Why Mike Faist Was The Best Part Of ‘West Side Story’ (2021)
Mike Faist is an incredibly talented actor, singer, and dancer who played Connor Murphy in Dear Evan Hanson on Broadway. However, you probably know him as Riff from the new West Side Story directed by Steven Spielberg. Faist has been nominated for a BAFTA award and Film Critics award for his performance – but he deserves even more recognition. His portrayal of Riff was the best part of West Side Story. From the moment he sings the Jet Song to the emotion in his eyes during Cool and the unforgettable scenes at the rumble, he nails every single scene that he’s in.
The new Riff is so impressive that the original Riff wanted to meet him in order to pass on the torch. In case you’ve forgotten, the original Riff in the 1961 version of West Side Story was played by Russ Tamblyn. Tamblyn was also in Twin Peaks (the original version and the newer version), Tom Thumb (1958), and The Haunting (1963).
As you probably know, West Side Story was inspired by Romeo and Juliet, so there are a lot of heavy, emotional moments. Although this probably isn’t the first scene you think of when Riff comes to mind, there are actual tears in his eyes while performing Cool, proving that Riff doesn’t really want to resort to violence – and that Mike is an incredible actor.
In interviews, Faist has mentioned how he originally wasn’t sure whether he had the dance skills in order to perform as Riff. However, he lands every single one of his performances perfectly. According to him, some of this credit goes to Spielburg who “allowed me the freedom, quite frankly, to run wild and to be liberated.”
Even after his big death scene, Faist still manages to make an impact from off the screen. The woman that he’s been hooking up with, Grazie, is shown wearing his shirt from earlier in the film. If you actually caught this during your first watch, it shows how deeply others care about him – in the film and in the audience.
There are so many amazing scenes that Faist is present in throughout the film – from when he’s dancing with Tony in his apartment to confronting Bernardo in the bathroom to buying a gun – that it’s easy to forget that the opening scene was so iconic. And he was a huge part of that.
Overall, Faist did an excellent job portraying Riff – from the accent to the look to the way he carried himself. Even though he might not come away with as many awards as he deserves, West Side Story is going to be a movie we re-watch again and again in order to enjoy his performance. Although he’s surrounded by a cast of equally talented people, he’s the one person you can’t walk away from the film forgetting.