Film Response: West Side Story vs. Zoot Suit, A Comparison-Contrast - Essay Example

? Film Response: West Side Story vs. Zoot Suit, A Comparison-Contrast Word Count 500 (6 pages) I. Introduction West Side Story is a 1960’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The film is set in New York City and centers around a feud over turf between two gangs; the Sharks and the Jets. In Zoot Suit, Luis Valdez takes us on a journey into the pachuco gang lifestyle that was popular in the barrios of Los Angeles in the 1940s. The film is based on real-life events in which Latinos were persecuted (Zoot Suit Riots and the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial). Thematically, both films explore urban and gang life, racial tensions, family ties, and gender roles. In this paper, the two films: will be compared and explored (as well as what are their similarities and differences); will be analyzed to determine to what extent the directors were successful in addressing real life concerns in telling their stories and why these stories are told; will be analyzed as to how the characters are portrayed (are they real men and women, stereotypes, or mythical figures?); and will be analyzed in terms of the ways how filmmakers employ theatrical and cinematic devices as well as the utilization of dance, music, incorporation of myth, and realism to help tell their stories. ??? II. Comparison of West Side Story and Zoot Suit (Similarities and Differences) West Side Story was primarily based off the hit Broadway musical. The gist of the story is that two people—Tony and Maria—are from two different cultures, Polish and Spanish. Tony used to be a part of the gang the Jets, but isn’t anymore. However, they find love even in the midst of the gang rivalry. “[W]hen Riff's best friend (and former Jet) Tony and Bernardo's younger sister Maria meet at a dance, no one can do anything to stop their love. Maria and Tony begin meeting in secret, planning to run away. Then the Sharks and Jets plan a rumble under the highway - whoever wins gains control of the streets. Maria sends Tony to stop it, hoping it can end the violence.”1 Similarly, Zoot Suit dealt also with gang issues that plagued young Latinos, albeit: the setting was a little different (Los Angeles instead of New York); the movie was based on a play, not a musical; and that this movie did not focus centrally on a love story but more about being in the gang. Unfortunately, the gang talked about in the Zoot Suit movie were unlawfully arrested, with no evidence that a crime had ever been committed by anyone in the gang—at least not the crime to which people were interested in. A Mr. Jose Diaz had been murdered, and the ‘38th Street Gang’ was held responsible. Indeed, “…Henry Leyvas and 24 members of the ‘38th Street Gang’…were arrested and charged with…murder [and there was] a public outcry for ‘justice’ and vengeance against the zoot suiters caused…a[n] [L.A.] roundup of over 600 people on [August 11th and 12th of 1942]. All were charged with [crimes].”2 This was an act of racial discrimination. Those are the ways in which the two movies compare and contrast. III. Addressing Real-Life Concerns and Why These Stories Are Told Why these movies were made was to shed light upon discriminatory practices against Latinos. “Latino directors who made breakthroughs in the early 1980s included Luis Valdez, whose [movie] Zoot Suit (1981)…offered an unsparing look at urban gangs, utilizing turf wars to explore issues of local and national belonging.”3 The real-life concerns portrayed in both of these movies mainly included discrimination faced every day by Latinos—who are looked upon with mistrust in West Side Story. It is obvious that the gang which set off the Zoot Suit Riots definitely were discriminated against by the L.A. cops and for being charged with a murder that they most certainly probably didn’t even commit. The reason these types of stories are told are to show people how discrimination against Latinos does in fact exist and that it is not acceptable behavior. Just like the way African-Americans were discriminated against in the ‘60s, Latinos also face their own forms of discrimination—including problems with illegal immigration. People are not ‘illegal.’ Although people come to the U.S. illegally, that does not mean that these people can be treated like animals or mere servants. They are somebodies. They have rights and needs too like every other human being. Both of these movies portray the injustices suffered by Latinos and hopefully both shed light upon the dark corners of hatred. These types of stories need to be told, because, if they are not—a whole generation of kids will grow up not knowing the struggles that Latinos had to overcome in order to get where they are today. IV. How Characters Are Portrayed—Are They Real Men and Women, Stereotypes, or Mythical Figures? West Side Story started out as a musical. “By [1961,] West Side Story had completed its Broadway run (1957- 1959) and was pretty well engrained in the national consciousness.”4 Characters in West Side Story were portrayed fairly accurately, although there was some overacting on the part of the Jets. Some of the gang members of the Jets were really hams—trying to get the laughs. Tony and Maria are indeed real, but to some extent Maria was a stereotype. Tony’s character was way too fake, and he didn’t really come across as a convincing Polish man. The characters from the Zoot Suit movie were somewhat stereotypical—as one might imagine—but these figures were also more mythical in status because this movie was actually based upon an actual historical event that happened (the Zoot Suit Riots). It seems that the Zoot Suit movie preyed upon common stereotypes that made these figures almost comical were they not so serious. Of course, the fact that Edward James Olmos played El Pachuco made the role even that much more cliched. V. Ways in Which the Filmmakers Employ Theatrical and Cinematic Devices, As Well As Dance, Music, Incorporation of Myth, and Realism West Side Story employs music and dance in its presentation, while Zoot Suit mainly employs the incorporation of myth and realism. West Side Story utilized a wide variety of cinematographical devices—one of the most famous being the part where there is a school dance, and that is where Tony first lays his eyes on Maria. Music is a huge part of West Side Story since it was originally a musical. There is usually a song with almost every scene. There are several songs that are memorable in West Side Story, such as “Who Knows,” “Maria,” “I Feel Pretty,” and so many more. The song “Who Knows” is employed in the beginning, where Tony can feel something great happening in the air. At this point, however, it is only foreshadowing, because he hasn’t met Maria yet or her vigilant fiancee Bernardo. “Maria” is another famous song, the one that Tony sings when he finds Maria and meets her for the first time at the school dance. “I Feel Pretty” is a little ditty that Maria sings as she gets ready for her imagined wedding to Tony. Of course, this movie doesn’t have a happy ending—similar to that of Zoot Suit in the sense that there is no resolution to the problems set forth in the beginning. Zoot Suit is more of a historically-inspired melodrama that tries to be realistic in its depictions. 34 Zoot Suit used more theatrical devices—while West Side Story employed more cinematic devices such as the incorporation of historical myth, basically some storymaking, as well as solid dose of realism to boot. VI. Conclusion In this paper, the two films West Side Story and Zoot Suit: were compared and explored (as well as what are their similarities and differences); were analyzed to determine to what extent the directors were successful in addressing real life concerns in telling their stories and why these stories are told; were analyzed as to how the characters are portrayed (are they real men and women, stereotypes, or mythical figures?); and were analyzed in terms of the ways how filmmakers employ theatrical and cinematic devices as well as the utilization of dance, music, incorporation of myth, and realism to help tell their stories. It is hoped that further exploration of these two different films will help to tell us more—not only about the Latino community—but about ourselves and who we are as people and as a nation. It is only once we stop discriminating against people who do not look the same as everyone else that we will truly be free as a nation. As the Zoot Suit Riot demonstrated, it’s detrimental to judge individuals based on the fact that they have a certain type of surname—in this case, Latino surnames. This serves as a prime example. WORKS CITED Dimare, Philip C. Movies in American History: An Encyclopedia. US: ABC-CLIO, 2011. Pp. 938. Nichols, Peter M. Children’s Movies: A Critic’s Guide to the Best Films Available on Video. US: Macmillan, 2003. Pp. 293. Plot Summary for West Side Story. Retrieved 30 Oct 2011 on the Internet Movie Database at: . Pgh. 1. Suavecito Apparel Co. Retrieved 30 Oct 2011 at: . Pgh. 4. Read More