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Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story' reimagined a key character as transgender

posted 3 years ago by ReelReviews14 (1174)
85 replies | jump to latest

snip:

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In the original Broadway production and Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins's film version, the swaggering Jets are followed around the Upper West Side by Anybodys, a young tomboy from the neighborhood who desperately wants to be part of their gang.
Most depictions of Anybodys — including Susan Oakes's portrayal in the earlier movie — avoid dwelling in detail on the character's gender identity beyond the traditional trappings of a '50s-era tomboy: short hair and a spiky attitude. But Spielberg's film firmly establishes the character as transgender, both via dialogue heard in the film and the performer cast in the role: nonbinary Broadway actor Iris Menas.

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And people are still asking "What's so woke about this? I don't see any 'woke agenda' in the new West Side Story. Nothing wrong with actual Spanish language and casting actual Puetro Ricans, it fits the story. blah blah blah".

Yeah, "Transgendered character" just TOTALLY fits the mid 1950s setting... right?

[–] Burk48917 (11112) 2 years ago

It went woke so it went broke. Hollywood will learn soon enough.

[–] Information-Police (4413) 2 years ago

It's possible that the character was portrayed as transgender just to piss off people like you, and nothing wrong with that.

[–] ReelReviews14 (1174) 2 years ago

Unfortunately for you, "people like me" (who DON'T want to see classic characters "updated" for the sake of political correctness) outnumber people like you (SJWs with a weird schizo mindset where ONLY black people can voice black cartoon characters, but a straight white male character that's been around for decades should be "reimagined" as a black female lesbian cuz "diversity")

Hollywood is learning that the hard way, gritting their teeth in frustration as stuff like this bombs.

Must really suck for you guys that nobody wants to watch this trash!

[–] Information-Police (4413) 2 years ago

No skin off my nose, I don't want to watch it either.

But I'm glad you are so upset. That makes the movie worthwhile for me.

[–] janelsenor (2042) 2 years ago

That's just PR. In the context of the film itself, Anybodys it portrayed pretty much the same as always. There's no mention of the character being trans in the film.

[–] Otter (24464) 2 years ago

Honestly, the only difference between the character in the 1960 film is the styling, and a line or two of dialogue.

If anyone is offended by that, then they're the sort of asshole who's out looking for stuff to be offended by.

[–] mplo (2305) 2 years ago

Oh, come on now! The dialogue in the 2021 film version of West Side Story is quite different than the dialogue in the old, original 1961 film version of West Side Story, which, imho, is the real deal. if one gets the drift.

[–] Otter (24464) 2 years ago

What exactly do you mean by "if one gets the drift"?

[–] mplo (2305) 2 years ago

In this case, it means that when someone watches both the original 1961 film version of West Side Story and Spielberg's 2021 film version of West Side Story and listens closely to the dialogue in both film versions of WSS, that s/he will find that the dialogue in both the old, original 1961 film version of West Side Story and the 2021 film version of West Side Story are very different.

[–] darkpast (8261) 2 years ago

i laughed every time he appeared , it was like "It's Pat"

[–] ak47wong (484) 2 years ago

Anybodys is hardly a "key character" anyway, more like a bit part.

[–] roreyking (566) a year ago

Anybodys is hardly a "key character". And who cares if they turn a tomboy transgender?

[–] jk90us (5736) a year ago

Everyone.

[–] mplo (2305) a year ago

In the first place, a lot of the Latino/Latina actors and actresses were not Puerto Rican. In the second place, many of them were born here in the United States, and many of them, including Rachel Zegler(who played Maria in the 2021 WSS film version), and Ariana DuBose, who played Anita in the new WSS film version, were born here in the United States, and they, too, spoke with false accents in the new WSS film.

David Alvarez, who plays Bernardo in the new WSS film version, was also born in Montreal, Canada.

[–] jk90us (5736) a year ago

Yet another reason why it bombed so massively. Stop fucking with classics.

[–] mplo (2305) a year ago

You've made a good point, jk90us. There was a ton of hypocrisy in Spielberg's reboot/remake of the film version of West Side Story. As I pointed out on a post on another thread on here, reboots/remakes of older classic films very seldom come out well, and the reboot/remake of the film version of West Side Story is no exception.