I will now list the musicals of stage and screen that I have loved.
Rocky Horror Picture Show. Fame. Well...maybe list isn't the right word to use.
OK, so it's the pair of musicals that I have loved. No, I did not love Saturday Night Fever. Never even saw Grease. The Sound Of Music? The hills are alive with the sound of me changing the channel.
I can't tell you how many times someone has said to me, "You must love musicals!" They're always taken aback to see that uncomfortable look spread across my face. I don't know what it is about the genre. The emotions seem too...telegraphed? And just when things get interesting...a song! (One weird counterexample was Steven Bochco's gawd-awful Cop Rock. So bad that it was good. Sort of.)
So why review Rent, the soundtrack? Simple. I gave it a listen and enjoyed the hell out of it.
I hope that fans of this movie (Are there any? I keep hearing bad voodoo coming from reviewland) are not upset by the following facts: I don't really know what Rent is about (which is only fair, since I don't know what La Boheme is about either). I haven't seen the play. I haven't seen the film. I probably won't see the play. Or the movie.
Well, maybe. In any event, this soundtrack is just full of fun tunes. Here I have to admit that the smorgasbord of styles is making me remember sitting around blasting the Fame soundtrack when I was a kid (Sorry, but "Hot Lunch Jam" was a great song). "Seasons Of Love", asking us how we place value on a year in the life, is pretty inspiring. The thrashy "Rent" is a blast. "Out Tonight" is a pure arena-rock fistwaver. I also like how "Take Me or Leave Me" puts a new spin on the old pop nugget "Lean On Me".
Right, so after hearing these songs it's pretty obvious that there's a lot of yearning going on, that the characters are struggling through (and trying to make sense of) life. Hey, who doesn't? Surely a universal theme.
Shoot, maybe I'll see this movie after all.
First posted on Mark Is Cranky
Article comments
1 - Natalie Davis
See it, Mr. Saleski, just see it. I loved the hell out of it (admitted Renthead here). I suspect you would too. Just go in with an open mind and open ears. And, if anything, there is Rosario Dawson dancing around poles.
2 - Mark Saleski
yes ms. davis, i probably will.
i must admit that i've actually become a little more open to stuff like this over the past couple of years. stepson #3 has done a bunch of set design/construction and technical direction for several outfits in our area. i've gone to the shows and really enjoyed them.
even without somebody engaging in pole dancing.
3 - Mary K. Williams
"And just when things get interesting...a song!"
as much as I love musicals, that is actually pretty annoying.
but that's why its a musical, and not a play with straight dialogue throughout.
4 - Connie Phillips
Raising hand as another musical fan, here. I've been hesitating on seeing the film, becuase I haven't been able to see the Broadway production yet. Which I really like to see an "original" before a follow up, just for comparrison purposes, but I think in this case I'll make an exception.
5 - Natalie Davis
Keep in mind that Rent is a reworking of the Puccini opera, "La Boheme." The songs in opera -- and in this show/film -- are dialogue, inerior monologue and exposition. The film uses a little more spoken-word than the stage show, but not much more. The late writer Jonathan Larson's messages are found within the songs. (How do you measure a year in the life? How about love?)
6 - DJRadiohead
I am with you on musicals, Saleski.
I haven't won a fight since 2nd grade and I bet I could kick the ass of every fucker in "West Side Story." We'll snap them to death. Fucks.
My mom liked the movie. I'd be interested to hear the music. I doubt I could do the movie.
7 - Don Baiocchi
"Hot Lunch Jam" was a GREAT song! Good call.
And Rent does have some noteworthy songs. My personal favorite is "Sante Fe."