BroadwayGirl107 on the RENT film. (With spoilers)

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 8:33pm

Before I say anything, let me make it known that I absolutely adore Rent...the essence of the material, its themes, its score, its heart. Going into this film, I was not expecting a replica of the stage show. In fact, I was hoping for weaker parts to be strengthened and appropriate changes to be made to fit this new medium.

That being said, I give you my thoughts.

Overall, I was horribly disappointed in this film. It felt to me as though it had been approached from the perspective of "What should we do with THIS song?" rather than retaining whatever it is that makes Rent such a special piece and telling and developing the story in the most effective way possible. The result is lazily written dialogue, extreme lack of development of characters and their relationships with each other, jumping into songs with little or no justification, and very flimsy support of the piece's themes.

I could go on for days about the piece, so instead I'll try to highlight some things.

I think "Seasons of Love" works well onstage. My only problem is where it is in the film. Of course, in this particular film, it could not have been anywhere else, but had it been written differently, perhaps the song could have been stuck somewhere where the song has context, thus adding more meaning to the song.

I felt "Rent" started off strangely, but once Roger started singing, the song had context, and it started working. It was one of the better filmed numbers, and it was visually stunning towards the end. The (what was probably) hundreds of voices added to this song was chilling. However, once the song was over, things were awkward again. The hundreds of people who were just angrily throwing their burnign eviction notices (or rent bills?) out their windows suddenly decide "Ok, it's time to leave." You know. Because the song is over.

"One Song Glory" is standing out in my mind as a poorly handled piece. First of all, we have Roger going out on the roof to sing this song. Ok, that's fine, but he decides to end the song himself (when, in fact, the song is WRITTEN without a real ending because he's cut off) and walk downstairs when Mimi coincidentally knocks on his door. It did not work at all. Of course, in this song, you also have the flashbacks that tells us about April, and we are not told that she committed suicide. Big mistake. Big BIG mistake. The suicide is something BIG as far as the character of Roger goes; it only raises his stakes and intensifies his guilt. I got no sense of this guilt the entire movie from Adam, and I wonder if this was partially to blame. Who knows?

"Light My Candle" seemed to serve no purpose. It could have easily been dialogue, and it did work fine. I just don't see why it had to be sung. Some of the choices as far as what they kept as sung material and changed to dialogue greatly confused me.

"Tango: Maureen" was one of my favorites. I know some people felt it was out of place, but I actually felt it fit in fine. If I can be nitpicky, the choreography didn't seem all that imaginative, and some of the camera work was a bit odd to me, but it was one of the better numbers of the film. And its one of the songs that actually came from substantial justification for breaking into that song to begin with.

"Out Tonight" was, for me, easily the best filmed scene in the movie. Not just the best filmed musical number, but best filmed scene. I loved it. Rosario is absolutely fantastic and completely captivating. She just GETS this character. It was fabulous.

It's ironic, however that the best filmed sequence of the movie goes right into one of the absolute worst. "Another Day." It's a wreck. The beginning of the song was all right from what I can remember, but once they leave that loft, it turns to a wreck. Roger is trying to get Mimi out of the apartment. He doesn't WANT to hear her. Why would he follow her out to the fire escape to listen to her telling him all this "No day but today" stuff? You really think he wants to listen? It made no sense, and it was laughable how Roger was saying "The door is that way" while he was standing on the fire escape and Mimi was out in the street. And even worse...when Mark, Angel, and Collins come along to console her. It was laughable. I actually thought to myself "Are you KIDDING me?" It looked like a joke. And just from a directorial standpoint...having Roger and Mimi that physical distance from each other greatly lowers the intensity of it. They should have been up in each other's faces...Roger screaming at Mimi as she's singing her "No day but today" message. I think I wanted to cry during this scene. And I mean that in a bad way.

"Will I?" was another mistake. It started out nicely, but to keep it only within the life support group was a very poor choice. It's very moving in the stage show partially because it's connecting this universal pain many people throughout the city are having. I do have to say though...the actors in the life support group I found to be very moving. They have this heartbreaking air about them...this desperation for optimism mixed with this incredible fear and regret that they're trying to shake. They were wonderful. I found Aaron Lohr at the beginning of this song to just capture something heartbreakingly beautiful. I can say the same for the man (forgive me, I don't know the actor's name) who sang the "Look I find some of what you teach suspect.." lines in the first life support meeting.

"La Vie Boheme" was a nicely done number. I don't know what, but something struck me not so favorably about a bit of it, but overall, I really did enjoy it. It captured a great energy. Which was a nice change from many other parts of the film.

I found "Take Me or Leave Me" to be another big joke. The guests following Joanne and Maureen around was very laughable. And the whole commitment thing...I'm not sure sure about that. But Idina and Tracie are stunning in this scene, thankfully.

"Without You" was one of the finer moments of the film. My only complaint is that it didn't make sense to me that Roger and Mimi were singing it, when it was filmed as though they weren't "without you" until halfway through the song. Regardless, it has many powerful moments. The fading members of the life support meeting was very effective, and Wilson Heredia is absolutely heartbreaking. And I just have to throw in now--since I mentioned Wilson--that it's hard for me to understand how this man ended up in Westchester bartending (that's what he said, right?). His performance is absolutely remarkable in every way. Really, WHAT an actor. I hope to see him getting great work in the future and LOTS of it.

I just have to say, before I actually talk about "I'll Cover Your (Reprise)" that Maureen's little speech before this song was one of the two most touching moments of this film. I'll talk about the other later, but that moment was really beautiful to me. Now, this song was awkward for sure, but it wasn't all that bothersome. Jesse was very moving in this number.

"Halloween." Oh. Right. It wasn't in the movie. Woops.

"Goodbye, Love." Oh BAD. I don't think I even WANT to see the second half of this song because the first part was just so strange. I think it'd make MUCH more sense back at Mark and Roger's. But maybe that's just me.

And just for the record, all my fears about how the removal of these two pieces from the film would effect it were confirmed. Not that putting them back in would save it anyway.

"What You Own" was a joke. A JOKE. I honestly am not sure what else I can say.

So we get to the finales and "Your Eyes." And quiet honestly, I couldn't figure out why Joanne and Maureen seemed to care a lot more about what was happening to Mimi than anyone else does at this point in the film, but it did seem that way. And I mean that as in...Idina and Tracie seemed more present at this part than anyone else. I felt like Adam Pascal wasn't giving much. I felt this way the whole darn film.

As far as the very end of this, when Mimi sort of...comes back to life, Rosario handled that incredibly well. I really don't like that part in the original material, but Rosario almost made it work here. *Nod of approval to her*

Finale B was nicely done. Thank you God. Since it's mostly us watching Mark's documentary and not the character sitting there singing, it works very well, and it's even moving. That other incredibly touching part I was talking about earlier? While watching the documentary, towards the very end, the images start flashing more and more quickly, and on the last chords, they stop on footage of Angel. He's in his "male form" smiling at the camera. I just think it was a beautiful moment. The very first and very last moments of the film were gorgeous.

As far as the actors go, I found Pascal to be sorely lacking, and I was a bit disappointed in Anthony. Though I'm not sure if it's him, or if it's the fact that since all his narration, "Halloween," and the second half of "Goodbye Love" are gone, the character itself is a little...flat. The rest of the cast I was absolutely THRILLED with, although I had some minor qualms with some minor things. Menzel actually disappointed me at one part. Shocker, right?

I realize a lot of that probably seems like opinions with tons of insubstantial backing, but I promise you...you call me on it, I'll justify my opinion. I've been travelling on the train a lot yesterday and today and I pretty much wrote up my complete thoughts on the film, and it made for about 14 1/2 pages, and there's no wayI'm typing THAT up if only for the reason that nobody'd even look at it.

Anyway, just to wrap up my thoughts, I'm actually heartbroken (as silly as that sounds) about how this film turned out. I felt it did not uphold the heart and themes of its source material, and I think that's a damn shame. I think plenty of people will see it and enjoy it because it IS Rent in movie form after all, but it completely felt short of the magical piece that I think it could have been, and it truly breaks my heart.



Updated On: 11/14/05 at 08:33 PM

[poppy isabella]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 8:49pm

wow, thorough. Whether people agree or not with your viewpoints on the film, I was really excited to read this post from you. So thanks!!

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 8:56pm

A nicely written review, Broadwaygirl. I'm curious -- all you on the East Coast right now, are you all attending the same screenings? What was the audience reaction at your screening B.Girl?

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 8:59pm

It seems as though most of us are attending the same screenings.

I'm not sure how the audience reaction was, honestly. I'm bad at measuring that sort of thing. I overheard two girl who were familiar with the show talking about how much they loved it, and I heard someone mention that they thought "the one from Wicked" was fabulous. Other than that, I'm not gonna pretend I was very in tune with how the audience felt.

[EverythingIsRENT]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:03pm

Wow, were we viewing two different films? I thought almost the complete opposite of everything you said. So sorry you were dissapointed.

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:03 PM

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:05pm

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy it. I haven't seen it yet, but I know I'm going to have to be open to the different staging approaches that they took, so we'll see what I think.

And I know that your review says that it'll have spoilers, but I'm sad that I read the part about the very last scene, that would have been a nice surprise. My own fault for reading spoilers.

[Marlene]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:09pm

The mixed reviews continue. I am afraid, 8 more days.

You didn't focus on the Angel/Collins relationship in your review? Why? The result of the 14 pager being cut. I'm interested in more perspectives.
Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:09 PM

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:12pm

I know, I'm having a hard time comprehending such drastically different reviews of the film. Everyone seems to either think that it's fantastic, or a complete disappointment. I'm supposing that the truth is somewhere in between, and people will go either way with whether they like it based on their expectations and/or how close they are to the material.

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:15pm

Well, I found all the relationships to be lacking in development, including that one. Maybe Maureen/Joanne was developed best.

But as far as Angel and Collins..I mean--I don't really know what to say. I think Jesse and Wilson work marvelously together and have a nice way of filling in little things that would probably feel lacking inthe way the written material develops the relationship. I think "I'll Cover You" comes out of a very forced situation, but once they get into that song, you actually feel the relationship is something special...and I'm glad the actors achieved that.
Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:15 PM

[YankeesFan175]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:15pm

sweetestsiren, i didnt want to read that last bit, but i couldnt help it! although that was pretty much what they wanted to do in the old ending.

but great review! im very sad you didnt like it, so i continue to worry, but thanks for posting such a thorough review.

[EvelynNesbit1906]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:20pm

I'm glad you decided to post even though summarizing those 14.5 pages must have been a very formidable task.

Would like to hear more of your thoughts on Collins and Angel too.

I don't think there are any spoilers therein for those of us who read the screenplay. Angel is the last image in it there as you say in your review. No surprises. Hence my earlier point on the "Unpopular Opinions" thread that it's okay to prejudge a film when half of it (more than that, really) is fed to you by the people making it.

You know, I'm seeing this early on the 23rd with the same person I saw the show with two years ago (my first time, her fifth). Funny thing is that when we went to Applebee's immediately afterward, I kept talking about the many ways in which it could work as a film (this before the news that it was going to be a film under Columbus's direction came) and she kept insisting that it would be a failure. It should be interesting to see if we both ultimately come to the same assessment of it or have completely opposite reactions.
Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:20 PM

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:21pm

sweetestsiren, In regards to the variety of reactions, I think you have your Rent fans who will love this film no matter what's done with it because it IS Rent, and then I think you have those of us who want so badly for it to be the best representation of the material as possible.

And to be perfectly honest, I think those who are saying this film is well-made or the best representation of the material are fooling themselves, and had say...there been two versions of this film, one being this, another with the mentioned flaws fixed (meaning...better director and screenplay writer), they'd see.

I don't mean that in a rude way either. It's just a thought. Before anyone gets offended...
Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:21 PM

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:27pm

My friends and I have Midnight tickets @ The Zigfeld in NYC On Nov 22 going into the 23rd wooooo!! so excited =*D

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:28pm

I'm sorry you were disappointed, but I too would be sort of interested to hear your take on Angel and Collins. I'm assuming we ended up at the same screening.

The one thing that I did want to respond to simply because what you wanted of it confuses me is what you said about Without You only being sung by Mimi and Roger, even though they're not in the situation until the end of the song -- which is valid, YET, on stage, you can see things happen simultaneously. I mean, would it have been better if they split the screen four ways, or something? It's one of the things that you can't show in the same way, but have to find a way to do somewhat effectively.

I don't know what to say to this notion of "fooling yourself." I mean, you have an opinion. Other people have a different opinion. There's nothing wrong with that, nor do I believe so from the other perspective, but to say that is like me saying that people who didn't like it had, ultimately, unrealistically high expectations, or wanted to hate it. It doesn't really matter -- I know you didn't mean it in a rude way.

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:28 PM

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:38pm

I don't really know what more to say about Angel and Collins. What specifically are you looking for? Nothing is coming to mind for me as far as that goes at the moment, so maybe that'll get my mind churning.

What you said about "Without You" makes sense. I felt maybe they could have dealt with Roger and Mimi splitting beforehand, then they could have dealt with the rest. It was really not a big deal, honestly...it was a small qualm that I had with the number, but as I said, it was one of the best in the film.

What I meant by the whole "fooling yourself" statement was not that it was invalid for anyone to like this film. What I meant was that I think some people are convinced that this film pretty much reached the level of excellence it could have, and I think that thinking that way is fooling yourself. True, film, theatre, etc are not solid right or wrong--it's subjective, but there is are some things that almost formulaically make things more effective in film or theatre.

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:38 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:40pm

Fair enough, that makes sense.

And I don't know specifically, but maybe someone else does. I was just curious beause you didn't mention much -- just general wonderment.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:44pm

No, I understand what BroadwayGirl means by the "fooling herself" comment -- and I found myself wondering what the young fans (and there will be many) of the film will think after they go to film school. Not that there is anything wrong with loving the film if it speaks to you -- but I know my opinion has changed over the years and a lot of films I thought were brilliant when I was 15 I realize are total guilty pleasures because they are technically a mess. (BEACHES, anyone?)

"WITHOUT YOU" is one of the best sequences in the film artistically, but yes its a little sloppy that at first she is singing about Roger (Without You) and then he shows up in the apartment during the montage as if they never broke up. At least in the stage production when she returns at the end of the song its in a moment where it appears they are "making up."

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 09:44 PM

[amasis]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:48pm

I enjoyed reading this very much. Thanks, broadwaygirl .

And now, between this review and Emcee's review... I guess I'll just have to wait until April to know for sure what it's like. Sigh. (Have I complained enough about having to wait an extra few months to see this? I'll shut up. Sometime soon. ).

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:49pm

I told you, SAIL.

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 9:52pm

APRIL? I thought the international release date was February! How cruel.

[EverythingIsRENT]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 10:01pm

I think what perplexes me about this review is not that you found faults, but that every other negative review at LEAST gave major kudos to each actor and basically pointed out "look, despite what I just said, it is a film worth seeing." This is the first review i've seen that states the actors suck, the message is lost, EVERYTHING about it sucks. Not that that makes your opinion invalid, it just makes me question what your expectations were of this movie....

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 10:01 PM

[bwayfan3]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 10:02pm

Maybe it's just to keep myself from going insane for the next 10 days, but I am going to operate on the premise that these mixed reviews are a good thing.

A piece of art that generates discussion and gets people talking is something that I am sure all of the people involved in the genesis of this piece from stage to screen want.

[amasis]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 10:05pm

APRIL? I thought the international release date was February! How cruel.

It depends on which region you're from. Some countries get it in February, some later. I've heard of places where RENT won't be released until June. With Phantom they managed (I think) a worldwide release with dates that are very close together. But not these guys. Oh, well.

EverythingisRENT: I didn't get that feeilng when I read BroadwayGirl's review. She said she was let down by Adam and a bit by Anthony, but the rest of the cast was great.

In any case, the mixed reviews don't bother me. I'm excited to see it for myself... when I finally get the chance. Updated On: 11/13/05 at 10:05 PM

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 10:05pm

EverythingIsRent...When did I say the actors sucked? I think I said I was THRILLED with Rosario, Tracie, Jesse, Wilson, Taye, and Idina. There were a few moments where a couple of them hit off the mark, but their performances as a whole were magnificent.

And, okay...Despite what I said, the film is worth seeing.

I'm sorry I left that out the first time. I by no means discourage anyone from seeing this. If people are still being touched by it, by all means GO SEE IT and enjoy it.

EDIT: And form your own conclusion about the film. All the more reason to see it for yourself.

Updated On: 11/13/05 at 10:05 PM

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 11/13/05 at 10:29pm

BroadwayGirl's review is VERY balanced....Check out this review someone just posted on TalkinBroadway.com -- very bitter old hag...

Evict the RENTers!


Posted by: dolsen 04:33 pm EST 11/13/05

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just got home from a screening of RENT--the clunkiest, most cluttered, overwrought, poorly directed, musical to film, production I've ever seen.

edited for copyright Updated On: 11/14/05 at 10:29 PM