Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg’s cinematic version of West Side Story might be getting all the headlines this awards season, but another Latinx-led, Hollywood musical that debuted last summer was just as entertaining.
In fact, the Current included In the Heights in its Top 10 Films of 2021 list at No. 5 and called it “a joyful celebration of culture and family that’s creative, spirited and sincere.” Our review also underscored the performances of the entire cast, specifically Anthony Ramos and Olga Merediz.
Directed by Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians) and written by playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes, the film is adapted from the stage musical of the same name by Hudes and Broadway superstar Lin-Manuel Miranda.
The story follows a group of Washington Heights residents living their lives in Upper Manhattan. Ramos plays Usnavi de la Vega, the owner of a bodega who dreams of one day moving to the Dominican Republic. Merediz plays the matriarch of the community, whose performance of the song “Paciencia y Fe” (“Patience and Faith”) is one of cinema’s most memorable musical moments of 2021.
In the Heights may not have done well at the box office — it was released on HBO Max simultaneously and, you know, there’s a pandemic — but don’t let this one go unseen.
Free, 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3, McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., (210) 824-5368, mcnayart.org.
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This article appears in Jan 26 – Feb 8, 2022.