the amazing energy of the music and dancing is perhaps best seen in moments like the opening interactions between the gangs, the dance at the gym, and during the songs "America", the "Tonight Quintet" and "Cool".


What I love about it:
From the opening shots over the city to the end credits mixed in with urban graffiti, I watch this movie completely transfixed. I don't think there's a bad song in the bunch, although I do have my favorites. I find Bernardo and Anita a bit more interesting than Tony and Maria, although Natalie Wood is very watchable as Maria. I also like spotting Bud Frump (Anthony 'Scooter' Teague from How to Succeed) as one of the Jets.

The second act is increasingly bleak, but what do you expect of a movie based on one of the world's most famous tragedies? It's an emotional ride, but an amazing one.

Month O' Musicals: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Vital Stats:
Year: 1954
Director: Stanley Donen
Stars: Howard Keel, Jane Powell, Russ Tamblyn, Julie Newmar (Catwoman in the 1960s Batman), Tommy Rall
Choreographer: Michael Kidd
Lyrics: Johnny Mercer

Summary:
Backwoodsman Adam Pontipee comes into town one day shopping for lard, molasses, chewing tobacco, and something he can't find behind the store counter: a wife. Amazingly enough, he gets a hard-working woman named Milly to agree to marry him, although he fails to mention to her that he has six other scroungy (slummocky, in the version I grew up watching) brothers back home. It's not long before she has them all cleaned up into mighty good-looking boys, ready to catch the eyes of the girls in town. But it's not only the girls' hearts that the brothers end up stealing away.

Memorable Moments:


The choreography really shines in the energetic, acrobatic dance at the barn raising. The tension built up between the brothers and the townsmen as they vie for the girls' attentions climaxes in a pretty funny fight scene.

What I love about it:
The wonderful Johnny Mercer lyrics in songs such as "Bless Yore Beautiful Hide", "Lonesome Polecat" ("Can't make no vows to a herd of cows.") and "Sobbin' Women".

I also find it amusing trying to choose a favorite brother out of the seven. My pick used to be the cute baby brother Gideon, but I'd say now he's just too young for me. Who's left? I find it hard to pine for Adam since he's taken so early in the movie. (Also, despite his nice singing voice, he seems a bit selfish and arrogant.) I'm afraid Benjamin belongs in the pretty but dumb category. Caleb, Daniel and Ephraim all kinda blend together for me -- two of them sport facial hair that is too reminiscently backwoodsy, and the clean-shaven one of the three is rather bland and boring.

My pick would have to be Frank. Although he does seem to have a bit of a temper (mostly seen in his sensitivity to being teased about his name) he's also the best at the handshake-wrestling-on-wood-boards thing. And he's got a chin dimple. I like chin dimples.