RENT film review
ok. let me get this out of the way. i like RENT. a lot. i'm not a super freak about it... well, in 1996 i was probably the guy people wanted to hit the most, but even after the years has mellowed me and let me be objective about it, i STILL love RENT. it's a good musical, and if you don't think so... well, you really didn't know about the state of the musical in 1995.
the only new show ON broadway was andrew lloyd weber's sunset blvd. , and even though i enjoyed it, it wasn't getting your average young person singing the praises of musical theatre.
but then RENT got big, and it made theatre cool for a generation who probably for the most part thought theatre was the most wretched thing ever.
i'm not going to rehash the plot of RENT here. if you are reading this, you most probably know the show - even if it's just a little bit. i've seen RENT multiple times onstage. i saw it for the first time in chicago, with simone (daughter of blues/jazz legend nina simone) as mimi and some guy from sweet valley high as roger... manley pope, i think... anyway, of course i was blown away. it was the first time i saw it onstage (apart from clips of the original broadway cast on tv).
the second time i saw RENT was in indianapolis, and the time after was in bloomington. both shows were good, to some extent or another. i also piss people off because it's hard for me to totally hate something. i will always find something good about it. maybe i do it to justify the money spent, but i don't see any good just senselessly bashing something will do.
anyway.
the last time i saw rent was in 1998. i saw the first performance in london. anthony rapp (mark), adam pascal (roger), jesse l. martin (collins), and wilson jermaine heredia (angel) all reprised their original broadway roles... and the show was amazing. i can totally see why this show took broadway by storm, and yes a lot of it is writer/composer jonathan larson - but much of it has to do with a vibrant original cast - in particular these four performers (and truthfully, taye diggs who did not reprise his role of benny for the london cast). wow.
so when i heard the film was going to include most of the original cast, i was both delighted and puzzled. lord, these people will seem too old. and they did. but c'mon people - i come from an age where 30somethings always played teens... and at least these 30somethings are playing 20somethings. but i'll tell you this - for the most part, these people work in this film. for the most part. but i digress. let's look at this cast:
anthony rapp (mark) - if you've seen adventures in babysitting, you know anthony rapp. he played the best friend daryll who was obsessed with the playboy that looked like elizabeth shue. anyway, anthony works really well in the film. his character translates well (maybe because he's a filmmaker, ya think?), and he has good screen presence. his voice, while strong in the original cast, is double that here... and it's really his perfomance that makes the friendship angle work in this film.
adam pascal (roger) - adam pascal wasn't an actor until he auditioned for the stage version of RENT. he worked well onstage because a) he was a good looking, amazingly voiced rocker/actor and b) because he felt raw and real. in this film version, i hate to say, he feels forced and along for the ride. i never feel any of the pathos i felt for roger onstage during the film. if there was an actor onscreen responsible for making this film feel glossed over, he'd be it. and frankly, his hair has to go. in the original, his hair was bleach blonde and spiked (it's like that in the film during a flashback), and in this film, he resembles ron pearlman in tv's beauty and the beast. i'll talk a little more about his performance further in the review.
jessie l. martin (collins) - most people know jesse l. martin as dr. greg butters on ally mcbeal. what i remember most about the london performance of RENT was that i loved jessie martn so much... he was my absolute favorite onstage... and guess what, folks? he's STILL my favorite thing about RENT. his performance as collins is pitch-perfect. he has an amazing voice, and everything you need to know about the character radiates out of him. one of the two best performances in this movie. period.
wilson jermaine heredia (angel) - when i saw wilson in the london performance, i remember thinking "why did he get the best supporting actor tony nomination? why didn't jessie l. martin?" my friend roya, who went to the show with me, had the same thoughts... and i can pretty much bet it's because he was playing a drag queen. ooh, edgy. i have to say, i still liked him, but didn't love him. in the film version, tho - i really loved him. i though his performance was touching, funny, and very true to the character. i never really saw a sterotyped moment with him. good job.
taye diggs (benny) - i've always loved taye's perfomance of benny on the original broadway recording. i think he is a fine actor and an outstanding singer. sadly, much of benny's moments in the stage version were cut for the film, and it makes me sad. when he's onscreen, tho, he makes his moments really shine and are amoung some of the best parts of the film.
and the girls...
rosario dawnson (mimi) - when i heard that daphne rubin-vega wasn't going to be mimi, and this new up-and-coming chick was going to play her, i was really pissed. what the hell? i LOVE daphne's voice. it's so raw and fucked up. i saw her as magenta in the broadway revival of the rocky horror show and absolutely loved her. but... she was pregnant, so i understand why they replaced her... and then i saw rosario in sin city and thought "if this girl has the pipes, she may be able to pull it off." WOW. i mean fuck, man. she blew me away. in the other best performance of the show, rosario shines as mimi - she's beautiful, vunerable, tough, sexy, pitfiul, and man oh man can she sing. her "out tonight" was amazing.
idina menzel (maureen) - idina's career flourished after broadway RENT. she was in the critically acclaimed recording of the wild party, released her own cd, and married fellow RENT star taye diggs. how could it get better? by starring in, and recieving the best actress tony for, the musical wicked. and how does she fair in the film? excellently. idina rocks the house as maureen, and "over the moon" was one of my favorite pieces of the film. it's funny - i've always wanted to know what it would be like if sandra bernhart were to play this role, and i found idina to be (intentional or not) a little bernhart-esque.
tracie thoms (joanne) - tracie thoms is the other newcomer to the show. freddie walker was barely age apropo in the original show, although she did indeed rock, so i had no real problem replacing her onscreen. tracie thoms was great - she had a beautiful voice and did an excellent acting job. both "tango maureen" and "take me or leave me" were highlights of the film. they cut her solo song "we're ok," but they gave her the female solo in "seasons of love." rockin.
ok - so the cast is taken care of... for the love of god, what did i think of the film?
i liked it. not loved it. liked it. i think director chris coloumbus (home alone, harry potter and the sorcerer's stone) was a piss poor choice of a director. most of his choices are horrible horrible mistakes. opening the show with 'seasons of love" was probably one of two choices i really loved. the other was having "out tonight" start in the strip club. i know people are annoyed with the overplayed SOL, and i don't blame theme. it opens act II in the broadway musical. it works there. i'm glad they got it the fuck over with.
oh, i guess this would be a good time to talk about time progression. in the stage show, act 1 consists of christmas eve (ending with the reprise of "la vie boheme"). act II is christmas day for the opener SOL, then the rest of the songs are the full next year - notably valentine's day and halloween. in the film, much of the opening is both christmas eve and christmas, then speeds through the next year. i don't know if i liked this change or not. why include christmas day if you're just going to speed through the rest anyway?
the negatives:
so having the song "rent" end with many many slum tenants throwing their trash over the buildings all the while dressed as refugees from madmax really didn't sit well with me. i didn't like the fact that they made some lyrics into spoken dialogue. if you have a problem with singing - don't go see a musical. duh. rogers hair sucked. having roger sing "one song glory" with no emotion in his face and a stupidly acted flashback really sucked. like really sucked. having roger stand on rocks during "what you own" sucked even more. man i hated roger in this. i also thought the computer added "seeing your breath in the cold air" during the outside singing was a little much. yes, it would probably do that. but would it always be that visually perfect? and although i did think the fantasy sequence during the tango was cool, but i saw the same thing done a few years back in chicago, - a tango song in that show also featured a tango with meaningful uses of the colors black, white, and red.
the positives:
jessie l. martin and rosario dawson. hands down the best things in the show. the subway dance in "santa fe." angel's memorial. "take me or leave me" was amazing. i loved the choice to make collins a pothead. all of angel's humorous moments. "over the moon."
so yeah - it looks as if i listed more negatives than possitives... but the music of the show and the performances of most of the cast make this a pleasure to watch. it's no substitute for the stage show, for sure, but it's a much more satisfying movie musical than phantom of the opera. i think that they waited too long to make RENT into a film, and although the original cast - save for pascal (who i really really loved onstage - i'm sorry adam) really give great performances... i can't help but wonder if they'd cast some younger faces that the show would have been more successful.
at any rate, i'd see RENT again. i liked it, and although it wasn't perfect by far... i thought the cast did a good job with great material and a really poor director.
three out of a possible five singing prostitutes.
the only new show ON broadway was andrew lloyd weber's sunset blvd. , and even though i enjoyed it, it wasn't getting your average young person singing the praises of musical theatre.
but then RENT got big, and it made theatre cool for a generation who probably for the most part thought theatre was the most wretched thing ever.
i'm not going to rehash the plot of RENT here. if you are reading this, you most probably know the show - even if it's just a little bit. i've seen RENT multiple times onstage. i saw it for the first time in chicago, with simone (daughter of blues/jazz legend nina simone) as mimi and some guy from sweet valley high as roger... manley pope, i think... anyway, of course i was blown away. it was the first time i saw it onstage (apart from clips of the original broadway cast on tv).
the second time i saw RENT was in indianapolis, and the time after was in bloomington. both shows were good, to some extent or another. i also piss people off because it's hard for me to totally hate something. i will always find something good about it. maybe i do it to justify the money spent, but i don't see any good just senselessly bashing something will do.
anyway.
the last time i saw rent was in 1998. i saw the first performance in london. anthony rapp (mark), adam pascal (roger), jesse l. martin (collins), and wilson jermaine heredia (angel) all reprised their original broadway roles... and the show was amazing. i can totally see why this show took broadway by storm, and yes a lot of it is writer/composer jonathan larson - but much of it has to do with a vibrant original cast - in particular these four performers (and truthfully, taye diggs who did not reprise his role of benny for the london cast). wow.
so when i heard the film was going to include most of the original cast, i was both delighted and puzzled. lord, these people will seem too old. and they did. but c'mon people - i come from an age where 30somethings always played teens... and at least these 30somethings are playing 20somethings. but i'll tell you this - for the most part, these people work in this film. for the most part. but i digress. let's look at this cast:
anthony rapp (mark) - if you've seen adventures in babysitting, you know anthony rapp. he played the best friend daryll who was obsessed with the playboy that looked like elizabeth shue. anyway, anthony works really well in the film. his character translates well (maybe because he's a filmmaker, ya think?), and he has good screen presence. his voice, while strong in the original cast, is double that here... and it's really his perfomance that makes the friendship angle work in this film.
adam pascal (roger) - adam pascal wasn't an actor until he auditioned for the stage version of RENT. he worked well onstage because a) he was a good looking, amazingly voiced rocker/actor and b) because he felt raw and real. in this film version, i hate to say, he feels forced and along for the ride. i never feel any of the pathos i felt for roger onstage during the film. if there was an actor onscreen responsible for making this film feel glossed over, he'd be it. and frankly, his hair has to go. in the original, his hair was bleach blonde and spiked (it's like that in the film during a flashback), and in this film, he resembles ron pearlman in tv's beauty and the beast. i'll talk a little more about his performance further in the review.
jessie l. martin (collins) - most people know jesse l. martin as dr. greg butters on ally mcbeal. what i remember most about the london performance of RENT was that i loved jessie martn so much... he was my absolute favorite onstage... and guess what, folks? he's STILL my favorite thing about RENT. his performance as collins is pitch-perfect. he has an amazing voice, and everything you need to know about the character radiates out of him. one of the two best performances in this movie. period.
wilson jermaine heredia (angel) - when i saw wilson in the london performance, i remember thinking "why did he get the best supporting actor tony nomination? why didn't jessie l. martin?" my friend roya, who went to the show with me, had the same thoughts... and i can pretty much bet it's because he was playing a drag queen. ooh, edgy. i have to say, i still liked him, but didn't love him. in the film version, tho - i really loved him. i though his performance was touching, funny, and very true to the character. i never really saw a sterotyped moment with him. good job.
taye diggs (benny) - i've always loved taye's perfomance of benny on the original broadway recording. i think he is a fine actor and an outstanding singer. sadly, much of benny's moments in the stage version were cut for the film, and it makes me sad. when he's onscreen, tho, he makes his moments really shine and are amoung some of the best parts of the film.
and the girls...
rosario dawnson (mimi) - when i heard that daphne rubin-vega wasn't going to be mimi, and this new up-and-coming chick was going to play her, i was really pissed. what the hell? i LOVE daphne's voice. it's so raw and fucked up. i saw her as magenta in the broadway revival of the rocky horror show and absolutely loved her. but... she was pregnant, so i understand why they replaced her... and then i saw rosario in sin city and thought "if this girl has the pipes, she may be able to pull it off." WOW. i mean fuck, man. she blew me away. in the other best performance of the show, rosario shines as mimi - she's beautiful, vunerable, tough, sexy, pitfiul, and man oh man can she sing. her "out tonight" was amazing.
idina menzel (maureen) - idina's career flourished after broadway RENT. she was in the critically acclaimed recording of the wild party, released her own cd, and married fellow RENT star taye diggs. how could it get better? by starring in, and recieving the best actress tony for, the musical wicked. and how does she fair in the film? excellently. idina rocks the house as maureen, and "over the moon" was one of my favorite pieces of the film. it's funny - i've always wanted to know what it would be like if sandra bernhart were to play this role, and i found idina to be (intentional or not) a little bernhart-esque.
tracie thoms (joanne) - tracie thoms is the other newcomer to the show. freddie walker was barely age apropo in the original show, although she did indeed rock, so i had no real problem replacing her onscreen. tracie thoms was great - she had a beautiful voice and did an excellent acting job. both "tango maureen" and "take me or leave me" were highlights of the film. they cut her solo song "we're ok," but they gave her the female solo in "seasons of love." rockin.
ok - so the cast is taken care of... for the love of god, what did i think of the film?
i liked it. not loved it. liked it. i think director chris coloumbus (home alone, harry potter and the sorcerer's stone) was a piss poor choice of a director. most of his choices are horrible horrible mistakes. opening the show with 'seasons of love" was probably one of two choices i really loved. the other was having "out tonight" start in the strip club. i know people are annoyed with the overplayed SOL, and i don't blame theme. it opens act II in the broadway musical. it works there. i'm glad they got it the fuck over with.
oh, i guess this would be a good time to talk about time progression. in the stage show, act 1 consists of christmas eve (ending with the reprise of "la vie boheme"). act II is christmas day for the opener SOL, then the rest of the songs are the full next year - notably valentine's day and halloween. in the film, much of the opening is both christmas eve and christmas, then speeds through the next year. i don't know if i liked this change or not. why include christmas day if you're just going to speed through the rest anyway?
the negatives:
so having the song "rent" end with many many slum tenants throwing their trash over the buildings all the while dressed as refugees from madmax really didn't sit well with me. i didn't like the fact that they made some lyrics into spoken dialogue. if you have a problem with singing - don't go see a musical. duh. rogers hair sucked. having roger sing "one song glory" with no emotion in his face and a stupidly acted flashback really sucked. like really sucked. having roger stand on rocks during "what you own" sucked even more. man i hated roger in this. i also thought the computer added "seeing your breath in the cold air" during the outside singing was a little much. yes, it would probably do that. but would it always be that visually perfect? and although i did think the fantasy sequence during the tango was cool, but i saw the same thing done a few years back in chicago, - a tango song in that show also featured a tango with meaningful uses of the colors black, white, and red.
the positives:
jessie l. martin and rosario dawson. hands down the best things in the show. the subway dance in "santa fe." angel's memorial. "take me or leave me" was amazing. i loved the choice to make collins a pothead. all of angel's humorous moments. "over the moon."
so yeah - it looks as if i listed more negatives than possitives... but the music of the show and the performances of most of the cast make this a pleasure to watch. it's no substitute for the stage show, for sure, but it's a much more satisfying movie musical than phantom of the opera. i think that they waited too long to make RENT into a film, and although the original cast - save for pascal (who i really really loved onstage - i'm sorry adam) really give great performances... i can't help but wonder if they'd cast some younger faces that the show would have been more successful.
at any rate, i'd see RENT again. i liked it, and although it wasn't perfect by far... i thought the cast did a good job with great material and a really poor director.
three out of a possible five singing prostitutes.
posted by nathan at 12:21 PM
2 Comments:
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