There will always be women in rubber flirting with me!

maureen1
Originally uploaded by veryapeaz.

As you know, I got to see an advanced screening of RENT, last night. I was so afraid that the queens in this town were going to get there hours ahead of time. So, I made Angi, Sloppy Joey and Buddy meet me there at 5. I guess there aren't any die-hard RENT heads in the Valley, cuz the line didn't start til 6.

First, a little aside. We were laughing at SJ because he took a few different "Which RENT character are you?" quizzes. Each one said he was Joanne, even after declaring his gender as being male. The following converation ensued:

Ted: I don't need to take one because I know who I am.
Angi: Who's that?
Ted: Maureen

Simultaneously spoken without so much as a second transpiring after the N left my lips.
Angi: Oh GOD yes!
Buddy: Yes definitely!
(note the exclamation points)

Thanks guys. :-P

So, they finally let us into the theater but there's a hiccup. No cell phones with cameras are allowed in. I took Angi's and my phones to Guest Services and checked them in. Then I had to empty my pockets and get wanded by security. I've gotten into Metallica concerts with less trouble.

SPOILERS: IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW ABOUT CHANGES FROM THE MUSICAL TO THE MOVIE PLEASE DON'T READ ANYMORE

Finally, the moment had arrived. The lights dimmed and Seasons of Love starts playing. They moved it from the beginning of Act II, to the opening number. But it's just like the musical--all of the actors are standing there in a line. Shortly after, RENT starts--there are no singing voice messages.

The sound was really low and I had to strain to hear. In fact, I could hear the guy eating popcorn behind me better than the entire company screaming out against social injustice. Fortunately, the manager kept walking up and down the aisle (to ensure we weren't bootlegging the movie) and upped the sound.

I wasn't crazy about how they did RENT. They cut out all of Joanne's lines, so there's this weird instrumental part where she's supposed to be singing. And it seemed really BIG. RENT, the musical not the song, is pretty minimalistic and I was concerned that everything was going to be BIGGER.

But the rest was pure magic. In fact, it was much more intimate than seeing it in a theater.

Much of it is a blur now. I do know that everybody in it was either great or fan-fucking-tastic.

Personally, every time Jesse L. Martin was in a scene my eyes were glued on him. He has this screen presence that makes you want to focus solely on him (plus he's a hottie).

For some reason they cut out Halloween and Goodbye Love, despite being on the Official Movie Soundtrack. From the stage production they cut out a lot of songs, noticeably You Okay Honey, We're Okay, Christmas Bells and Happy New Year. They used dialogue in place of the songs. I was most upset about Christmas Bells. I love that song. Maybe it'll show up on the DVD.

Anyway, as Buddy mentioned in his comments Without You and I'll Cover You (reprise) were just gut wrenching. What I liked about the movie version is that during Without You the friends stayed together. In the musical (if memory serves me correctly) they all split up after New Year's and don't get back together until Angel's funeral. In the movie they are all at his bedside, visiting him as he gets increasingly sicker. I liked the idea that the friends banded together, despite all of the relationship drama. But it was just so painful to see Angel sick and Collins' reaction. And the movie is quite graphic. You can see lesions on Angel's face and he can barely keep his eyes open.

Despite all of the death and turmoil, the movie ends on an up note. Yeah!

Our row of people waited until the credits rolled out their entirety, humming along to the music (or singing if you're SJ). Ever the smart ass (I think I've used that description on him before), Buddy yelled out, "What? No funny outtakes?"

I'm so excited to see it again! I'm going Wednesday night, possibly with Steven and Kelly. I think I'm going to see it again after dinner on Turkey Day. Run out and see this film. If you are a RENT hater and hate the film, please do me a favor and check yourself into the hospital. Cuz bitches, you ain't got no heart.