Show biz these days has changed, and not always for the good, either. I may not be one of those "regular" Americans who are religious, have a family of my own, but I don't like to treat other Americans, whoever they may be, like the enemy. I, too, like to see the hero win, and, although I'm liberal in many ways, I'm an ultra-conservative when it comes to the re-making/rebooting of good, older classic films, especially something such as the original 1961 film version of West Side Story, which is my all time favorite movie, hands down..
I saw part of Spielberg's reboot/remake of the film version of West Side Story, after having rented it to view on my computer (There's no way I would've paid to go and see it in a movie theatre!), and could not bring myself to see the whole thing. It felt all wrong, forced, unnatural, too dark, too heavy, and totally unlike West Side Story. The dancing was way too hyped up, the colors of the film often went from way too dark to being way too bright. The backdrop scenes looked far too overwhelming and way more like the tonier, wealthier parts of the city than the impoverished, rough and rundown parts of the city.
Rachel Zegler's Maria was way too churchy-looking, and Ansel Elgort's Tony did not look or even act like a tough-but-tender ex-gang member. Rachel Zegler's singing voice was too far back, not projected forward enough, and too nasal, and she went flat in a lot of places. Ansel Elgort's singing voice was nothing to write home about, either. The Valentina role that Rita Moreno played seemed totally all wrong for her, given her looks and her personality. I liked her better as Anita. Her singing "Somewhere" in Spielberg's West Side Story was totally out of place, as well.
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AmeriGirl26 (12922)
2 years ago
And that's the worst part. Two of the biggest problems show biz has today consist of these things:
- The people in Hollyweird who are in charge of making films/tv shows are living in a bubble of extreme left-wing values, and they really don't understand their audience anymore, and don't want to. They remind me eerily of the Court of Versailles in 18th century France, because that's how far the gulf between Hollyweird is and regular viewers.
- These same childish nutjobs have sacrificed good story-telling in favor of turning every one of their productions into a hard-left political platform, and get angry when nobody outside their bubble likes it. They blame everyone else for their shortcomings, rather than trying to understand what their customers like and don't like.
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mplo (2305)
2 years ago
What's also unfortunate is that many, if not most movies that are coming out nowadays are very long on style (if one can call it that with a straight face!), and woefully short on substance. Movies used to tell a story but an awful lot of them don't these days. Unfortunately, that's what sells, because that's what a lot of today's younger generation wants. It's sad but true.
That's why, when I go to movies, I make it a point to see mostly the older movies, when they play in movie theatres, courtesy of fathom events.com and Turner Classic movies. The 60th Anniversary screening of the old, original 1961 version of West Side Story was no exception, especially since that one's my all-time favorite movie, hands down.
Yet, if there's an occasional newer film that revolves around a subject that peaks my interest, I'll go to see that, too, although not as many times as I've seen the old, original 1961 film version of West Side Story, which I never get tired of watching, either on TV, or in a movie theatre, when it comes around..
I'll also add that a lot of the newer movies are too graphic, and too explicitly sexual, which can be bothersome, also. I don't mind seeing a certain amount of blood, gore, violence, or even sex, when there's a point or points to be made, but most of today's stuff really does exceed what's necessary, in those respects.
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AmeriGirl26 (12922)
2 years ago
I don't know, I've heard people say that even their kids can tell that much of what's on tv or in theaters is dog shit these days. There are parents who have shown older stuff to their kids, and they like that better than current stuff. The only people who watch the newer garbage [and sometimes even like it] are either stupid, or live in a blue city somewhere in the US. Either that, or they're foreigners that don't get the political messaging, or are desperate for entertainment that's "better" than what their own country has.
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mplo (2305)
2 years ago
Actually, while some of the things you're saying about people who watch all the newer stuff and/or like it, or who live in "blue" cities are true, that's not always the case. I live in a blue state (i e. the Bay State), and in a blue city just outside Boston, and I happen to like many, if not most of the older films that I've seen far better than I like much, if not most of the new stuff in the way of movies that are coming out nowadays.
I was talking with a friend of mine yesterday afternoon, who I had come with me and several other people to see the 60th Anniversary screening of the 1961 film version of West Side Story for the first time. She and everybody else who came with me to see the 60th Anniversary screening of the original 1961 film version of West Side Story liked it very, very much. ( I never get tired of the old film version of West Side Story, either. It's my all-time favorite movie hands down.)
When I told my friend yesterday about Spielberg's reboot/remake of the film version of West Side Story, she immediately responded with a "thumbs down" gesture. My mother had also seen Spielberg's reboot/remake of the film version of West Side Story on television, and she did not care for it.
It's an agreement between you, me, and tons of other people: Many, if not most of the older films are better, and the old, original 1961 film version of West Side Story is no exception.
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