I haven’t watched too many movie musicals. I have heard of the movie Rent before but I never really knew what it was about apart from the fact that it was a musical. The only song I knew from the soundtrack was “Seasons of Love” because I remember singing it in chorus back in high school. Walking into class, I was actually really excited to watch the film and see what this well-known musical is about. The story turned out to be not just about rent but about a group of close friends and artists who are faced with poverty but still remain true to themselves and their art. The plot was very moving but the soundtrack is what carried the movie. The beautiful songs that were performed really made this a memorable musical.

It was very interesting to learn that Rent is actually based on the opera La Boheme which we had the chance to see live at the Metropolitan Opera. I liked seeing the connections between the movie and the opera and how the film was able to take the themes of the original story and adapt it to the modern world. Each of the characters was faced with their own struggles but in the end, they still held together as group. Angel’s death was one of the most emotional parts of the movie as it showed the harsh reality of life and how powerful love and friendship is. Even in a world full of poverty and illness, the bond of love allows people to stay strong and keep going even in the most difficult times. I thought that the soundtrack was incredible and each song served to bring more emotion and development to each character. I was able to really understand each character’s struggles through the songs they performed as they told their individual stories. The score was absolutely incredible and really made me enjoy the movie.

Although I thought the story was very interesting and reflected on important issues in contemporary society, I felt that the ending was very unrealistic. I usually am a big fan of happy endings but in this case Mimi’s miraculous recovery felt very unrealistic and took away from the grittiness of the movie. In the opera, Mimi’s character dies which shows how harsh and often unfair life is. It adds a sense of realism which leaves the audience with a big emotional impact. However, in the movie this ending was changed and Mimi’s character lived. Even though it was a good happy ending, I think that the movie would have been stronger if it kept the original ending of the story.

Overall, I thought that the movie was very enjoyable to watch and told a very powerful and emotional story. The actors did a phenomenal job of portraying their characters and the incredible soundtrack really helped carry the story. This movie comes to show that the themes of poverty and love are timeless and can move audiences for generations to come.