The whole saga of Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” remake is stomach turning.
The film got great reviews up front. But Disney did little else to promote it. The result is a $30 million box office that should have been one-hundred-and-thirty. The marketing was terrible, and audiences stayed away.
When things looked bleak, the studio did nothing. They could have had a special holiday event on Disney Plus for Christmas or New Year’s. Silence. They also didn’t send physical DVD screeners out to press or to SAG. The movie should have gotten a SAG Best Ensemble nomination but missed. And the Golden Globes didn’t get it at all.
Now Disney is finally going to stream “West Side Story.” They’ll debut it on Disney Plus on March 2nd. But in a weird move, they’re also putting it on their rival, HBO Max. So if you have HBO, you’ll be able to watch it for free. It’s a little late for all this attention, but at least it’s something.
Why they’re waiting til March 2nd beats me. Final voting for the Academy Awards begins March 17 and closes five days later. By then everyone in the Academy will at least have had the chance to watch Spielberg’s really great film. I thought “West Side Story” was going to be Best Picture front runner, and I’m very disappointed that didn’t work out. Maybe this will help. I sure hope so.
