Bloodless Coup

Rent

OK, I've got to begin my comments on this film by saying that I'd never seen Rent on stage or heard any of the songs except for "Seasons of Love" before seeing this film. I think that makes all the difference in the world in how you are likely to respond to this movie. A large portion of the audience will walk in already loving this work. And so they'll be thrilled to see (most of) the Broadway cast, and happy to hear a lot of songs they already love, and intrigued to see the show presented in so much more "cinematic" surroundings - for example, staging "Take Me or Leave Me" at a big country club party and the enormous set and dozens of dancers brought in for "Tango: Maureen". I didn't walk in able to respond in those ways. I walked in as someone who likes certain musicals, but who knew next to nothing about this one beyond the basics of the plot and one song.

So, that said, what do I think? Well, I'm afraid I can't recommend it. Why? It's entirely the fault of Jonathan Larson. I simply found the book absurd, ridiculous and, in a way, offensive. The story is flat-out awful, and there were a couple of spots when it was just so "ooooh-look-at-us-noble-bohemians-who-are-above-paying-rent-or-living-in-supportive-relationships" that I hated it with a level of passion I can rarely muster against a movie. I mean c'mon, there I was sitting with friends in comfie chairs in a Hollywood Theater, and still I was somehwere between incensed and furiously annoyed.

Now to be fair I have noticed that I like it more thinking back on it. Some of the numbers are successful. Some of the directing choices are surprisingly good (I feared the worst when I heard that Chris Columbus was going to be doing this - it's not really his milieu). Angel's costumes were good. And some of the performances were extremely good. One person I was with who worships the show was amazed by Jesse Martin. Personally, I found Rosario Dawson and Tracie Thoms (the two major cast members who don't come from the Broadway show) to be the best, followed by Adam Pascal and Wilson Jermaine Heredia (who won a Tony for playing Angel on Broadway). And some of the numbers, particularly Pascal's and Dawson's I liked a lot. And hey, for pure T&A value alone, you might want to go see the movie just to see Dawson perform "Out Tonight" - one of the sexiest things I've ever seen in a movie in my life.

So I guess my final evaluation of it is that if you are interested in musicals it's worth checking out. There are a few performances and numbers that are quite entertaining. But if you go, try not to let the film's childish and insipid plot/politics get in the way of your enjoyment of songs you might otherwise enjoy.