Movie Review: RENT

I've decided that every now and then I'll post a movie review on my blog. If anybody has any movie in particular they want me to review I'd be happy to consider it. I'm starting with RENT for a few reasons. The first reason is that it is my favorite musical as a stage show and the second is that I've come across a lot of negative reviews of it that I, as a true RENThead, feel the need to counter. Yes, this will sound a bit defensive in the beginning but please bare with me.
The first thing to know about RENT is that the content can be offensive to some people. There is some cussing, it shows a gay couple and a lesbian couple, there's a scene where a character moons some people and of course RENT deals with drugs and AIDS. First of all, the movie does not promote drug use. Only one character is using and she's trying to quit. Second of all, if you can be at all open-minded about homosexuality and the thought of people living a different lifestyle than it's really not all that bad. I found a user on Netflix call this movie "a disgusting tribute to all things morally vial." I found this to be a gross overstatement because the movie is, in the end, about love and how there's "no day but today" and making each moment count.
People have said that RENT is a bunch of people whining about not wanting to pay the rent and being too lazy to get a job. That is most definitely not the point of this movie. If that's all a person takes from this movie they haven't watched past the first couple of scenes. The characters are trying to figure out how to live their lives when they have essentially been given a death sentence by being diagnosed as HIV-positive. They struggle to pay the rent because they are trying to stay true to their art, what they're passionate about. And some of them do have regular jobs. Joanne is a lawyer, and Collins teaches at NYU.
Alright, my defensive part is over. I felt that this was a good adaption of the play. Songs were cut but in most cases that makes it work better as a movie. The only song I'm really upset they didn't include is the final half of "Goodbye Love" because it would work on film and is somewhat important in my opinion. The cast, I felt, did an excellent job, but I have to agree that the members of the original Broadway cast who revised their roles, while excellent actors and singers, were probably a bit too old at this point for the parts. Still, I can live with that.
RENT is a beautiful story told with incredible music that completely washes over you. It will fill you with joy and grief and several emotions in between. To those who usually stay away from musicals, be aware that this movie is told more by singing than talking so you will have a lot of musical numbers coming up one right after the other. If an unrealistic, but happier, ending isn't your thing than you might want to consider avoiding this movie. The ending, however, is what fits with the story and its message.
What this movie does is present a group of people living what would probably be considered alternate lifestyles without judging them. It never seems too preachy to me, however. I recommend, if possible, watching both this movie and the stage show if you like the music and the story because they both have their strengths and weaknesses. For age group I'd say...teenagers would probably be the youngest, it's really a judgement call and depends on the maturity of the teen. I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars.