Call me a bad theater kid, but I really can’t stand “Romeo and Juliet.” Knowing that the 1957 Broadway musical “West Side Story” was based on it, I’ve avoided seeing it and the 1961 film adaptation for my entire life.

But with the 60th anniversary of the film adaptation, the recent death of theater giant Stephen Sondheim and my being more than just a little curious as to how Stephen Spielberg would handle an iconic musical such as this, I decided to give his recent version a try.

I was pretty glad I did.

With a script courtesy of Broadway and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner, and a cast full of triple-threats (save one, more on that later), Spielberg, in his seemingly boundless imaginative process, has managed to bring this beloved classic into the 21st century while still being true to its roots.

The story follows that of “Romeo and Juliet” closely, so if your memories from high school English class are good, you pretty much know what happens. Only this isn’t about feuding families. Instead, we get feuding gangs of youth in a marked-for-demolition neighborhood on Manhattan’s west side in the 1950s.

This push to make way for future high-rises and the Lincoln Center exacerbates already-high tensions between the Puerto Rican Sharks and the white gang the Jets. The Jets make it clear that they hate anything that is different, and they’ll do anything to drive out the Puerto Ricans that moved to the area, while the Sharks aim to protect their homes and families no matter what.

Jet leader Riff (Mike Faist) decides that a rumble is the catalyst that needs to happen in order to show Shark leader Bernardo (David Alvarez) just what they’re made of, and they scheme to pull something after a mixer dance created to try and bridge a divide between the two groups.

Riff tries convinces the co-founder of the Jets, Tony (Ansel Elgort) to show, too — not mentioning the potential brawl — even though Tony has tried to change his ways after going to prison for nearing killing a member of a rival gang.

With a little encouragement from his boss/land lady/surrogate parent Valentina (Rita Moreno), Tony joyously decides that something good must be coming so he decides to go.

Meanwhile, Bernardo’s sister Maria (newcomer Rachel Zegler) is wide-eyed and hoping to be swept off her feet in this exciting life in New York. Her friend, and Bernardo’s long-term girlfriend, Anita (the stunning Ariana DeBose) helps her get ready for the dance hoping sparks will fly between Maria and her date Chino (Josh Andres Rivera), possibly the safest bet in their world.

Although Chino is sweet and respectful, Maria’s eyes catch Tony from across the dance floor, and that’s it for both of them. They’re hooked on each other. Unfortunately, after a quick dream-like dance together and a little smooching behind the gymnasium bleachers, Tony is roughed up a bit by Bernardo. When the rest of the Jets arrive ready to throw down, they hold off, deciding the ultimate rumble will happen the following night at midnight — and Tony had better show.

But Tony is head over heels in love and couldn’t be less interested in a rumble. He finds Maria outside of her apartment, and the two share the exciting duet of their new romance and the promise of seeing each other again tomorrow, even though their being together is potentially dangerous.

The updated script adds a lot more political weight that resonates clearer today than it may have in the original, and it meshes beautifully with all of the original Sondheim songs. But for something that is inevitably a tragedy, much of the choreography had me giddy for more: I honestly hadn’t seen a movie musical shot as well as this in a long time.

It’s clear that there is much love for the source material on all fronts. Spielberg has taken every care to be respectful to the original while giving it a new life, and much of the casting mirrors that — especially the inclusion of Rita Moreno as Valentina, a revised small character from the original who made this “Romeo and Juliet” hater cry like a baby.

The cast is full of great performances, Ziegler shines in her first film role, DeBose is captivating and gives an Oscar worthy performance, Faist is great, but the film’s biggest misstep is the incredible miscasting of Elgort, who has all the charisma of a wet blanket.

His voice can only be described as fine, and his dancing abilities are pretty average compared to the rest of the cast. Every time he’s on-screen is such a disappointment, bringing the emotional crux of the scenes he’s in down with him. I just didn’t care about Tony at all, which is kind of important, seeing as he’s the main character.

Despite the fact that I still don’t care for the plot, it is a solidly good film full of amazing performances and beautiful choreography that has been made with a lot of love, but it’s not a great one, due mostly to the miscasting of one of its crucial roles.

“West Side Story”

156 minutes

Rated PG-13 for some strong violence, strong language, thematic content, suggestive material and brief smoking.

3.5 stars