This was an interesting documentary. I learned a lot about this talented actress and complicated, determined woman.
The film was put together in 2018, around the time of Rita Moreno’s 87th birthday and while she was shooting One Day at a Time. It hits on many of the main points of her life: moving to New York from Puerto Rico as a little girl, getting discovered and becoming a contract player for MGM, West Side Story, and other projects throughout her career. It also delves into heartbreaking personal experiences in her life.
I’ll admit that I’m largely familiar with Moreno’s work in both film adaptations of West Side Story and on One Day at a Time. I haven’t seen many of the other films or shows she’s done, and even with older films I have seen, I hadn’t realized she was in them! Looking at you, Singin’ in the Rain and The King and I. So the documentary offers up a lot of new information for me—I had no idea she was on The Electric Company or Oz.
It’s not surprising that, coming up in the studios in the ‘50s, she put up with a ton of racist crap. Moreno was indiscriminately cast as any of type of “ethnic” girl, delivering her lines in a generic foreign accent and slathered with “mud-colored” makeup—Hollywood could only see her as a brown foreigner, despite needing to darken her skin because she herself didn’t match the image they held of her. I can only imagine how demoralizing it is to long to act but consistently be given racist garbage to perform.
I love what Moreno had to say about West Side Story, how in the absence of role models for her in Hollywood, she created her own role model through her performance as Anita. But as much as she cherished the role, it makes sense that she has complicated feelings about it, given some of the shots taken at Puerto Rico in “America.” She relates a lovely story about a friend who was in the barrio on Oscar night, listening to the sound of the ceremony playing through everyone’s open window and hearing the triumphant shouts when Moreno’s name was called.
I hadn’t known about Moreno’s experience with sexual harassment and assault in Hollywood, but it makes a devastating amount of sense. And I’d had no idea that she had a tumultuous on-again off-again relationship with Marlon Brando. I didn’t know about her long history of activism, or that she was present at the March on Washington!
Her career has had so many ups and downs, but I like hearing about the varied opportunities she’s had over the years, such as memorable turns on The Muppet Show and her role on Oz. And of course, I enjoy what she and others have to say about One Day at a Time—after all the grief she’s gone through to keep acting, I’m glad that role found her in her 80s.
Along with the plentiful interviews with Moreno, the documentary also features numerous talking heads from family, friends, and other Latine creatives in Hollywood. We hear from Gloria Estefan, Eva Longoria, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Karen Olivo, and Justina Machado, among others. Despite the hardships Moreno has been through, it’s still heartening to hear about how much she means to so many people.
Warnings
Discussion of violence (including rape,) language, and strong thematic elements (including discussion of sexual harassment.)
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