——Please RENT a Better Movie———
I tried to go into the film with an open mind. I tried to appreciate what stories it tried to tell, what eras they were trying to capture, have sympathy for the artist characters, and consider their struggles, but I couldn’t. While the film succeeds in portraying (some of) the characters as struggling artists or stark individuals, it also gives little context for their narratives and struggles outside of the AIDs epidemic. Almost everyone comes off as an unfocused, lustful, entitled or utterly absurd person.
Benny, despite being portrayed as the villain, is the only character+that took the time to do good for himself, and others BEFORE the death of Angel, and that I could have sympathy for without struggling with AIDs. Benny offered his friends jobs in an art studio in place of their rent payments that were due for a YEAR, (which his friends refused), didn’t disrupt the protest of said studio, and tried to help his ex with her addiction.
The movie tries to give redeemable qualities to the other characters but fails when anyone looks at them critically.
Maureen cannot satiate her endless, unexplained lust, leading to a poor relationship with TWO SEPERATE people, and stages a sorry excuse for a protest that she uses to give a nonsensical performance. Maureen’s “art” isn’t explained well, leading to me assume she’s a singer, despite only seeing her sing once.
Joanne refuses to leave her toxic relationship with Maureen, even after hearing Mark’s warnings about her behavior.
Angel, despite suffering from AIDs, takes the life of an innocent dog earlier in the film and mocks suicide in one of his numbers.
Mark is incredibly awkward, and refuses to find viable work while making his film, simply because getting a job is “corporate”.
Mimi has similarly unjustified promiscuous behaviors like Maureen. Her struggles with “art” as well as her sudden love for Roger are never explained.
Tom Collins (is implied to have) used his teaching job as platofrm to push his Anarchist ideals, rightfully leading to him being fired. Despite being intelligent, Collins can’t hold down a stable job after that.
Roger spontaneously falls in love with a woman (Mimi) he BARELY knew just after recovering from the death of his first lover from AIDs. Roger’s new lover also has AIDs and even after spending time apart from her and having trouble with their relationship, INSTANTLY has feelings for her again in a scene at the very end that serves no purpose.
The movie would have benefited GREATLY from providing more background to the characters’ past and finding ways to humanize them besides AIDs. Countless things occur at a rapid speed with almost no set-up or cohesion that the audience is supposed to understand or feel for.
Much like the artists themselves, this movie desperately wants to be great but is too entitled and undisciplined to make something of itself. It’s all style with no substance, revealing the true hell that is Bohemia.
