Where do you start with a trailblazing star, icon, legend, and EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winner who didn’t meet a door she couldn’t bust down with her charm, looks, and above all else… talent? That had to be a puzzling question for documentarian Mariem Pérez Riera with her Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It. Yet the way she put together her film that salutes, inspires, and enlightens, could not have been better. It’s insightful, while simultaneously keeping that Moreno charm that has won over audiences for seven decades. Yes, that is seven decades on Broadway, television, and in Hollywood films. Don’t get me started on her volunteer and philanthropy!
It is an unflinching documentary that doesn’t shy away from the mountain of troubles Moreno had to climb to triumph in a culture that hasn’t celebrated people of color. There’s trial and tribulations, and then there is what Moreno endured in her journey to the top of show business.
Riera tells her tale through archival footage. The bright shining star in this film that is the actress/singer/dancer sits down at 87 and talks about her life. She directs her thoughts, emotions, and opinions directly into the camera, and then it is like a laser beam as it permeates our soul. It is a Q&A conducted in her gorgeous Los Angeles home and she couldn’t be more honest and pragmatic about everything that has happened to her over 70-plus years. Although not on the air anymore as of last year, the doc shows her still working (did we mention she’s 87!) at the time of the shooting—appearing as the unforgettable and sexy grandmother in Netflix’s One Day At a Time.
Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It chronicles it all. Right from her leaving Puerto Rico at the age of seven to arriving in New York City. Funny anecdote, as a child, she wasn’t impressed with Manhattan at first. After all, she had just left a paradise—especially for a child. But her iconic American dream happened because her mother brought her to America, leaving her father and brother behind. Soon after arriving she found her way and learned to love New York, after all… it was where she was discovered at the age of 17. Before she knew it, she had signed a contract with MGM, and she and her mother were moving to Los Angeles.
The rest is history, as they say (and it’s well documented here), but the brilliance of the documentary lies in its attention to the little things. Those conversations between her and her audience that lie at the heart of this endeavor. Her friends and colleagues’ contributions and keen observations—including co-producers Lin-Manuel Miranda, Norman Lear, Morgan Freeman, Whoopi Goldberg, Hector Elizondo, Gloria Estefan, George Chakiris (her co-star in West Side Story) and, the one and only Chita Rivera add countless weight to this stunner of a doc.
Riera’s film documents Moreno’s journey impeccably, from the Dominican Republic to the United States and then into Hollywood. She describes what it was like as a Latino actress in those days. Lots of parts playing indigenous peoples and girlfriends of Latino drug dealers or murderers. She took the roles. It paid the bills. But her big break would arrive in the instant classic West Wide Story where she originated the role of Anita. She sings what is probably the most famous song on the entire score, America.
It was a wild time for the starlet. She would eventually go on to historically win the Oscar for that part. Then, something outrageous happened. She didn’t appear in another motion picture for over seven years. So, she took what she could get. Television gigs, Vegas shows revues. If nothing else, Rita Moreno: Just A Girl Who Went For It is a study in perseverance and not taking no for an answer. Just because it has never been done before, doesn’t mean it can’t be done.
She was the most recognizable Latin face in Hollywood in the world, but the parts she was given after West Wide Story was the same, that of girlfriends of Latino drug dealers and thugs of various degrees. She refused to accept those roles and decided that that Oscar got to be worth something. She filled that time with incredible television work, including appearances on variety shows and Sesame Street (where she won an Emmy), and an unforgettable turn as part of the cast of The Electric Company—where she became friends with fellow star Morgan Freeman. The point is, she persisted. Moreno never gave up and remained a part of the entertainment landscape for decades to come, including this day.
Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Went For It is a love letter to a trailblazer, yes, but remove that aspect of her story and it is a picture painted of a brilliant artist, whose talents knows no bounds (just watch her in HBO’s Oz), who also used her celebrity to further causes close to her heart—especially ones involving equality for women and people of color. She has even testified before Congress. There are also some intense and deeply emotional moments where she revealed traumas that happened to her along the way. Some are addressed with the #MeToo moment and her bravery in speaking about those awful moments is simultaneously brave and heartbreaking.
The documentary is paced beautifully, interspersed with clips from back in the day, alongside some star-studded interviews conducted specifically for this film. It is an education, even if the subject is someone with whom we are keenly familiar. The great thing about this milieu of film is no matter how much you are aware of someone, a successful and resonant documentary is one that takes your knowledge base of a subject matter and exponentially increases it. That is what Riera achieved with her Moreno film. It is a love letter to her as much as it is a love letter to anyone who is moved, inspired, or seeks to emulate the artist’s Mt. Everest of accomplishments.
By the close of the film, one is left with the feeling that there are shooting stars that light up our night for decades in the entertainment biz, then there is Moreno. She has not only been a shooting star but her work and activism have ensured a permanent place amongst the star-lit sky.
Grade: A