West Side Story is a 1961 American musical romantic drama film directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, written by Ernest Lehman, and produced by Wise. The film is an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same title, which in turn was inspired by Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, and George Chakiris and was photographed by Daniel L. Fapp in Super Panavision 70. The music was composed by Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
Released on October 18, 1961, through United Artists, the film received praise from critics and viewers, and became the highest-grossing film of 1961. It was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and won 10, including Best Picture (in addition to a special award for Robbins), becoming the record holder for the most wins for a musical. West Side Story is regarded as one of the greatest musical films of all time. The film was designated as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1997. A second film adaptation by Steven Spielberg was released in December 2021.
Plot
In New York City in 1957, two teenage gangs compete for control on the Upper West Side. The Jets, a group of whites led by Riff, brawl with the Sharks, Puerto Ricans led by Bernardo. Lieutenant Schrank and Officer Krupke arrive and break it up. The Jets challenge the Sharks to a rumble to be held after an upcoming dance.
Riff wants his best friend Tony, a co-founder and former member of the Jets, to fight at the rumble. Riff invites Tony to the dance, but Tony says he senses something important is coming. Riff suggests it could happen at the dance. Tony finally agrees to go. Meanwhile, Bernardo's younger sister, Maria, tells her best friend and Bernardo's girlfriend, Anita, how excited she is about the dance. At the dance, the two gangs and their girls refuse to intermingle. Tony arrives; he and Maria fall in love instantly, but Bernardo angrily demands that Tony stay away from her and sends her home. Riff proposes a midnight meeting with Bernardo at Doc's drug store to settle the rules for the rumble.
Anita argues that Bernardo is overprotective of Maria, and they compare the advantages of Puerto Rico and the US mainland. Tony sneaks onto Maria's fire escape where they reaffirm their love. Krupke, who suspects the Jets are planning something, warns them not to cause trouble. The Sharks arrive, and the gangs agree to a showdown the following evening under the highway, with a one-on-one fistfight. When Schrank arrives, the gangs feign friendship. Schrank orders the Sharks out and fails to discover information about the fight.
The next day at the bridal shop where they work, Anita accidentally tells Maria about the rumble. Tony arrives to see Maria. Anita, shocked, warns them about the consequences if Bernardo learns of their relationship. Maria makes Tony promise to prevent the rumble. Tony and Maria fantasize about their wedding.
The gangs approach the area under the highway. Tony arrives to stop the fight, but Bernardo antagonizes him. Unwilling to watch Tony be humiliated, Riff initiates a knife fight. Tony intervenes, leading to Bernardo stabbing and killing Riff. Tony kills Bernardo with Riff's knife, and a melee ensues. Police sirens blare, and everyone flees, leaving behind the dead bodies. Maria waits for Tony on the roof of her apartment building; her fiancé Chino (an arranged engagement) arrives and tells her what happened. Tony arrives and asks for Maria's forgiveness. He plans to turn himself in to the police. Maria is devastated but confirms her love for Tony and asks him to stay.
The Jets and their new leader, Ice, reassemble outside a garage and focus on reacting to the police. Anybodys arrives and warns them that Chino is after Tony with a gun. Ice sends the Jets to warn Tony. A grieving Anita enters the apartment while Tony and Maria are in the bedroom. The lovers arrange to meet at Doc's, where they will pick up getaway money to elope. Anita spots Tony leaving through the window and chides Maria for the relationship with Bernardo's killer, but Maria convinces her to help them elope. Schrank arrives and questions Maria about the rumble. Maria sends Anita to tell Tony that Maria is detained from meeting him.
When Anita reaches Doc's, the Jets harass and sexually assault her, stopping only when Doc appears and intervenes. Anita angrily lies, saying that Chino has killed Maria. Doc banishes the Jets, gives Tony his getaway money and delivers Anita's message. Tony, distraught, runs into the streets, shouting for Chino to kill him, too. In the playground next to Doc's, Tony spots Maria and they run toward each other, only for Chino to shoot Tony. The gangs arrive to find Maria holding Tony, who dies in her arms. Maria takes the gun from Chino and threatens to shoot everyone, blaming their hate for the deaths, but cannot do so. Schrank and Krupke arrive to arrest Chino, and the gangs end their feud by uniting to carry Tony's body away in a funeral procession with Maria following.
Cast Natalie Wood as Maria, Bernardo's younger sister and Chino's arranged fiancée, who falls in love with Tony Marni Nixon as Maria's singing voice (also Anita's singing voice in Quintet) Richard Beymer as Tony, co-founder and one-time member of the Jets and best friend of Riff, who works at Doc's drugstore and falls in love with Maria Jimmy Bryant as Tony's singing voice Russ Tamblyn as Riff, leader of the Jets, best friend of Tony Tucker Smith as Riff's singing voice for "Jet Song" Rita Moreno as Anita, Bernardo's girlfriend, and Maria's closest confidante Betty Wand as Anita's singing voice for "A Boy Like That" Marni Nixon as Anita’s singing voice for "Tonight Quintet" George Chakiris as Bernardo, leader of the Sharks, older brother of Maria and Anita's boyfriend Simon Oakland as Lieutenant Schrank, a hard-boiled plainclothes detective Ned Glass as Doc, Tony's boss; a decent, elderly Jewish drugstore owner William Bramley as Sergeant Krupke, a brusque beat cop (Bramley played the role in the original Broadway production)
Uncredited: John Astin as Glad Hand, well-meaning but ineffective social worker Penny Santon as Madam Lucia, bridal shop owner
Jets
Tucker Smith as Ice (a character created for the film), Riff's lieutenant; becomes leader of the Jets after Riff's death Tony Mordente as Action, a short-tempered Jet. David Winters as A-Rab, Baby John's best friend Eliot Feld as Baby John, the youngest member of the Jets; a relative innocent Bert Michaels as Snowboy David Bean as Tiger Robert Banas as Joyboy Anthony 'Scooter' Teague as Big Deal Harvey Evans (Harvey Hohnecker) as Mouthpiece Tommy Abbott as Gee-Tar
Jet girls
Susan Oakes as Anybodys, a tomboy and wannabe Jet Gina Trikonis as Graziella, Riff's girlfriend Carole D'Andrea as Velma, Ice's girlfriend Uncredited: Rita Hyde d'Amico as Clarice, Big Deal's girlfriend Pat Tribble as Minnie, Baby John's girlfriend Francesca Bellini as Debby, Snowboy's girlfriend Elaine Joyce as Hotsie, Tiger's girlfriend
Sharks
Jose De Vega as Chino Martin, Bernardo's best friend, who is the arranged fiancé of Maria Jay Norman as Pepe, Bernardo's lieutenant Gus Trikonis as Indio, Pepe's best friend Eddie Verso as Juano Jaime Rogers as Loco Larry Roquemore as Rocco Robert Thompson as Luis Nick Covacevich as Toro Rudy Del Campo as Del Campo Andre Tayir as Chile
Shark girls
Yvonne Wilder as Consuelo, Pepe's girlfriend (In credits as Yvonne Othon) Suzie Kaye as Rosalia, Indio's girlfriend Joanne Miya as Francisca, Toro's girlfriend Uncredited: Maria Jimenez Henley as Teresita, Juano's girlfriend Luci Stone as Estella, Loco's girlfriend Olivia Perez as Margarita, Rocco's girlfriend
Musical numbers
Act I "Overture" – Orchestra "Prologue" – Orchestra "Jet Song" – Riff and Jets "Something's Coming" – Tony "Dance at the Gym: (Blues, Promenade, Mambo, Cha-cha, and Jump)" – Orchestra "Maria" – Tony "America" – Anita, Bernardo, Sharks and Girls "Tonight" – Tony and Maria "Gee, Officer Krupke" – Riff and Jets "Maria (violin)" – Orchestra
Act II "I Feel Pretty" – Maria, Consuelo, Rosalia, and Francisca "One Hand, One Heart" – Tony and Maria "Tonight Quintet" – Maria, Tony, Anita, Riff, Bernardo, Jets, and Sharks "The Rumble" – Orchestra "Somewhere" – Tony and Maria "Cool" – Ice and Jets "A Boy Like That/I Have a Love" – Anita and Maria "Somewhere" (reprise) – Maria "Finale" – Orchestra
Production Executive producer Walter Mirisch enlisted the services of Jerome Robbins, who had directed and choreographed the stage version of West Side Story. Because Robbins had no previous film experience, Mirisch hired Robert Wise to co-direct and produce because of his "experience in gritty subject matter" and his ability to complete motion pictures under budget and ahead of schedule. Robbins was to direct the musical sequences, and Wise would handle the story's dramatic elements. Robbins directed his portion of the film first, spending a great deal of time on retakes and on-set rehearsals as well as discussing setups with Wise. Assistant director Robert Relyea recalled an unusual number of injuries endured by the dancers. After 45 days of shooting, the picture was 24 days behind schedule. With the film over budget, Wise dismissed Robbins. The remaining dance numbers were directed with the help of Robbins's assistants. Recognizing Robbins's considerable creative contribution to the film, Wise agreed that Robbins should be given co-directing credit. Robbins and Wise also kept in contact and discussed the production, with Wise's taking many of Robbins's suggestions about the editing of the film. The titles and end credits sequences were designed by Saul Bass with Elaine Makatura Bass. Bass was credited as visual consultant for creating the opening sequence over the film's overture.
On location shooting for the "Prologue" and "Jet Song" occurred at two different Manhattan, New York locations. A playground located at East 110th Street, now Tito Puente Way, between 2nd and 3rd Avenues, served as the backdrop for introducing the two gangs. West 68th Street between West End and Amsterdam Avenues, three blocks north of the San Juan Hill community, provided additional realism for where the gangs roamed. The sound stages at the Samuel Goldwyn Studio, located in West Hollywood, California, were used for rehearsals and studio shooting.
Casting
Although Robbins pushed for 29-year-old Carol Lawrence, the first Maria, to be cast in the same role in the film, after seeing her screen test the producers agreed she was too old to play the part. A number of other cast members from the Broadway and West End productions were cast in the film. Tony Mordente, who played A-Rab on stage, was cast as Action in the film, and George Chakiris, Riff in the London stage production, played Bernardo in the film. Tucker Smith, who joined the Broadway production several months into its run, played Diesel, renamed Ice for the film. David Winters, the first Baby John on stage, played A-Rab. Eliot Feld, an ensemble member and understudy for Baby John on Broadway, played Baby John. Jay Norman, Juano on stage, appeared as Pepe. Reprising their stage roles in the film were Carole D'Andrea as Velma, Tommy Abbott as Gee-Tar, and William Bramley as Officer Krupke.