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RENT
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SLIM SHADY
(new)
Jan 28, 2009 06:00PM
I dont know if you would count this as a drama musical but its a really good movie... My third oldest brother is at the play tonight I hope he likes it!!! what did you think of it?
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The movie was terrible. But I blame that on the director. The play, for the most part, is quite entertaining. Especially when Maureen gets the entire theatre to moo. The songs are a lot of fun, even if some of them are hopelessly sappy.
Dreadful film. A film set in New York, in which a man seeks to get away from a bunch of muggers by running INTO a dark alley. Jonathan Larson turns over in his grave everytime that terrible thing is shown.Unforgiveable. It should have been so much better. Don't get me started. The casting is terrible, they're all ten years too old for their roles. Ugh. Can we just forget this movie was made? Please? Please?
this movie was not horrible what r u talkin about
I didn't like the film when it was released. I thought it was silly and sanitized and had nothing to do with life in New York City. I've seen it a couple of times since then on cable, and find nothing to change my views. The story has been sanitized in the transfer from stage to screen. A particularly unpleasant episode (suicide of girlfriend, discovery of HIV infection) in one character's life is removed, and a good deal of his motivations go with it.
There are plenty of big silly gestures that make no sense at all. In the opening song, Roger and Mark are in their big loft apartment burning papers to stay warm. Then, for some reason, they decide to dump their burning papers out the window, and a lot of other people decide to do the same thing, so there is a lot burning paper being dumped out of a lot of East Village windows. Okay, maybe excusable as a Big Gesture in a Musical, but it seems excessive in a movie about people who would resolutely reject such Big Gestures.
At the beginning of the movie, Collins is being chased by a bunch of thugs, and, like any intelligent New Yorker, he runs right into a convenient dark alley so the thugs can beat the living daylights out of him. How can I take a movie seriously that contains idiocy like that?
And it has been said, but I will say it again: no self-respecting East Village musician of that period would have worn their hair the way Adam Pascal wears it in the film. Those golden Farrah Fawcett locks are absolutely ridiculous.
people have opinions. it's their right to express them.
I thought the film didnt have any bite to it, for its setting. But it was still entertaining. I love musicals but this is not one I will watch over and over.
This was a good musical, did you hear that the two main actors in the movie were in the play? My brother and his friends got to see it at the Oven's Auditorium, and the got to meet the two main actors!!!! So lucky.
Didn't like the movie. It felt a little over the top so it was a little hard to relate or feel with the characters, let alone the issues. And I like Adam Pascal, but even that couldn't save this movie for me. This is one of the musicals I'd rather see on stage than on film.
I saw Rent, both the play and the movie. I did not enjoy either very much but I saw them both with some of my favorite people. Rent reminds me of my life in a loft on the lower east side but my life was more interesting. maryanne raphael
I saw Rent, both the play and the movie. I did not enjoy either very much but I saw them both with some of my favorite people. Rent reminds me of my life in a loft on the lower east side but my life was more interesting. maryanne raphael
I JUST saw the movie. The original that they made. I really really liked it! It's a bit weird with the Gays/Lesbians, but once I get past that it is awesome! I wasn't allowed to see it when I was younger, so I finally got around to watching it at a friends house.
So NinjaFanpire, what's a bit weird with the Gays/Lesbians?
That was my question for NinjaFanpire too as I was reading that post Tom..... ;)
Well, okay, here is my stance on the matter.I do not agree with gays/lesbians. I do not support gays/lesbians. HOWEVER, I do respect that people in the United States have the right and freedom to be gay/straight/lesbian/bi if they want to, just as they have the freedom to be Mormon/Christian/Catholic/Jewish/etc.
I just feel that it's a bit weird for two girls or guys to kiss (besides family). But, if I was going along just minding my own business and I see two same gender people making out, I'm not going to start cussing at them or throwing rocks or insulting them. I would probably say "ew" in my head, but then I would keep minding my own business. It's the same if I saw two Mormons walking down the street. I wouldn't hurl insults at them and tell them they are wrong just because they have a different religion than I do. It's their choice to be Mormon.
So that is my stand. Respect, not agreeance.
I also don't really like what Mimi wears when she's working at the strip club/bar wherever she works.
Well, the song "La Vie Boheme" must have gotten your knickers in a twist, then, eh?
I feel bad for Mark in that song. Everybody is looking into their lovers eyes and his just dancing alone at the end.
Well, okay, here is my stance on the matter.I do not agree with Jews. I do not support Jews. HOWEVER, I do respect that people in the United States have the right and freedom to be Jews if they want to.
I just feel that it's a bit weird for people to deny that Jesus is the Messiah. But, if I was going along just minding my own business and I see two Jews, I'm not going to start cussing at them or throwing rocks or insulting them. I would probably say "ew" in my head, but then I would keep minding my own business. It's the same if I saw two blacks walking down the street. I wouldn't hurl insults at them and tell them they are wrong just because they are a different race or ethnicity than I am. It's their choice to be black.
So that is my stand. Respect, not agreeance.
Oh NinjaFanpire. So innocently ignorant. I want to give you a hug and show you the way.
Ah, NinjaFanpire. One day you'll grow up and realize how utterly bigoted, stupid and offensive your stance on the matter is. Just when I start thinking that gays and lesbians have actually made some progress, I read something like your post, and I am reminded of exactly how far we have to go. Agreeance, indeed. Dear God.
What do you mean Tom? It's not like he/she would throw ROCKS at the gays or lesbians or hurl insults or swears. That's pretty forward thinking right?NO?
no. not so much.
I usually love Musicals. I was disappointed with Rent. It reminded me of my days on the Lower East Side but our loft was more fun and more creative.Maryanne Raphael
Steve, not all Jews are black. And that's taking it a step further, to racism.
If I would have known that I was going to be insulted for my opinion then I would have kept it to myself. Who's hurling insults at who now?
Love the music!! Some of the story line is a bit weird, but it's nice to listen to the music. Seasons of Love is a great song.
NinjaFanpire, no one actually hurled any insults that I can see. Tom only said your STANCE was utterly bigoted, stupid and offensive....not you. I suppose he did imply that you need to grow up but that's not so bad. I am personally very glad that you shared your opinion because I like to know how other people see the world. I thought you were very honest and frank about your stance, which I appreciate. However, I may not agree that simply NOT throwing rocks at someone means you respect them.
I wrote that merely to illustrate that holding negative views against gays and lesbians is considered a legitimate point of view in society. Replace "gays/lesbians" with ANY other group of people, and you're considered a racist/bigot/whatever by the vast majority of society. Yet politicians run and succeed on homophobic platforms, and a basic right of happiness for gays and lesbians is allowed to be voted upon by people who despise them.
Yes, Ninja, as Gretchen said. Thank you for sharing your utterly stupid, bigoted and offensive views, which to be fair I did after all ask you to do. I respect your right to hold such utterly stupid, bigoted and offensive views. I do hope that at some point you realize how utterly stupid, bigoted and offensive your views are.
And you should keep in mind that when you express stupid, bigoted and offensive views, there will often be a response from those who your views are stupid, bigoted and offensive about.
And thanks for coining the new word of the week: "agreeance."
Moreover, by saying that racism is "a step further" from homophobia, you're essentially saying that gays and lesbians are somehow less human than other groups of people, because hatred towards them is less vile than hatred towards another group of people. This is the greatest point of all, IMO. I sincerely hope you see that at some point in the future.
Your post also suggests that it is a choice to be gay. It is not a choice to be gay, just as it is not a choice to be black, Jewish, Hispanic, or Irish. My gay friends would get a chuckle out of that. As one of them said, "Yes, one day I woke up and decided to be HATED by three quarters of Americans!"
One more point: Ninja's comfort in telling a public forum her views on gays and lesbians illustrates how widely accepted homophobia is as a legitimate point of view. I have a hard time believing anyone would feel as comfortable on this forum saying "I don't support [fill in the blank with minority of your choice:]" as Ninja is about gays and lesbians.
And one thing you are forgetting, NinjaFanpire: you can indeed choose to be Mormon, Catholic, Buddhist, what have you. You cannot choose to be gay. As the saga of Ted Haggard has so clearly shown us, you can dedicate your entire life to trying to get rid of homosexuality from both society and yourself, and in both regards, you will fail. It will always be there. Many animals have same sex attractions. Humans are one of those animals. And as it is a completely benign part of life and humanity, there is nothing to "agree" or "disagree" about. And I've yet to see a sound, logical argument against it.
Interesting how NinjaFanPire gave such a high rating to WICKED, the novel and the musical, considering her appallingly stupid and offensive etc. views. Evidently Ninja didn't pay terribly close attention to what the novel and musical are actually about. And neither work is especially subtle.And by the way, the novel was written by Gregory Maguire a gay man who lives with his partner and their adopted children, and the score for the musical was written by a gay man.
I'm also struck by the language Ninja used to express her active dislike with gays. "I do not agree with gays/lesbians" as if being gay or lesbian was an opinion. It is rather like saying "I do not agree with Mount Everest" as a rather cowardly way of saying one hates mountains.
Anyway, enough. Bye bye, Ninja. Back to discussion about movies.
Final thought: I really do hope that this thread has at least forced Ninja into rethinking her views on gays and lesbians and society as a whole.Yes, back to movies.
But the one of the biggest differences between us is that I see it as a choice you all see it as a lifestyle(I couldn't think of a better word to describe it).I've seen the musical Wicked, and read part of the book, and yes I know Gregory Maguire is gay. Does that mean that I won't read his books? No.
Wicked was a well written novel, although highly mature and unnecessarily detailed. The musical was pure family, and much different than the book (as my step-dad said: "They only kept the names" (of the characters)) .
As for my stance, Steve: Unchanged.
And as Tom and Steve said: Back to the movie!
I really liked the music in Rent.The Rent song was really cool with all the fire.
One of my favorite songs even before I saw the movie was Tango Moreen.
I also like Light My Candle
(By the way, Gretchen called me ignorant. Does that not sound like an insult?)
NinjaFanpire wrote: "(By the way, Gretchen called me ignorant. Does that not sound like an insult?)"Nope. "Idiot" is an insult. "Ignorant" is a determination about a person's level of knowledge. You aren't knowledgeable about GLBT people (especially if you refer to being gay as a "lifestyle" when there is no such thing as a "gay lifestyle"). That's all "ignorant" means. Essentially, you lack knowledge on the subject. It's not an insult to point that out. For example, it's "Tango: Maureen", not "Moreen". You were not knowledgeable about the spelling, but now you are.
Actually I do believe I've seen Tango Moreen both ways.
NinjaFanpire wrote: "Actually I do believe I've seen Tango Moreen both ways."Where did you see it spelled your way? A play bill? The soundtrack casing? I've seen both, and they were both spelled "Maureen". And Wikipedia seems to agree:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_(mu...
No, I didn't mean about the Moreen, Maureen part. I thought Jill was talking about the little : in between Tango and Maureen. Sorry I spelled her name wrong.
Interesting how Ninja finds Gretchen's use of the word "ignorant" to be insulting, but doesn't seem to be bothered by my characterization of her views as stupid and bigoted and offensive.Dear Ninja, I guess then that you'll read books by gays (as long as they're not too mature and unnecessarily detailed) and go to musicals by gays, as well as not throwing stones at us. On behalf of the entire gay community, my sincere thanks for giving us your money, and for your massive self control in not throwing stones or insulting us or burning crosses on our lawns. If only you'd bothered to think a little more carefully about what WICKED was actually about, a little more deeply than the difference in storylines between book and musical.
But this may be way too much to expect of someone whose reaction to RENT is only that "(i)t's a bit weird with the Gays/Lesbians, but once I get past that it is awesome!" It feels a bit like someone saying that DO THE RIGHT THING was a bit weird with the black people, but once I get past that it is awesome!
And considering how much of RENT has to do with Gays/Lesbians, the ratio of Weird to Awesome must be pretty high.
You're going to meet gay people in your life, unless you lead the really incredibly sheltered life which it seems you're well started on. Unless you want to be on the receiving end of lectures far harsher than anything you've gotten here, I'd advise you to keep your mouth SHUT on the topic of homosexuality until you learn a little more about the topic from more informed sources than Fox News.
There. My last word on this topic, I promise. At least until someone starts that BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN thread up again, prompting someone to make some stupid remarks about gay cowboys.
The fun never stops.
Oh, did I miss a Brokeback Mountain thread?
For REAL! This group is so mild mannered it's almost annoying. I was actually trying to be as nice as possible because if you're mean around here people get their knickers in a twist. I wasn't being sarcastic when I said I was grateful for your honesty, Ninja. I meant it. Tom,
I'll believe it when I see it. :)
Jill, yeah, it was a while back, you can find it. Some dope made some stupid remarks, it was just appalling, and of course she hadn't seen the movie.
I HAVE met gay people. There were 2-3 guys in my high school that I knew were gay. And they were pretty nice people. And one of them was friends with me.And yes, I have lived a very sheltered life and that is not my fault. My parents made the rules when I was younger.
Tom wrote: "more informed sources than Fox News."A roll of toilet paper, for example, the back of a cereal box...
I find this talk a waste of time . What are we discussing sexual orientation or race or ancestry instead of art? I am completely bored with this. I wou ld be angry if i took it seriouselyh Please do not send me any mre emails about this or about Rent Choose another topic Thanks maryanne
Who's emailing you Maryanne? Are you talking to the goodreads gods?
