Cult Flops - Rent

Sony/Columbia, 2005
Starring Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, Jesse L. Martin, and Rosario Dawson
Directed by Chris Columbus
Music and Lyrics by Johnathan Larson

Rent was a phenomenon in New York in the mid-late 90's. One of its creators, Johnathan Larson, had helped create it around 1989 and continued working on it for the next six years, hoping that his rock opera would bring Broadway to a generation raised on rock and MTV. It was a smash when it debuted off-Broadway in January 1996...but Larson wasn't there to witness its success. He died of a rare disease shortly before its opening. Larson's death and the raw, open sound did indeed draw many young people to the stage and proved that musicals could be more than family fare. The show's popularity may have worked against itself when it was adapted to film almost nine years later. What happened? Well, let's head to a stage in New York's East Village and find out...

The Story: It's a year in the life of a group of performers, artists, and academics in the East Village from December 1989 to 1990. Roger (Pascal), a rock musician who hasn't been able to sell his work, and Mark (Rapp), an aspiring documentary filmmaker, have their electricity cut off when their former friend Benny (Taye Diggs) demands rent he promised they wouldn't have to pay. He wants to knock down the tenement and build a state of the art "cyber studio." Mark's ex-girlfriend Maureen (Idina Menzel) is a performance artist holding a protest against these plans. Meanwhile, their AIDS-positive friend Tom (Martin) falls for a kind-hearted drag queen street drummer named Angel (Wilson Germaine Heredia), and Roger finds himself head-over-heels for Mimi (Dawson), a HIV-positive dancer in a strip joint.

Mark is thrilled when he's able to sell footage from a raid on Maureen's protest. Maureen celebrates by finally getting together with her girlfriend, uptight lawyer Joanne (Tracie Toms), but they break it off after she catches Maureen flirting with another woman at their engagement party. Tired of her heroin addiction, Roger also eventually breaks off with Mimi, and the group goes their separate ways after Angel dies of complications from AIDS. Roger takes off to move to Santa Fe, but he can't forget Mimi and ends up back in New York. In the end, as Mark debuts his documentary on those living with the AIDS/HIV virus, the others remember how wonderful life can be...and that there really is "no day like today."

The Song and Dance: At least you can't fault most of the performances. There's some excellent singers here pouring their heart into Larson's soaring music. I didn't know about half of these people had such gorgeous voices, especially Dawson and Martin. Martin and Heredia are the stand-outs as the anarchist philosophy professor and his devoted lover, the much-loved and aptly-named transvestite. Menzel also has a great time as the fickle performer who can't commit to one lover, no matter what she tells her girlfriend.

Favorite Number: Both versions of "Viva La Boheme!" revel in some nice choreography and lively performances, as does the second version of this musical's signature tune, "Seasons of Love." Rapp and Toms discuss why Maureen drives them crazy - and shows off a sensational tropical pas de deux - in "Tango: Maureen." Angel and Tom get two great duets, the upbeat "Tonight 4 U" after Angel earns enough money for a decent Christmas dinner, and the touching "I'll Cover You." Heredia is obviously enjoying himself in the former, delightedly kicking through in his cute red and white feather-trimmed outfit. Menzel and Toms reveal why their differences are pushing each other apart in the delightful duet "Take Me or Leave Me."

Trivia: After Larson's death and a sensational opening, this proved to be so popular, it was moved to the Nederlander Theater on Broadway. It went on to win four Tonys and the Pulitzer Prize and ran there for over a decade, finally closing in 2008. Menzel, Rapp, Pascal, Martin, Heredia, and Diggs were all in the original cast. The final performance was filmed and released as Rent: Live on Broadway. A London production with a lot of the same cast didn't do quite as well, only running a year. There was a brief off-Broadway revival in 2011.

This is based after the opera La Boheme, by Giacomo Pucinni, and and actually uses a lot of the original plot.

What I Don't Like: This is another Broadway show that probably should have stayed on the stage. Much of it feels stagey and static, despite frequently being filmed outside. There's too much talk and not nearly enough action. Pascal comes off as dull outside of his stunning voice, and Dawson isn't terribly believable as a heroin junkie stripper. Columbus, best known for family-friendly action films like Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, wasn't the right director for this. He just doesn't have the punch or the grit to make us care about most of these characters.

Also, the obvious general warning that this is a rock opera. It's not for people who are looking for lighter, less overtly musical fare or who aren't fans of that genre of music.

The Big Finale: Broadway fans and many New York critics were especially hard on this when it came out, complaining about the direction and the stagy feel. I say, if you can get around the inappropriate choice of director and the stage-bound numbers, you might find a few hidden gems in this gritty urban tale.

Home Media: On DVD and streaming; the two-disc DVD can often be found or under five dollars.

DVD
Amazon Prime