Rent A Wreck

One of the nice things about being a 33 year old rock star is I can go see movies at midnight on a weekday and not bat an eyelash.

(Let's take a moment to remember the youth of all of my friends...  Those that can't because, "wow, that's awfully late."  "I'm usually in bed by...")  I also did a last minute e-mail to some of my dearest, but they too had plans or was too late.

SO I go to see RENT by MYSELF last night (Note to self, find younger friends...) which is totally fine with me - I always see movies by myself.

And I'm warning you right now - if you've seen the film and loved it - click the X in the upper right corner of your screen.

CAUSE I HATED IT.

Chris Columbus - what in God's Holy Name did you do to that movie?  Allegedly, "Chris Columbus" who brought us the HOME ALONE movies and the first two HARRY POTTER films (which I've only seen the first one and read part of the first book - just don't have an interest in small British children who attend a school in which WART is a part of the name) directed the film.  If he did - then he needs to be taken in for multiple personality disorder - cause to me this movie was directed by 20 or so really bad music video directors.

Seriously - I think what they should have called RENT was "2005 Senior Class Project by DeVry Music Video Majors."  The transitions SUCK.  Dialog that is sung in the stage version is spoken in the movie in some cases.  Some dialog that is SPOKEN in the stage play has been changed to even stranger dialog.  It's been a while since I saw RENT last, but I swear that I don't remember THAT MUCH talking in the stage version.  So why he chose to have as much as he did, escapes me.

In some cases, there are completely unmotivated camera movements - and trust me - I didn't study camera - but "I" could have done better camera work in some of those numbers.  In many cases the actors are not relating to each other or communicating with each other.

The STYLE is completely different from song to song.  For example, "Maureen's Performance Piece" is amazing.  The visual aspect is perfect.  But the opening "Rent" just is so underwhelming.  It's even MORE underwhelming because it OPENS with the cast standing on a stage under down-pools of light on a stage singing "Seasons of Love."  It's called RENT you idiot!  When you go to see the stage play you are immediately put into the desperation of the characters.  NOT standing on the stage clapping and singing about love.

Obviously this was "Chris Columbus'" nod to the fact that this was a stage play and this IS a film based on a stage play.  Thanks.  Don't think I would have picked up on that.

We see a flashback in the "One Song Glory" where April gets hooked on drugs.  Really didn't need that.  In Angel's song, "Today for You," he drums all over the apartment.  If we were going to have these little "scene within a scene" moments, HERE is where that could have been a place.  Not that it needed it - but so many of the other songs have these unmotivated moments.

"Light My Candle" is just wrong.  There are moments that are nice - but it's mostly like watching a performance art piece about nails on a chalkboard.  It's as if the actor's energy is a half beat behind what they are giving.  Either that, or they filmed this scene at three in the morning on the last day of the week.  It's just grating and forced.  And weak.  I found very little excitement about Roger and Mimi's meeting.  It just looks like a junkie who is hitting on a zombie.

"La Vie Boheme" is great.  I swear I saw that chick from "American Idol" who went on to do the stage play, Frenchie was her name I think.  But she wasn't listed, so I guess it wasn't her.

THEN we get hit with a commitment ceremony between Joanne and Maureen for "Take Me Baby."  Uh, just me - or did Maureen's parents not approve in the stage play?  It just seemed false and jarring.

We are totally deprived of the unseen parents in most cases - and that was part of the fun in the play.  And then we get HANDED the parents in some cases that just don't seem right.

"Living in America" just so does not fit in this movie.  We have great shots of Roger in Santa Fe.  Then again, I didn't like this in the stage play either - but it's even worse here.

The only thing that saved the entire experience were the performances.  But even then - after most of the cast of original unknowns have gone on to bigger careers - they don't seem to fit now.  Or were so terribly directed.  They don't seem to connect.

Anthony Rapp is point perfect.  He seems to have brought every bit of the performance that was raved about from the stage play.  His entire performance perfectly translates onto film.  He's gone on to do more Broadway and Off Broadway.  He appeared in "Road Trip."  He's a great working actor that will hopefully get more work from this.

Idina Menzel who went on to do a ton of Broadway and also "Wicked" is fantastic.  Great pipes.  But she tends to blow most of the other cast right off the screen.  Tracie Thoms is great as a replacement in the film for Joanne.  I expected someone a little larger.  She's got the voice.  But I feel like I'm missing some great pieces from the stage play that were cut for the film for her.

There is not enough of Taye Diggs.  And that's not necessarily a bad thing.  He's like Halle Berry in the X-MEN movies - you know he's a good actor and you're happy he's there - but he just seems lost.

Wilson Jermaine Heredia just NAILS it.  As if he's waited years to finally do this and pulls out every stop.

And the main reason I would recommend seeing RENT is Jesse L Martin who blew me away.  He blows everyone away.  Whatever actor left standing from Hurricane Idina gets trampled on by him - but only because he is stronger than most of the other actors and just brings it.  I've never been a big fan of his, but I am now.

And I'm sure I'm the only one who thinks this - but ADAM PASCAL'S hair bugged the living shit out of me.  Maybe it was to hide the fact that Adam is a rock performer and not that great of an actor.

Rosario Dawson was great.  She's no Daphne Rubin Vega, but she's great in the role.  "Out Tonight" is great for her - but again, one of those weird director choices to start inside the Cat Scratch Club - have her in the darkened streets, singing about the exciting life and energy of the streets (where there IS none in the shots she's singing about) and have her inside Roger's apartment.

I've seen bus and truck shows through Atlanta that were 10 times better than this movie.  However - however - however - GO SEE IT.  It IS worth it just to see the majority of the original cast performing.  A lot of critics griped that they are too old to be playing these roles now.  I didn't feel that at all.

I just don't think this is a great translation at all.  We've been spoiled with "Evita" which managed to bring a sweeping epic story (with MADONNA in the lead role, no less), "Moulin Rouge," which took great actors, over the top visuals and music that for intents and purposes should never be used in a musical but it works.  And "Chicago" which perfectly used the theatrical stage aspects and mixed into the film medium.

RENT to me just felt so disappointing.  It could have been amazing.

I DO think that the show is past it's prime.  I think it should have been produced for film ten years ago.  At the time, Broadway was coming off the huge spectacle shows such as "Phantom of the Opera," "Miss Saigon," "Les Miserables." 

Audiences didn't know it - but they wanted something more in their musicals than dropping chandeliers, helicopters and revolving barricades.  Along came this sleeper little off-Broadway musical called "Rent."  It was performed in a small hole in the wall by an unknown, Jonathon Larson.

The night of the final dress rehearsal, Larson dropped dead of an aortic dissection.

The show opened a few days later.  It received huge raves and moved to Broadway.

When it hit Broadway I was 23.  The show was LOUD - thunderous music and the ominous feel of having the show's creator die before it's opening and its story of young Bohemians living with AIDS and artists trying to find their way - it spoke to people.  It meant something.  It brought new light to AIDS and people living with it.  You left the theatre excited about life and that there is "no day, but today."

And sadly,10 years later, at 33 years of age -  I left the theatre with 2,500 teenagers.  And I felt like I had been robbed.  I walked out just pissed that the magic of the original wasn't on that screen.

The only thing that saved me were the 2,500 teenagers, singing in the hallways, the atrium area, and the parking deck.  And after sitting in my car for twenty minutes to get out of the parking deck, and hearing almost every car blasting the RENT CD from their speakers at different parts.  "The Tango Maureen."  "Light My Candle." 

La Vie Boheme.