525,600 Minutes...

Saw Rent this afternoon. Hmmmm. Kind of a yawn, sadly. It's destined to go down in history as one of the nobler failures of the transition from stage to screen. The movie isn't awful ... it's just sort of flat. The stage show is full of zip, bang, energy, crackling intensity, and great urgency. The movie just isn't. I've read numerous reviews that call it a directorial misfire ... and I have to agree. Chris Columbus was simply a bad choice. This film should have been directed by someone more gritty and "streetwise." Spike Lee was attached to it for years, and although Spike makes my ass itch, he would have been an infinitely better choice. The performances are all very good -- most notable Jesse L. Martin. He's flat-out fantastic. I knew he could sing, of course, and he's been very good on TV over the years ... but he just sizzles in this movie. Rosario Dawson comports herself nicely -- I've grown to like her a lot lately. She was fun and sassy in Sin City, and her Mimi here is appropriately sweet and tragic. Tracie Thoms is another stand-out. She's a wise Joanne ... and the girl can SING. Her "Take Me or Leave Me" with Idina Menzel (who we all know can sing) is fun and defiant. I liked her a lot. It's too bad the movie as a whole wasn't better. The film does point out the flaws in the script pretty distinctly -- the third act is a rambling mess, with little to grab or keep our interest, and Angel's death plays so much better on stage. But ... "oh well." I enjoyed seeing some of the great songs on the big screen and it was fun to see so much of the original cast intact. A curious misfire.